You do not need to be affiliated with UT to use their basic searching and ordering service. This is often the only way to obtain federal agency reports such as DOE, AEC, NRC, DOD, EPA, etc., and general reports with prefixes like PB, AD, etc. You need a report number to order. Dissertations U.S. dissertations can sometimes be borrowed from other universities via Interlibrary Service, but many schools do not loan them. You can order a print or electronic copy from UMI at the above link.
Prices vary according to format.
Patent Information Foreign chemical patents after 1970 are best obtained from CAS Document Delivery Service. U.S. patents are available on microfilm in the Engineering Library, and from the Delphion Patent Server. Other foreign patents are available from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for a nominal fee. Both Inter-Library Service and CAS DDS are available only to current UT students, faculty, and staff.