Over the past decade, the issue of uncontrolled growth of unsystematic information in Internet has remained acute for the scientific community. The problem of finding relevant information related to the distribution and autonomy of scientific information resources remains. A priority in the field of centralized access to the key scientifically significant sources of information is the creation of a united information space (UIS). The study aims to identify the main models to form systems integrating distributed information resources, and as a result to determine the structure of UIS formation in a research library. Two models were considered and analyzed in the study: a meta-aggregator and an integrated electronic library. During the analysis, elements, structure and a set of functions for users and employees of a research library are revealed for each model. The study allowed the drawing of the following conclusions: • The choice of a model for the UIS formation depends mostly on the formulation of tasks, the solution of which is the purpose of creating a system, as well as on the technological potential of the organizations involved in the process. •Multifunctionality of the system allows simultaneous use of the above-mentioned formation models. • Adding the element of interactivity to the structure of UIS of the research library will allow timely monitoring of changes in the information needs of scientists, reduction of time, labor and financial costs of both the library and a user. The article presents the criteria for choosing a model. For the first time the optimal effective structure of the UIS in the research library is described.