niques, and the increased interest in the problem of energy transfer and exeited states have brought attention to photnchemistry and have given the chemist the means oE investigating "the detailed history of a molecule which absorbs radiat,ionU whieh the editors of this new serie~ consider to be the fundamental photochemical problem. The authors of the first article recognize one of the distinct difficulties of a field which has developed from diverse areas. The "vocnb~~lary" of photoehemist,r,y tends to be a mixture of d l the speeialiaed languages and Pitts, Wilkinson, and Hammond strive to bring unity to a potent,ial chemical Babel. The vvlume continues with eight artirles written by the foremost contribut,ors to the various aspects of photoehemistry. The Photoehemistry of Aromatic Hydrccarbon Solutions is discussed by E. J. Bowen. The problems current. in this field are analyzed bnt the lack of a table of contents preceding the article makes some of the material difficult to find in the body of the text. The gas phnee photochemistry of the hydrogen-oxygen system is the subject of a review by D. H. Volman. The author carefully reviews t,he status of the understanding of the reactions and unresolved mechanisms in this system. R. Srinivasan follows with the Photoehemistry of the Cyclic Ketones which mainly deals with the 4 to 7-nremher ring system in vapor and condensed phase. The status of the gas phase addition of atoms to olefins is next discussed in great detail by R. J. CvetanoviC. Alt,hough the reactions of oxygen atoms occupy ahout half of the author's attention, he does not neglect hydrogen, halogen, carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur atoms in his discussion. I n A Xew Approach t o Mechanistic Organic Photochemistry, H. E. Zimmerman considers the nature of the electronirally excited species which is formed as a consequenre of the absorption of the light quanta by the ground state. The presentation is lively and will undoubtedly arouse considerable interest. Gunning and Strausz are concerned with the mechanism of energy transfer in merrury photmensitiration and the use of isotope effects to aid in that understanding. Their treatment of kinetic isotope effects, although dealing only with hydmgen-deuterium, is quite comprehensive and t,he inclusion of references as recent as Spring 1963, gives the paper a "hot-offt,he-p-" quahty. Photochromism, the reversible color changes which certain aubstmces undergo upon exposure t o light, is the topic of the review by Dessauer and Paris. They catalogue a large number of chemical systems which exhibit this phenomenon and discuss the changes in physical properties whieh accompany the color change. The final paper, Photochemical Resrrangements of Organic Molecules by 0.L. Chapman, is a 90-page study whieh offers to its readers a survey of a great deal of organic chemistry from simple keto-end isomerisation to the photochemical trmsformations of the Vitamin D series. There is s sense of urgency about the article reflected in the fact
that the majority of the 225 references cited deal with papers published in 1960 or later. For the organic chemist there is a rirh source of interesting rearrangements which might otherwise have been lost in the onrush of the literature. An extensive author and subject index fnllows the articles. If this volume is represent,ative of those to come in this series, then a serious gap in t,he literature af photochemistry will have been closed with some exciting writing by pioneers in the field. I highly recommend this volume ss a valuable reference hook to all who are interested in energy transfer, the chemistry of excited statet, and the many aspects of photochemistry. This series is long overdue and its appearance in this form is most welcome.
cedure, rhoice of wavelength, methods of standardiaation and measurement, de, tection limits, and errors and interferences. The latter topics are particularly well treated. Detection limits are given s sound definition and s. tsble of limits for all elements determinable (up to mid1962) is presented whieh includes several wavelengths for each element in a variety of flames using both wrtter and nonqueous salverrts. Interference mechanisms and instrumental and procedural techniques for minimizing interferences m e very w d treated although only the most important, (alkali metal cation-cation and alkaline earth) are discussed sp~eifiedly. The chapter on applications is short and cursory except for the eection on medicine and biology where blood analysis is described in some detail. References to $1 Z.HOFFMAN specific analytical applications that are in MORTON Boston University the bibliography are included in the index, Boston, Massachusetts whieh is excellent,, and they are easily located. The appendix contains very extensive wavelength tabIe,les and intensity data for atomic and molecular flame emitters, both bv element and bv wavelenpth. Alao in-
Chemical Analysis by Flame Photometry
Roland Herrrnann, University of Giessen, Germany, and C. T. J . Alkemde, University of Utrecht, Holland. Translated by Paul T. Gilbert, Jr., Beekman Instruments, Inc., Fullerton, California. 2nd rev. ed. Interscience Publishers ( a division of John Wiley and Sons), New York, 1963. Chemical Analysis Series, 644 pp. Figs. and Volume 14. xiv tables. 16 X 23.5 em. $00.00.
+
This monograph is the mast complete and up-to-date volume on flsme photametry readily accessible in this country and represents a fine addition to the Interscience series on Chemical Analysis. The authors are concerned with a critical evaluation of instn~mentationand analytical techniques and with the fundamental processes and reactions involved in flames and flame analysis. It. is not, and is clearly not intended to be a handbook of procedures and applications. The book begins with a discussion of the structure and properties of flames and reactions of analytical importance oceurring in them. I n this ehspter are also outlined in detail the various types of interferences occurring in flame photometry and their interdependence. This section is of particulas value because of the confusion surrounding the description and explanation of interferences that exist in t,he literature. One may disagree with details of their organization here but it is consistent, and it is helpful t,o have the terminology and definitions presented clearly and concisely at the start. A long chapter is devoted t o experimental variables and instrumentation. Components of flame photometers, spectrophotometers, and spectrographs and the variables involved in their onoration
amplifiration is given ts very brief treat. ment. Chapter 4, on analytical techniques is the heart of the text, containing detailed and critical discussions of andytical pro-
characteristics. A drawback to the book is the occasional awkward wording that occurs in the translation and makes rapid reading hard. Meaning is never obscured but this, eomb i n d with the detailed discussions and sonlo unfamiliar terminology may make i t difficult t o obtain information from the book quickly and efficiently. This is a minor flaw however, and the translator's contributions add significantly to the hook's usefulness. Research in fuel-rich flames, chemiluminescent excitation, and atomic absorption has progressed rapidly since the hook was written but, thanks t o the translator, much of i t is made available. As a. reference book this is superior t o Dean's "Flame Photometry," dthougb i t is not as concise or redable, and i t lacks the convenient summary of experimental conditions, interferences and applications given for each element by Dean. However, ita completeness and particularly the critical comparisons and evalnat,ions made by Herrmann and Alkemde throughout make their book a very valuable addition to any chemistry library. ALLENC. WEST Williams CoUege Williamtoum, Massachusetts
X-Ray Diffraction in Crystals, Imperfeef Cryrfalr, and Amorphous Bodies
Translated by Paul Lmrain, University of Montred, and Dnrothee Sainte-Marie Lorrain. W. H. Freeman and Company, San Franciso, 1963. x 378 pp. Figs. and tables. 16 X 24 cm. $11. A. Guinier, University of Paris.
+
Perhaps the first point t o make about this book is that it is not, and is not intended t o be, an introductory text in X-ray crystallography; there is no discussion of
(Continued on page A388)
