BOOK REVIEWS University of Wisconsin's 4442 holdings in early chemical, medical, and pharmaceutical hooks, including those of the Duveen collection acquired in 1951. Samuel Ives, Reese Jenkins, and John Neu compiled the catalog, which has been edited by the Last named.
Flame Spectroscopy.
Parts 1-3
Radu Mawodineanu, North American Philips Co., Inc., Briarcliff Manor, New York (parts 1 and 3), and H a r i Boiteuz, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Bellevue, Seine et Oise, France (part 2). John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, 1965. xiv 721 pp. Figs. and tables. 23.5 X 30.5 em. $42.
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This book is a treatise designed to cover all aspects of analytical flame spectroscopy except practical applications. It constitutes, in greatly expanded and revised form, the second edition of the volume published in French by the same authors in 1954. The book is divided into three parts. The first part deals with the structure and properties of flames, temperature measurement, acetylene as a fuel gas, and details of instrumentation and experi-
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mental technique. Chapters on interferences and atomic absorption are included. Burners and atomizers using acetylene are covered in detail, but other fuel gases scarcely discussed. There is a chapter on the photographic plate hut electronic detection and instrumentation are mentioned only in passing. Part two includes chapters on the principles of spectroscopy from a historical viewpoint, discussions of the theory of atomic and molecular spectra, and detailed descriptions of the emission spectra of air acetylene and oxy-acetylene flames rtnd of the elements in these flames. Both atomio and molecular species are covered in detail with intensities, wavelengths, spectral term symbols, and emitting species identilied for each line and band. The use of standardized experimental conditions simplifies comparisons among elements. Three chapters in this part discuss the topics of thermal equilibrium in flames (from the point of view of thermodynamies and statistical mechanics), line shape and intensity, and flame reactions and excitation processes (including ehemilumineseence). The discussion focuses on the mechanism of energy release and transfer in flames, and the way this gives rise to emisson and absorption of radistion. Much of this material has not been combined in this way before and for some readers these will he the most interesting chapters in the text. Part three consists of a series of photo-
graphic plates of flame spectra. of the elements, tables of emission lines and hands arranged by wavelength, and several bibliographies, compiled st different times during the book's production, which refer to practical applications of 5ame spectroscopy. It is gratifying to see papers listed that appeared in 1964, but only the bibliography of papers published before 1929 has its own index and this limits the practical usefulness of the others. However, each chapter has its own bihliography and this greatly simplifies references to particular topics in the text. Mavrodineanu and Baiteux have written a valuable reference hook containing an immense amount of material, much of which has not been collected in one volume before. However, coverage is uneven in places. Burners and atomizers are discussed in detail suitable to a journal article, whde the chapter on interferences is too brief. Photographic detection is emphasized, electronic techniques largely ignored. Instrumentation and spectral data deal almost exclusively with acetylene flames. These are not serious drawbacks by any means, but they me significant in a book of this size and cost, and, unless one needs the detailed coverage and makes thorough use of it, 8. shorter text such as Hermsnn and Alkemade or Dean will be satisfactory. ALLENC. WEST Williems College Williamstm,Mass.
