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Book & Media Reviews
Two reference books are showcased in this month’s reviews. L. H. J. Lajunen and P. Perämäki’s second edition of Spectrochemical Analysis by Atomic Absorption and Emission is a comprehensive overview of atomic absorption and emission techniques, theory, and specialized applications. J. Throck Watson and O. David Sparkman have published the fourth edition of Introduction to Mass Spectrometry: Instrumentation, Applications, and Strategies for Data Interpretation, which can also serve as a textbook. Introduction to Mass Spectrometry: Instrumentation, Applications, and Strategies for Data Interpretation, 4th Edition by J. Throck Watson and O. David Sparkman John Wiley & Sons: Chichester, West Sussex, England, 2007. 862 pp. ISBN 978-0470516348. $130 (cloth). reviewed by Jack K. Steehler
Are you looking for a single source of authoritative information on all of mass spectrometry? This book is for you! Here you will find detailed information on every component of mass spectrometry hardware, detailed presentations of the different ionization techniques and spectral interpretation, and extensive discussion of MS/MS and biological mass spectrometry. The level is most appropriate for graduate level courses and practicing mass spectrometrists, but more casual users will still find clear introductory material. It would be an excellent text for any full semester mass spectrometry course. The authors also provide helpful teaching aids on a Web site. This hefty single volume is a mature presentation of all major topics in organic and biological mass spectrometry. Following ten years after the successful third edition, this new edition includes extensive updates and significant revisions. While references from the 1980s and 1990s are still included, updates from the literature as recent as 2007 are also integrated into the presentation. Each chapter has hundreds of references; there are 834 references in the biopolymer chapter alone. A combination of a historical perspective and present-day practices can be seen throughout this work. In each discussion of hardware, the progression of historical approaches is detailed, with the most current practices receiving the greatest attention,
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Cheryl Baldwin Frech University of Central Oklahoma Edmond, OK 73034
including explanations of why these variants have come to dominate today’s instruments. For those who like to understand a topic one level more deeply than required for routine daily use, the level of detail and history in this book will match your needs exactly. All standard topics in traditional organic mass spectrometry receive a full treatment, from the instrumentation to spectral interpretation in general and specific spectral interpretation for defined types of organic molecules. Tables in the text and appendix provide very practical tools for the analyst. In addition to standard tables of fragments and isotopic intensity patterns, several special tables are noteworthy, including one showing common mass spectral artifact peaks, and another of diagnostic spectral peaks for different classes of organic compounds. Excellent shorter books on mass spectral interpretation certainly do exist, but this book has 180+ pages on these topics—definitely a very solid presentation. For larger biological molecules, about 20% of the book deals specifically with LC/MS and structural interpretation for biomolecules, especially peptides. For LC/MS there are separate sections on historical types of LC/MS interfaces and currently used types of interfaces. Both sections enrich the reader’s understanding of this important field, and its difficulties. Instrumental and spectral interpretation complexities are both well discussed. The writing here is approachable, honest, and understandable. One gets the sense that a very knowledgeable friend is sharing the story of mass spectrometry with you. Details of common problems and pitfalls are clearly shared, within a broad comprehensive presentation of the field. Supporting JCE Online Material
http://www.jce.divched.org/Journal/Issues/2009/Jul/abs810_1.html Keywords Full text (HTML and PDF)
Jack K. Steehler is in the Department of Chemistry, Roanoke College, Salem, VA 24153;
[email protected].
Journal of Chemical Education • Vol. 86 No. 7 July 2009 • www.JCE.DivCHED.org • © Division of Chemical Education
