Modern Physical Chemistry G. F Liptrot, J. J. Thompson, and G. R. Walker, Bell 8 Hyman Limited, London, England, 1982. 471 pp Figs, and tables. 19 X 24.5 cm.
Modern Physical Chemistry is one of three textbooks designed for use in the Alevel chemistry curriculum for 16-18 year old highschool students in the United Kingdom. I t is stated that the book goes beyond the immediate needs of the course and can be used for initial courses in colleges and h i versities. The other two texts for the course are titled Modern Organic Chemistry and Modern Inorganic Chemistry. There are also problem and laboratory books written for the two-year course. The present review compares the book with USA college general chemistry rather than high school chemistry textbooks. Modern Physical Chemistry is divided into sections in the major divisions of physical chemistry of structure, energetics, equilibrium. and kinetics. The authors use the stock nomenclature and stress the use of SI units. There are 20 sets of exercises totallinn over
The section on structure makes up about 45 percent of the hook. The section covers the structure of the atom, the properties and wave behavior of electrons, covalent bonding, ionic and metallic bonding, hydrogen and van der Wads bonding, as well as properties of the gas, liquid, and solid states and determination of structure. The material is presented
with a good balance between experiment and theory. There are rather sophisticated problems applying IR, NMR, and simple X-ray results to the determination of structure. These are problems with which the college level general chemistry student in the USA is not prepared to cope. The section on energetics contains only two chapters. The book introduces simple statistical ideals and populations of energy levels along with the traditional thermochemistry and chemical thermodynamic concepts. The section on equilibrium makes up about 35 percent of the book. There are chaptern on acid~hase,redox and complex ion systems, three chapters on phase equilibria, and a chapter on ions in solut~on.Among topics not normally found in a USA book a t this level are discussions of the temperature dependence of the water ion product constant, complexing equilibria competing with the simple solubility product equilibria, vapor and distillation equilibria of homogeneous liquid solutions, and conductivity as it relates to the properties of ions in solution. The final two chapters cover kinetics. First-order reactions and second-order reactions with equal initial concentrations are presented. Several mechanisms are covered in some detail. Elementary collision and transition state theory are discussed. Simple differential equations are used when needed. In general the book is written a t alevel of the better general chemistry textbooks in the USA. I t is written in a more terse style and without the study summaries and iists of learning goals now found in most textbooks used in the USA. Among the sections which
are covered in more detail than in eorres ~ o n d i n gUSA books are sections on spectroscopy, structure determination, phase behavior, and applications of conductivity. This is an interesting book. I believe for the better students it is a teachable book. However, i t is difficult t o see just where the book would fit into the USA system. Teachers and textbook writers may find it a source of new material and ideas of organization far their courses and textbooks. H. Lawrence Clever Emory University Atlanta. GA 30322
Physical Chemistry Keith J. Laidler and John H Meiser, Benjamin1Cummings Publication Co.. Menlo Park, CA, 1982. xvi 919 pp. Figs. and tables. 20 X 24 cm. $29.95.
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This text, intended for a two-semester course, has a fairly typical coverage: one chapter on gases, seven on thermadynamics and its applicatiuns, two on kinetics, three on quantum mechanics and spectroscopy, and one each on molecular statistics, solid state, liquid state, surface chemistry, transport properties, and macromalecules. The material is developed in a clear and concise manner and does not assume quite as much mathematical sophistication as do many
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Reviewed in this Issue G. F Liptrot, J. J. Thompson and G. R. Walker, Modern Physical Chemistry
Reviewer H. Lawrence Clever
A127
Keith J. Laidler and John H. Meiser, Physical Chemistry
Halbert Carmichael
A127
Lionel Salem, Electrons in Chemical Reactions, First Principles
William C. Herndon
A128
Roy V Hughson, The Language of Chemical Engineering in English
W. Conard Fernelius
A128
Titles o f Interest
A128
Continuing Series
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Volume 60
Number 4
April 1983
A127
