NEW BOOKS Practical Methods in Biochemistry. By FREDERICK C. KOCH. Second edition. 23 x 15 cm. : 302 pp. Baltimore: William Wood and Company, 1937. Price: $2.25. A manual designed primarily for use by medical students, this book contains an abundance of information and experiments which will be found valuable in biochemistry laboratory courses in general. Sufficient fundamental information is given with each experiment to orient the student properly as to the purpose and meaning of the experiment. References given facilitate the student’s interpretation of results obtained. Two hundred and thirty-two experiments are described. Duplication of methods has been reduced t o a minimum in this second edition, those being retained which have been proven t o give best results. The preparation of all materials used in these experiments is fully described in an appendix. There are three parts to the manual. Part I deals with the chemistry of the cell constituents, i.e., carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids, and with the determination of hydrogen-ion concentration. Part I1 studies the chemistry of salivary, gastric, and intestinal digestion, and of the bile. Part I11 contains experiments on blood and hemoglobin, and the quantitative analysis of blood and of urine, with a chapter on the chemical examination of urine for pathological conditions. DAVIDR. BRIGGS. Principles of Powder Metallurgy. By W. D. JONES. 189 pp. Kew York: Longmans, Green and Co., London: Edward Arnold and Co., 1937. Price: $5.00. This book appears t o be the first one written on the subject of powder metallurgy. The author has accomplished his task remarkably well. A large number of references are included and due credit has been given the many research workers in powdered metals. The contents appears to be quite complete and well arranged into six main chapters. About thirty good illustrations are given. The author begins his treatise by elaborating on the meaning of weldingand sintering and shows the influence of many factors, such as particle size and shape, temperature, gases and vapors, and preseure, and methods of application of pressure on sinters. Shrinkage of sinters, as affected by hot and cold pressing methods, and the physical properties of the resulting sinters are discussed from the standpoint of physics a t boundary interface, recrystallization, grain growth, and electrical conductivity. The author also covers compacts of one, two, and three constituents and shows industrial applications and technic in considerable detail in the case of powders of iron, nickel, nickel-iron, chromium, bronzes, tungsten, hard metal carbides such as tungsten carbide, tantalum carbide, diamond-impregnated grinding wheels, etc. About twenty pages are given to the properties and manufacture of metal powders of carbonyl, electrolytic, pulverized, ground and stamped, and miscellaneous types. This treatise is exceptionally good and is highly recommended to those interested in powder metallurgy. Throughout the book the author discusses the many factors i n an unbiased manner. It is likely that his work will materially aid others in expanding one of the most important fields of metallurgy t o many new applications. RALPEb, DOWDELL. 453
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NEW BOOKS
Polymerization and i t s Application i n the Fields of Rubber, Synthetic Resins and Petroleum. By ROBERTE. BWRK(Professor of Chemistry, Western Reserve (Research Chemist, The Harshaw Company), University), H o w . 4 ~E.~THOMPSON A. J. WERTH(ilssociate Director of Research of the Bakelite Corporation), and IRA WILLIAMS (Research Chemist, E. I. d u Font de Xemours and Company). Monograph Series S o . 75. 15.5 x 23.5 em.; 312 pp.; 6 fig. Yew York City: Reinhold Publishing Corporation, 1937. Price: $7.50. The object of the authors, as stated in Chapter I, is ‘‘to collect facts and theories relative t o the subject of polymerization, and t o arrange them in a way which will be interesting and helpful to workers in the field.” I n the first p a r t of the book the theoretical aspect of the subject is presented in five chapters. The latter part of the book is concerned with the industrial applications. The second chapter, by H. E. Thompson, deals with the relation between molecular structure and the rate of polymerization. The influence of unsaturation, conjugation, substitution of alkyls and halogens, and cyclic structures are reviewed. A quite complete alphabetical list of polymerization catalysts, together with the literature or patent reference, substances polymerized, conditions and products, is found in Chapter 111 (written by R. E. Burk). T h e open-chain mechanism of polymerization as proposed by Carothers, Staudinger, and Solomon is taken up in Chapter IV (by R. E. Burk). A detailed discussion of the mechanism of the polymerization of specific unsaturated and cyclic hydrocarbons and some of their derivatives is included. I n the chapter on “The Liquid S t a t e and the Structure of Polymers,” equations by Staudinger, Raman, Ornstein Andrade, Einstein, and others, giving the relationship between t’he viscosity of a liquid and some of its physical constants, are discussed. “Polymerization in the Rubber Industry”-including the field of the synthetic rubbers-is the subject of Chapter VI, written by I. Tl’illiams. The seventh chapter, “Polymerization and Synthetic Resins,” written by A. J. Werth, includes discussions of the thermoplastic styrene, vinyl, cumar, indene, and petroleum hydrocarbon resins and the thermosetting glyptal, phenol-aldehyde, urea-formaldehyde resins or condensation products, and the relation of their chemical structure t o their physical properties. The final chapter, “Polymerization in the Petroleum Industry,” takes up the influence of acids, clay, and other catalysts in the refining processes. This discussion is followed by one on the deterioration of petroleum products, owing t o theoxidation and polymerization of the unsaturates, and the rise of inhibitors t o prevent oxidation and polymerization. The usefulness and importance of polymerization in the synthesis of asphalt, motor fuels, and lubricating oils are also pointed out. The numerous references t o the literature make the book particularly valuable. The industrial concerns are t o be congratulated on permitting publication of the information accumulated by their staffs, and the authors for the very interesting and readable presentation of the subject. G. B. HEISIG.
