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Internal reflection elements and spectrometers are taken up next. Again, the illustrations are excellent; light paths through internal reflection elements are illustrated with photographs of laser beams propagating through these elements. The author devotes considerable attention to the use of internal reflection in the study of films and surfaces and discusses such sophisticated methods as the use of optical cavities for the study of films. In the last chapter, a large number of applications are reviewed and many new ones are suggested. The reference list, which the author has attempted to make complete, is extensive and covers both methods and applications. The advantages of internal reflectance spectroscopy compared with transmission spectroscopy are discussed for many of the applications. However, the author does not hesitate to indicate the disadvantages of this technique and to illustrate its pitfalls. A considerable number of spectra of the same material taken by a variety of methods are displayed which makes it possible for the reader to evaluate the usefulness of internal reflectance spectroscopy' for himself. Mass Spectrometry of Organic Compounds. Herbert Budzikieuicz, Carl Djerassi, D. H. Williams, xv + 690 pages. H olden-Day, Inc., 500 Sansome St., San Francisco, Calif. 1.967. $17.96. Reviewed by Thomas Aczel, Esso Research and Engineering Company, Baytown Research and Development Division, Baytown, Texas.
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ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
In contrast to the trend in the 1950's, when emphasis in books on mass spectrometry was placed mainly on instrumentation and the fundamental phenomena associated with the technique, today's books on mass spectrometry are mainly concerned with the interpretation of the mass spectra of organic compounds. This change in emphasis is due to the availability of sophisticated and sometimes custom-designed equipment, which has relieved most mass spectroscopists from the necessity of spending too much time on instrumental problems. In addition, the advent of high resolution mass spectrometry and of computer systems capable of retrieving and organizing precise mass measurements in easily usable formats has placed mass spectrometry among the few indispensable diagnostic tools required for the identification of very complex molecules. The growing importance of the technique for organic chemists, coupled with the diffusion of reliable instruments, has resulted in a
very great increase in mass spectrometric research related to the elucidation of structures. The authors of this book were among the first pioneers to recognize and utilize the diagnostic potentials of mass spectrometry. Their new publication fills the need to organize and to correlate in structural terms the information available today on the spectra of a very large number of organic compounds. This is done by rationalizing the mechanisms leading to fragmentation and hence to mass spectra with concepts of ground state organic chemistry, such as preferred charge localization. While this type of rationalization cannot be proved always rigorously, it nevertheless has considerable didactic and practical value, in particular for organic chemists, to whom the book is addressed. The book contains a brief introduction, which is used to familiarize the reader with the authors' concepts on spectral interpretation. The introduction also contains a summary description of the most recent representations of spectra, such as the element map format proposed by Bieman and coworkers and the tridimensional graphic format proposed by McLafferty and coworkers. The major part of the work is devoted, however, to a systematic and exhaustive discussion of the mass spectra of a very large number of organic classes. The considerable scope of the book is best illustrated by listing the variety of compounds discussed. These include hydrocarbons, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, esters, lactones, ethers, acetals, thiols, thioethers, amines, N-oxides, ammonium salts, amides, lactams, cyanides, nitrogen-containing carbonyl derivatives, halides, epoxides, carbonates, carbamates, tropones, sulfoxides, pyridines, pyrroles, pyrazines, furans, thiazoles, pyrazoles, organometallic compounds, and a host of related materials. The wealth of material contained, the clarity of the exposition, and the exhaustive survey of the literature make this book a primary source of reference for both the practicing mass spectroscopist and the organic chemist interested only in the utilization of the technique. The organization of the book is also excellent, in that it permits one, after perusing the introductory chapter, to restrict himself to only the subject matter of interest. The book accomplishes the intention of the authors, which was to present the organic chemist with a clear and complete picture of the diagnostic potential and use of mass spectrometry. The absence of any discussion on instrumen-
