T h e Elements Beyond
Uranium
Glenn T. Seaborg and Walter D. Loveland. Wiley Interscience: New York, 1990. xiii + 359 pp. Figs. and tables. 549.95. The syntheses of transuranium elements have extended the periodic tahle by approximately 18%beyond thase elements found in nature. No one is more closely associated with these elements than the senior author of The Elements Beyond Uranium. Written to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the dismvery of transuranium elements, this hook (as stated in the preface) covers all their aspects-"discovery, chemical properties, nuclear properties, nuclear synthesis reactions, experimental techniques, presence in nature, superheavy elements, practical applications, and predietions for the future." This hook is suitable for a variety of audiences ranging from readers with a solid background in general chemistry, to teachers of general, inorganic, and physical chemistry, to researchers in nuclear and transuranium chemistry. &r a brief introductory chapter, chapter 2 chronicles in individual sections and in some detail the discovery of each of the transuranium elements. Each section is illustrated with photographs of the discoverers. One point of interest is the authors'justification of the names Rutherfardium (Rf) for element 104 and Hahnium (Ha) for element 105, and their use of those names exclusively far the remainder of the hook. Chapter 3 opens with a history of the periodic table and a description of Seaborg's rearrangement of the p e r i d c tahle in 1945 to create the row of actinide elements. This historical background is fallowed by a lengthy discussion of relativistic effects among the actinides. Relativistic effects in chemistry are unfamiliar to most chemists. As theauthorssuggest, most readers willfinditsurprising that the relativistic Dime equation (which substitutes for the nonrelativistic Schrodinger equation) predicts that "p orbitals are shaped like a sphere, a doughnut, and a dog-bone", and that they are nondegenerate. For those readers completely unfamiliar with the Dirac approach, this section is really very fascinating. Chapter 3 continues with a summary of the oxidation states of the actinides, hydrolysis and complex ion reactions, chemical separation techniques, the metallic state, solid and organometallic compounds, a n d a brief description of t h e chemistry of t h e transactinides. Nuclear structure and radioactive decay properties ofthe transuranium elements are discussed in chapter 4. Factors that d e c t fissionability of nuclei are outlined, as well as calculations of fission barrier heiehts. S~ontaneousfission is described.,with a tahle listing half-hves of nuclldri wnh respect m rportunenus fisswn Slntt. the mnst mrmmon mode a f d e c q 1s alpha pan& emisitonuud all rrnniuranium rlrnwnts are alpho em~tters-alpha decay receives particular mention. To the reader unfamiliar with nuclear structure, the section on nudeai structure models may present difficult reading. If desired, readers may omit this section without loss of continuity. ~~
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Chapter 5 begins with a tahle listing the availability of transuranium nuclides along with their half-lives and decay modes. The remainder of this rather short chapter describes experimental techniques for manipulating and identifying nuclides. Nuclear synthetic techniques are outlined in chapter 6. The lengthy descriptions of compound nucleus formation, direction reactions involving heavy ions, and deep inelastic transfer again make somewhat difficult readine. hut eeneral readers should be able to skim this section and ohgin a general feeling for the concepts being presented. The possibility of discovering "superheavy" elements, ie., elements with atomic numbers of 114 or more, is explored in chapter 7. For about 20 years, Seaborg bas depicted the currently known stable r~uclrins represmrlna peninsula of stabilny nrn~d.itti sea oflnstohiiq while prrdmmgthar an "nsland" ofrclatwrly stable superheavy nuclri around%= 114 masmiit. Alrhauxh t h ~ i m t h e sed of sup&heavy elements have eluded researchers thus &,attempts continue. If superheavy elements could he synthesized and their properties found to match their predicted properties, support would be given to our current understanding of the periodic table. In the meantime, researchers are attempting ta synthesize element 110. Suggestions have been made to bombard '08pb with i %o. 6 ' ~ ior to bombard 2 0 9 ~with Chapter 8 presents a very brief review of evidence for the presence of transuranium elements in nature, hoth from natural sources and a s anthropogenie environmental contaminants (e.g., from nuclear weapon testing). 244Pu,for example, has been found In a in a rare earth mineral a t a concentration of 1part in 10'~. section on the transport and fate of transuranium elements in the environment, i t appears that these elements tend to form insoluble species readily enough that probably very little makes its way into the food chain. Chapter 9 presents readable and interesting information about the practical applications of transuranium elements, including nuclear power, nuclear weapons, and nuclear power sources. Although readers probably have a general sense of these topics, teachers, in particular, may find information that would be of interest to them and to their students. The Elements Beyond Uranizm concludes in chapter 10 with reflections primarily of the senior author. A rather personal glimpse is given into Seaborg's role in transuranium chemistry and into what he believes the future of transuranium chemistry should he-in terms both of pure chemistry and of applications. As a cautionary note, the extreme consequences of a global nuclear war are pointed out, and a plea made to eliminate that possibility. Ofparticular value are the numerous citations to research articles, reviews, and general works. The references for each chapter a r e listed a t the end of that chapter. The appendices contain lengthy tables of the radioactivity decay properties of the nuclides of each transuranium element. Finallv. there are both an index of names and an index of suhjects
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Reviewed in This Issue Reviewer Glenn T: Seaborg and Walter D. Loveland, T h e Elements beyond Uranium RaymondB. Seymouc Reinforced Properties and Applications
Plastics:
Margot Becke-Goring, Freunde in der Zeit d e s Aufbruchs der Chemie Die Briefwechsei zwischen Theodor Curtius und Carl Duisberg
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Brian
H. Nordstrom
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George B.
Kauffman
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George B.
Kauffman
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Textbook Announcements
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Monographs
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Journal of Chemical Education
I highly recommend The Elements Beyond Uranium for anyone even casually interested in transuranium elements, nuclear chemistry, or the history of chemistry. There is a wealth of information in the book, and it is presented in a very intelligible and engaging manner. Brian H. Nordstrom Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Prescon, AZ 86301 ~
search, developments in chemistry, and quotidian scientific issues but also personal messages, advice, philosophical reflections, expressions of general solicitude and friendship, mutual admiration and support, news of other chemists, family news, holiday greetings, political opinions, information on the inside workings of university and industrial life, and comments about living conditions and the Zeitgeist then prevailing in Germany. The result is a multifaceted portrait of two of chemistry's most productive and influential luminaries viewed against the milieu in which they worked. G e o r a e B. Kauffman California ~tate-bniversit~, Fresno Fresno, CA 93740
Reinforced Plastics: Properties & Applications Raymond 6.Seymour ASM International: Materials Park, OH, 1991. vi + 257 pp. 15.0 x 22.7 cm. Figs., tables, & illustrations. Few materials have affected modern civilization as much as polymer composites, which have improved aerospace, marine, and land transnortation: construction: communications: and recreation. The compounding of polymers with appropriate additives 1s now one of the polymer industry's most important functions. In 1990 the American plastics industry compounded 5.8 million tons ofcomposite plastics, a volume estimated to increase to 8.7 million tons in 1994. Seymour's latest book describes the present state of the compounding of plastics and although it emphasizes useful comhinations of plastics with appropriate additives, it does not neglect essential theories and the pertinent chemistry and physics. All but one of the dozen chapters are prefaced by introductions, and all are provided with up-to-date references to books and articles, many as recent as 1990. The first and shortest (8 pp) chapter, 'The Genesis of Plastic Composites", outlines the history of plastic composites to demonstrate the steps and missteps in their development. The second and longest (41 pp) chapter deals with no less than 30 classes of additives, while the third discusses 23 fillers from aluminum flakes to zinc oxide, same of which have been used inadvertently for more than a century, Additional chapters are devoted to reinforcements, cellular plastics (foams), polymeric blends, thermosetting plastics, rubbers, general-purpose thermaplastics, high-performance plastics, reinforced thermosets, and standard tests far plastic composites. This concise, handy volume will be afgreat interest toscientists, engineers, and designers in the polymer industry and to instruetors and students of polymer science courses. George 8. Kauffman California State University, Fresno Fresno. CA 93740
Freunde in d e r Zeit d e s Aufbruchs d e r Chemie: Die Brietwechsel zwischen Theodor Curtius und Carl Duisberg Margot Becke-Goehring. Springer-Verlag: New York, NY, 1990. 202 pp. 16.2 x 24.0 cm. Illustrations. $28.30. Theador Curtius (1857-1928), an academic chemist best known far his research on nitrogen compounds, discovered diazoacetic acid (1884), hydrazine (1887), and hydrazoic acid (1890); had two general reac;wns nnmrd after hlm. and was honored by thc 1)eutsrhr Chrmlsche Chellsclmfl on hls 70th hnhd3y 1927 as "n mnxrr in the rwlm uirhrm~crr\"Carl Duisbrrx 1861-1935 an industrial chemist, was a dominant figure in the growth ofthe Bayer Company, which soon became a leader in the manufacture ofnew dyes and pharmaceuticals, and he was instrumental in the consolidation of German chemical firms into I. G. Farben. This collection of correspondence between these two lifelong friends covers the period Dec. 1,1897-Dec. 20,1927 (Curtius died on Feb. 9, 19281, which Becke-Goehring characterizes as a "Zeit des Aufbruehs der Chemie" (time of revolution in chemistry). This collection was culled from the Archives of t h e Bayer-Werks i n Leverkusen and the Universitgt Heidelberg by Margot BeckeGoehring of the Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften, who supplemented it with biographies and two of Curtius' speecheson hislpmdecessor a t Heidelberg, Victor Meyer, and an his mentor, Robert Wilhelm Bunsen-as well as speeches by Duisherg, one, appropriately, on Curtius on the occasion of his funeral. The correspondents exchange not only information about each other's re-
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Textbook Announcements Analytical Methods
in Toxicology
H M. Stahr. Wiley: New York, NY, 1991. xxxvi and tables. 16.5 x 24.2 cm. $69.95.
+ 328 pp. Figs.
store specimen damples,-the length of an analysis, how to use equipment sensibly, what ta wear, what sort of cleanup regimen to maintain-in short, how to negotiate the potential hazards of laboratory work. The book is organized by analytical type--inorganic and other; mycotoxin; pesticide; radenticide; antibiotics; drugs; vitamins; and feed additives. The book's framework allows for systematic mastery of analytical methods for a large array of substanees-beginning with fluoride and ending with coal tar. C o n c i s e Inorganic Chemistry, Fourth Edition J D Lee. Chapman & Hall: New York. NY, 1991. xxxv + 1032 pp. Figs. and tables. 19 x 24.7 cm. $39.95 US/$49.95 Canada PB
The new edition of this text is the most comprehensive revision in its long history. The book retains its original aims, viz., to provide a concise and relevant treatment of essential inorganic chemistry a s a main or ancillary subject. The framework of the book remains largely unchanged notwithstanding the complete rewriting, updating, and enlargement of the topics covered. It is divided into six "Parts":theoretical concepts and hydrogen; the s-block: the D-block;the d-block; the f-block; and other topics. TO make the appropriate sections easier to locate, the author has divided the text into a larger number of chapters, while maintaining a fully comprehensive index and a detailed table of contents, a s well as nearly 600 references classified according to complexity. For the new edition there is a greater concentration on the commercial exploitation of inorganic chemicals. Applications are described and explained; there are sections on photography, superconductors, transistors, photcopiers, radiocarbon dating and many other topics. The author also recognizes the quickening interest in envronmental issues. The difficulties associated with the continuing use of freons, the ozone layer, the greenhouse effect, acid rain, and lead pollution ail feature in this treatment.
Monographs Chemical Kinetics: T h e Study
Solution
of Reaction R a t e s in
Kenneth A. Connors. VCH: New York, NY, 1990. xiii + 480 pp Figs. and tables. 15.7 x 23.4 cm. $95.00 H8/$49.50 PB. This textbook blends ~ h ~ s i ctheory, al phenomenology, and empiricism to provide a guide to the experimental practice and interpretation of reaction kinetics in solution. It is suitable for courses in chemical kinetics a t the graduate and advanced undergraduate levels. (Continued on page A361 Volume 69
Number 1 January 1992
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