Book Description

Physical and Chemical Equilibrium for Chemical Engineers provides a thorough introduction to the basic tools of chemical engineers–physical and chemical equilibrium. It is a book for second course thermodynamics students in chemical engineering. While traditional texts combine this topic with the first thermodynamics course, Physical and Chemical Equilibrium for Chemical Engineers gives chemical engineers the rigorous yet clear treatment more advanced students and chemical engineers require.

Professor Noel de Nevers provides readers with a technically accurate and rigorous look at physical and chemical equilibrium–often called "solution thermodynamics." He presents the material in an accessible format that uses simple mathematics without sacrificing rigor. This book shows where "modern" terminology differs from "classic" terminology and covers different standard states, a common stumbling block for both students and professionals. Emphasis is placed on such up-to-date topics as aqueous solutions, electrolytes, and osmotic pressure, all of which play an important role in modern industrial processes and biotechnology. Unique coverage includes:

• Minimization of Gibbs Free Energy
• Vapor Pressure, the Clapayron Equation, and Single Pure Species Phase Equilibrium
• Partial Molal Properties
• Fugacity, Ideal and Non-Ideal Solutions, Activity, and Activity Coefficient
• The Phase Rule

Reviews (1)

Strong buy for those who need a Book-For-Dummies intro text!
If you are new to this particular subject (=chem thermo) and feel like a beginner, although you passed your 'first year' in thermo (=eng thermo) successfully, then I 100% recommend the book by Noel de Nevers. It *really* tells you about the How's, Why's, Why Not's, What If's, etc. and in so doing, it does a terrific teaching job. Though concise, it is still comprehensive, detailed enough and fully accessible at any point at any time. Speech is easy and directed directly towards the student. You ll get the grasp and overview over the whole subject area, making you feel confident that you can master *any* problem. With its mere 474 pages it not only teaches you the essentials of what you *must* know but also gives you more comprehension and insight than any other text available. Surprisingly this short book includes various exotic chapters ('advanced subjects') found nowhere else. Short, this is truely the *very* best teaching text for real/poor learners, the *very* best intro text for beginners, and the one and only 'Understanding ChemEngThermo'-Book-For-Dummies. I can promise you an enjoyable reading, at times even fun!, and if you re a beginner feeling lost in this subject field and need/want the best teaching support available, then buy this book without hesitation. It *will* teach you a lot, and you *will* learn a lot, promised, even within a short period of time (book is a bit too concise in scope). However, please keep in mind that the DeNevers book is *not* a monograph. rated: Strong Buy if you need a Book-For-Dummies. Drawbacks: Its price is a bit expensive and if, after reading the book/passing your exams, you are not a 'beginner' anymore, you will *not* need the deNevers book any longer! That's why this book is given 4 stars only. A comparable intro text in the subject field of 'Engineering Thermo' (=first course in thermo@MechE students) would be Octave Levenspiel's 'Understanding Engineering Thermo', which is quite similar in writing style, teaching style, intro level, enjoyment/fun, learning effectiveness, etc., so if you know Levenspiel's likeable intro text and liked it, you *will* love the intro text by DeNevers, for sure! Short, *if* you need such a book (beginner looking for a book-for-dummies), then this *is* the very best on the market and you *must* buy and read it. So for you, it would be a 5-stars book, of course!
Please also read my pos reviews of thermo books by Stanley I. Sandler 1999 and Stanley M. Walas 1985. See also my neg review of thermo book by Smith/VanNess/Abbott 2001. For a complete listing of relevant thermo titles have a look at table 8-1, pages 8.2-8.4, in Poling/Prausnitz/O'Connell 5th ed. c2001. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

For low temperature experiments.
This is the first book, I came across, in low temperature techniques. Useful for people carrying out low temperature experiments. This book does not deal with ultra low temperatures, that is temperatures below 1K, adequately. Does not write about the modern dilution refrigeratures. However, if one needs some low temperature technique information or low temperaure material data, then one can look in to this book. The book is very clearly written and still useful, although several new books on this topic have been published. ... Read more

Book Description

This textbook and reference outlines the fundamental principles of thermodynamics, emphasizing applications in geochemistry.The work is distinguished by its comprehensive, balanced coverage and its rigorous presentation.The authors bring years of teaching experience to the work, and have attempted to particularly address those areas where other texts on the subject have provided inadequate coverage.A thorough review of the necessary mathematics is presented early on, both as a refresher for those with a background in university calculus, and for the benefit of those coming to the subject for the first time.The text is written for students in advanced undergraduate or graduate-level geochemistry as well as for all researchers in this field. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Thermodinamics in geochemistry
Its a good book, very philosophical, the author goes in depth into all mathematical aspects. The examples used by the author are very creative. I highly recommend purchasing of this book. ... Read more

Book Description

This text is intended for mechanical engineering majors taking a thermal design course. It combines practical coverage of thermal/fluid components and systems, with review coverage of prerequisite thermodynamics, fluid mechanics and heat transfer. Extensive case studies and practical examples show students how the thermal design is done, and the techniques used to simulate and optimize such designs.

This title takes a modern approach, giving studentsexposure to the general design process, use of software tools for design analysis & simulation, and experimental methods. Report writing, economic factors, and ethical considerations are also discussed in the context of engineering practice. ... Read more

Book Description

Unlike most other texts on the subject, this clear, concise introduction to the theory of microscopic bodies treats the modern theory of critical phenomena. Provides up-to-date coverage of recent major advances, including a self-contained description of thermodynamics and the classical kinetic theory of gases, interesting applications such as superfluids and the quantum Hall effect, several current research applications, The last three chapters are devoted to the Landau-Wilson approach to critical phenomena. Many new problems and illustrations have been added to this edition. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

One approach.
Few books on Statistical Mechanics present a treatment with a grounding in the Boltzmann Transport Equation. It is more usual the case that a statistical approach is adopted, in which the canonical (or other) ensemble is arrived, and subsequent results somehow refer back to the the ensembles. Huang seems to wish to proceed from a strongly microscopic and kinetic point of view. There must be great strength in his approach, as statistical phenomena, in reality, is built up from this semi-classical sort of physics. If you like kinetic theory, then buy it. However, for those of us who find more comfort in relating to a more statistical approach, this book is fearsomely unreadable.

But do read it for a description of the Boltzmann Transport equation.

An adequate Stat. Mech. book
I would suggest that the previous reviewer get him/herself a tutor. (The formula Huang uses, log n! = n log n - 1, is correct for large numbers.) Statisticam Mechanics is a notoriously hard subject to present lucidly and clearly. Huang does a fairly good job. I was a little disappointed with his treatment of critical phenomena at the end of the book; for a much better and more comprehensive treatment, read Nigel Goldenfeld's "Lectures on phase transitions and the renormalization group".

Not standard, Not so bad
As repeated by reviewers below, this is NOT STANDARD textbook on statistical mechanics because it stresses the kinetic theory. If reader would like to learn the equilibrium theory, this book might be embarassing. However, this book is recommended to anyone who is interested in "unusual" viewpoint. I prefer Huang to other numerous too standard textbooks. But I am a little disappointed that some interesting topics are removed in the new edition, such as the Chapman-Enskog method.

Now, it is NOT SO BAD.

Least favorite of all I've seen
Huang approaches the subject as a series of proofs: he does not make physical arguments, and his writing is wooden. Instructors--avoid this book!

Some have said that this book approaches stat mech from the refreshing view of kinetic theory. But it leaves out the Fokker-Planck and Langevin approaches, by which the Boltzmann equation is usually solved. Anyone interested in this approach would be *far* more rewarded by Landau's Physical Kinetics.

Anyone interested in Gibbs theory should consult Landau or Sommerfeld.

Anyone who wants good problems (and real applications) would be better served by the canonical McQuarrie.

Anyone who wants a feel for what the subject *actually now is* should see Kadanoff or Chandler. Actually I think allowing students to leave stat mech without seeing the monte carlo algorithm or solving a stochastic equation is a crime.

Unreadable
The reviewer below who said that this book pursues primarily a kinetic theory - Boltzmann Transport Equation approach, got it right. It really is a fearsome, and by and large, pointless read. Our professor used this book in our stat. mech. class back in 1992. He also used Mahan's Many Particle Physics book in our solid state course and de Genne's Superconductivity text in our superconductor course, so that gives you an idea of what kind of person likes Huang. Most students I've talked to feel that this text is the worst sort of student pain. The pain you feel when after exerting colossal effort trying to understand, you realize at the end of the semester that you didn't learn anything, and that you could have, if only the instructor had chosen one of any number of better books. I am completely mystified as to why and how this book has reached a 3rd edition. Perhaps there are too many physics professors out there who don't care about pedagogy. ... Read more

Book Description

Nationally regarded authors Andrew Pytel and Jaan Kiusalaas bring a depth of experience to the Second Editions of ENGINEERING MECHANICS: STATICS AND DYNAMICS that can't be surpassed.They have refined their solid coverage of this material without overloading it with extraneous detail.Their extensive teaching experience at The Pennsylvania State University gives them first-hand knowledge of students' learning skill levels and how the study of mechanics needs to tie to the real world.Their presentation is designed to teach students how to effectively analyze a problem before plugging numbers into formulas.This approach benefits students tremendously as they encounter real life problems that may not always fit into standard formulas.These books are designed with a rich, concise, one-color presentation at a substantially lower cost than competing texts. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A good beginning text.
A nice combination of theory and practice.Great for a beginning course in dynamics. ... Read more

Book Description

Einstein's theories of relativity piqued public curiosity more than any other mathematical concepts since the time of Isaac Newton. Scientists and non-scientists alike struggled, not so much to grasp as to believe the weird predictions of relativity theory--shrinking space ships, bending light beams, and the like. People all over the world watched with fascination as Einstein's predictions were relentlessly and unequivocally verified by a hundred experiments and astronomical observations.

In the last decade of the twentieth-century, another of Einstein's theories has produced results that are every bit as startling as the space-time contractions of relativity theory. This book addresses his other great theory, that of heat capacity and the Bose-Einstein condensate. In doing so, it traces the history of radiation and heat capacity theory from the mid-19th century to the present. It describes early attempts to understand heat and light radiation and proceeds through the theory of the heat capacity of solids. It arrives at the theory of superconductivity and superfluidity--the astonishing property of some liquids to crawl spontaneously up and out of their containers, and the ability of some gases to cause light to pause and take a moment's rest from its inexorable flight forward in time. Couched in the terminology of traditional physical chemistry, this book is accessible to chemists, engineers, materials scientists, mathematicians, mathematical biologists, indeed to anyone with a command of first-year calculus. In course work, it is a collateral text to third semester or advanced physical chemistry, introductory statistical mechanics, statistical thermodynamics, or introductory quantum chemistry. The book connects with mainstream physical chemistry by treating boson and fermion influences in molecular spectroscopy, statistical thermodynamics, molecular energetics, entropy, heat capacities (especially of metals), superconductivity, and superfluidity.

Book Description

Clearly written treament elucidates fundamental concepts and demonstrates their plausibility and usefulness. Language is informal, examples are vivid and lively, and the perspectivie is fresh. Based on lectures delivered to engineering students, this work will also be valued by scientists, engineers, technicians, businessmen, anyone facing energy challenges of the future.
... Read more

Reviews (5)

Okay But Fermi's Similar Book is Better
Some subjects are intuitive, and some subjects are harder to grasp. I have studied engineering and physics for many years and was a professor for eight years. So I already have an understanding of the subject and in fact took graduate courses in physics at MIT in statistical mechanics and quantum mechanics.

So why buy this book. It is not a textbook. If you want to learn the nuts and bolts of thermodynamics buy a second year physics or engineering text and go through the theory and do hundreds of problems. That is how you learn the subject. You will not be able to design a better motor or turbine after reading the present book. You may not even learn much if you do not sit down and spend some time doing problems.

This book and the book by Fermi which is linked at the top of the present page by Amazon.com are sort of intellectual refresher books. Again thermodynamics is not an intuitively obvious subject so it is good to have a refresher from time to time. It is a summary lecture of the field. So I think it is a good book, a nice short book, but actually I prefer the short and perhaps more intuitive book by Fermi on the same subject, so I would rate the Fermi book 5 stars and this just 3 or 4 stars.

In any case, if you buy the book or better still the Fermi book, approach the book as if it were a novel or trip to the movies. Read it with a coke or glass of wine, and enjoy it as a lesson in physics from an expert where you get to think about some concepts from a pure interest and enjoyment perspective. If you do buy the book, you should have completed at least one or two years of science or engineering for maximum impact.

Jack in Toronto

Lucid Explanation of Thermodynamics - Highly Recommended
Understanding Thermodynamics is an exceptional introduction to a subtle and complex topic. The First and Second Law of Thermodynamics are seemingly trivial, and yet an understanding of theoretical and applied thermodynamics often eludes even the best of students. This 100-page overview is much better than the chapter or two on thermodynamics in a first year physics text. It is a more lucid and interesting discussion than is even found in Feynman's Lectures in Physics, Volume 1.

H. C. Van Ness, a professor of chemical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and expert in thermodynamics, approaches his subject in an uniquely interesting fashion, stressing that the First and Second Law are assumptions based on empirical data. They are fundamental statements that cannot be derived from other principles.

In chapter 1 Van Ness borrows a humorous analogy from Feynman to explain the reasonableness of the abstract concept of internal energy and the relationship between internal energy, heat, and work.

Chapter 2 introduces the concept of reversibility, and explains its fundamental importance to thermodynamics. In doing so he carefully exposes our underlying assumptions.

In chapter 3, titled Heat Engines, Van Ness emphasizes that the reversible process represents the limiting behavior of actual systems, the best that we can hope for. Also, in most cases we are not even able to make calculations unless we simplify our problem by assuming that our system exhibits reversibility. Van Ness carefully explains the basic engineering calculations for both the Otto engine cycle and the Carnot theoretical heat engine.

In chapter 4 Van Ness guides the reader carefully through detailed thermodynamic analysis of a large scale power plant. In doing so, he provides an intriguing look at the unintended and unavoidable environmental impact of large power plants.

Van Ness introduces the Second Law of Thermodynamics by asking whether we can uncover any hidden relationships in a set of empirical data for reversible heat processes. After being led down several blind alleys, we unexpectedly discover a quantity that seems even more abstract than the concept of internal energy. We decide to call it entropy.

The last two chapters - More on the Second Law, and Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics - were slightly more difficult. The section on statistical mechanics would normally be found in a physical chemistry textbook.

The chapters are written in an informal manner, much like lectures. The mathematics assumes some calculus, but it is not any more difficult a first year physics text. It makes good independent reading, but Van Ness intended for Understanding Thermodynamics to be used along with a standard engineering or physics text. No problems sets are found at the end of the chapters.

Graduate
Concise descriptions of thermodynamics. Don't waste time with longer books. Some topics are not covered but this is a great place to start.

Deals with the abstractness
Thermo is hard for two reasons. The equations are messy, and the properties are so abstract. Van Ness deals directly and only with the second problem. His discussion of energy functions and energy transformations just as rules between observables is very helpful. Using that notion to get at what he means by a property and then making entropy understandable as a PROPERTY of a system is the core of much of the book. The derivation of some basic stuff in statistical mechanics is quite clear, and the logical relationship to classical thermo is very clear. An index would be nice.

A great introductory book in thermodynamics
I would recommend this book highly to anyone who wants to learn thermodynamics. Van Ness uses very good analogies to illustrate some of the theoretical concepts. ... Read more

Book Description

Prevention of Thermal Cracking in Concrete at Early Ages presents models and methods to determine thermal stresses and cracking risks in concrete. It also examines possible influences on, and causes of, thermal cracking of concrete. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The best book on compressible fluid flow.
This is a very good book on compressible fluid flow. It shows you the mecanism of this kind of fluid flow in such a way that it becomes very understandable. This is a very good reference to lern the basis for applications such as gas turbines and jet propulsion, for exemple. ... Read more

Book Description

What happens to a chemical once it enters the natural environment? How do its physical and chemical properties influence its transport, persistence, and partitioning in the biosphere? How do natural forces influence its distribution? How are the answers to these questions useful in making toxicological and epidemiological forecasts?

Environmental Chemodynamics, Second Edition introduces readers to the concepts, tools, and techniques currently used to answer these and other critical questions about the fate and transport of chemicals in the natural environment. Like its critically acclaimed predecessor, its main focus is on the mechanisms and rates of movement of chemicals across the air/soil, soil/water, and water/air interfaces, and on how natural processes work to mobilize chemicals near and across interfaces—information vital to performing human and ecological risk assessments.

Also consistent with the first edition, Environmental Chemodynamics, Second Edition is organized to accommodate readers of every level of experience. The first section is devoted to theoretical underpinnings and includes discussions of mass balance, thermodynamics, transport science concepts, and more. The second section concentrates on practical aspects, including the movement between bed-sediment and water, movement between soil and air, and intraphase chemical behavior.

This revised and updated edition of Louis J. Thibodeaux's 1979 classic features new or expanded coverage of:

• Equilibrium models for environmental compartments
• Dry deposition of particles and vapors onto water and soil surfaces
• Chemical profiles in rivers and estuaries, particles and porous media
• Fate and transport in the atmospheric boundary layer and within subterranean media
• Chemical exchange between water column and bed-sediment
• Intraphase chemical transport and fate

This Second Edition of Environmental Chemodynamics also includes twice as many references and 50% more exercises and practice problems. ... Read more

Book Description

Turbomachines are those in which energy is transferred to or from a continuously moving fluid by the motion of a rotating element. Some of the most common and important machines used in engineering and industry fall into this category, including those which absorb power (and thereby increase fluid pressure), such as fans, compressors and pumps. Also included are equally vital varieties of machines which generate power from the expansion of fluids to lower pressures such as hydraulic, steam and gas turbines.


This general definition embraces a number of devices that are classified as 'open', such as propellers, windmills and unshrouded fans. The machines examined here are those defined as 'closed', where a finite quantity of fluid can be considered to pass through the machine in unit time, for it is these which are of themost interest to students and professionals in the fields of mechanical, chemical, and plant engineering. It is in these areas that the devices that form the subject matter of this book find their most important applications, making this treatment of vital importance to anyone working in or studying them.

Example questions and answers throughout
Includes more new material on axial flow compressors and pumps ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A very complete textbook
We were asked to buy this book by a teacher, it was certainly a good choice, perhaps the information given is too dense but I did enjoy studying with it.

It's a good reference book for undergraduate student.
I will send you after my revie ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

This is a great book. Nice mix of mechanics and computing.
I learned a lot from this book. It is well crafted, has a lot of new things, and obviously a very timely contribution ... Read more

The publisher, John Wiley & Sons

Instructor's Manual available. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Good Intermediate Materials Science Teat
This review refers to Volume I which was I used in a recent graduate materials thermodynamics course. Completing two prior courses in classical thermodynamics oriented towards mechanical engineering and a survey course in Materials Science proved helpful in providing a background for a better understanding the material in this text. However, the basics are developed but in less detail. The text is definitely oriented towards understanding the basics in the application of thermodynamics to materials science and provides reasonable coverage of chemical equilibrium and binary solutions.

The material is developed sequentially so it is best to start at the beginning and work through each section. Fortunately I had access to most of the typographical errors but they do not represent a major hurdle to the basic quality of the theory presented and its understanding. It would have proved useful to the student had the author included answers to selected problems. Overall, I found this to be a good intermediate text.

A good text for graduate courses.
This is a well written book covering topics of relevance to materials. Explanations are concise and so are more digestible for graduate students. The author has taken special care to use clear and definitive notation. There are a few errors - in particular the Ellingham diagram is wrong - the temperature scale should be oC, not K. However, there are fewer errors than many texts I have seen. Each chapter has a good number of nice problems.

Inadequate textbook of an already difficult subject matter
As an undergraduate taking a course in thermodynamics of materials, I found the book to be exceedingly brief and, at times, incomprehensible. To those new to thermodynamics, the book is nearly useless. To make it even worse, the book doesn't have answers to the practice questions to allow students to check their work, and it is inadequate as a reference for simple things such as unit conversions. ... Read more

Book Description

Practicing engineers in several fields can turn here for an accessible overview of the basic principles in thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer--all in a self-instructive, easy-to-follow format. Focuses on developing a sense of the underlying physical mechanisms, and uses numerous examples and illustrations to help illuminate the real, thermal/fluid problems faced by engineers. Omits a heavy mathematical and theoretical emphasis in order to foster a more physical, intuitive approach to the subject matter. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Great for learning the FUNDAMENTALS.
I thought this was a very well written, organized book.The concepts were explained very clearly.It was great to finally find an understandable book on this subject; other thermo/fluids books that I have read haven't been as informative and comprehendable.

One of the drawbacks, however, was the fact that the examples presented within the book were very simple and didn't cover the concepts in as much depth as I had hoped.Many complex topics that were in the questions at the end of the chapter hadn't been covered well enough in the preceding text to allow them to be both solved AND understood.Furthermore, there were some thermo/fluid topics that weren't covered in the book at all that I thought should have been (compressible flow, for example).As a result, when I took the course in college, my professor had to print out pages from other thermo books to compensate for this.

Despite this, however, there were many pictures that accompanied the examples and again, as stated above, it was easy to understand.I was very impressed with that, given the abstractness of the subject, and the difficulty that other authors have had explaining it effectively.

The bottom line: It was a great book to learn about the fundamentals.I suppose, according to the title, it has served its purpose.However, if you want to go into depth with this subject, go elsewhere.

A couple of comments
I will begin with the good things. This book contains a LOT of information. The tables are very extensive, and the subject matter is very broad. The derivations are generally easy to follow and I found the text itself even enjoyable to read at times. These things upped my opinion of the book from one star to two. However, the example problems are generally not sufficient to help with the far more complex problems in the back of the chapters. As a further frustration, only about a sixth of the problems include the solutions. The end result is that for a homework one is left leafing through the book in a futile search for more extensive guidance on the very extensive problems, all the while not knowing if you didn't mess up the problem already in the first calculation you made. For example, I have this textbook for my second course in fluid dynamics. For my first homework, I had a three day weekend to complete 3 problems. 30+ work hours later (and one shot weekend) I have no idea if I'm right on the first one and I'm still stuck on the last one. I dislike having to go to reciation, so it's not unusual for me to spend lots of time on problems and reading the book in order to figure out the homeworks on my own. But this book is quite frankly kicking my arse. Considering that this is my second fluids course (I'm an aerospace eng student) you would think I would be better at fluids. However, my first fluids textbook was also a Cengel book, and that book was next to useless as well. My overall conclusion: A great book for reading and catching derivations with lots of good tables and a wide array of topics. But it's a huge frustration waiting to happen if you plan on working the problems/preparing for an exam.

Very interesting read!
I am currently taking an introductory course in thermodynamics. I find this book to be a very interesting read. The book uses both SI units and Imperial units, which at times seem very confusing. There is a lot of information on this book, thus this book is a good starting point to learn about thermodynamics. ... Read more

Book Description

Concepts in Surface Physics presents a tutorial treatment of the main concepts and phenomena of the physics of crystal surfaces. Emphasis is placed on simplified calculations and the corresponding detailed analytical derivations - that are able to throw light on the most important physical mechanisms. More rigorous techniques, which often require a large amount of computer time, are also explained. The topics treated include thermodynamic and statistical properties of clean nd adsorbate-covered surfaces, atomic structure, vibrational properties, electronic structure, and the theory of physisorption and chemisorption. As well as including some improvements on the original book, this second edition has been supplemented with problems to encourage students to investigate the subject more thoroughly. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

This is THE thermal physics book!
A very well-written book, with all thermodynmical concepts explained clearly and with appropriate examples. Exercises are extensive and cover in full detail all the material at the end of each chapter. Though expensive, definitely worth the investment. The statistical mechanics part is greatly entertaining and an enjoyable read. All in all, text is well-balanced. Should become the prescribed text for all introductory course in Thermal Physics.

Excellent, balanced treatment.
This is the best introductory thermo, stat mech book available. Very clear with a nice set of problems. ... Read more

Book Description

The book focuses on basic elements of condensation and vaporization processes.The basic physical mechanisms associated with a particular phase-change phenomenon are described in detail, followed by a representative sample of the best models applicable to the circumstances of interest. Throughout the text, the importance of the basic phenomena to a wide variety of applications is discussed. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent introductory book for studying Two Phase Flow
There are very few books written exclusively focussing on Two Phase flow, and this is one of the very good books on that subject. It caters the interest of Mechanical engineers in large and also Chemical engineer ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (7)

Reliable Treatise
Written in 1960 and revised in 1986 this is a general treatise on
stat-thermo in the tradition of Tolman and McQuarrie. I have a well
used copy on my desk, bought originally as a textbook for a graduate
course - probably the cheapest textbook I ever bought at $12.95.

The first chapter derives the ensembles from the quantum perspective.
This has the advantage of generality and the disadvantage that
it requires some rudimentary knowledge of quanta and is less
expedient for the scientist who is only concerned with classical
stat-mech.

Once the foundations are laid, the book is divided into
applications to non-interacting and interacting systems. In the
latter category is the virial expansion for imperfect gases. This
derivation makes an unnecessary effort to introduce a relative
activity. The derivation in Jackson's book is more transparent
and shorter without sacrificing rigor. The Mayer expansion for
hard spheres is treated in useful detail.

Chapter 18 includes a good description of the Debye-Hueckel theory
of electrolytes. The derivation of the Flory-Huggins theory of
polymer solutions in Chapter 21 is excellent - more concise and
effortless than all others that I have seen. Chapter 14 covers the
solution of the one-dimensional Ising magnet but I still have trouble
understanding this one. The appendices are useful and include
the maximum term method and method of undetermined multipliers
which are the cornerstone of the fundamental theorems.

Excelent first book on the subject
Hill presents the fundamental problems on the subject and methods to work these problems. Thanks to Dover you can have this book as a second source on class or for self learning. It has the basic fundamentals before you go to McQuarrie Stat. Mech. Excelent for Phys. Chemists approaching the subject

clear and detailed in chemical engineering view
It's a good way to start statistical mechanics with this book.There are lots of elementary models and concepts in it,such as ideal gas,lattice,polymer,electrolyte... You also can use it as a reference because of the detailed derivation and good index.

Clear and detailed especially for 1st year graduate
I am a chemical engineering graduate.It is obvious not a good way to start with chandler's introduction.This book contains gas,liquid,polymer,electrolyte,almost total elementory models and concepts of statistical mechanics.There are detailed derivation about every model.And you can use this book as a reference because of the results of the models and good index.

No better place to start with Stat Mech
If you are intrested with studing statistical mechanics then start here. Hill starts from the defintions and postulates of thermodynamics and then moves into applications and problems. You will need to understand Diff EQ for this book.

The first chapter took me a week to read and work out the math but then I red the rest in 4 weeks. It is a hard start because Hill develops your background before starting with applications of the theory. I really began to grasp the subject after reading this book. Ohter books will not lay the mathout as well as Hill does. It is a hard read because Hill is so thorough, but the rewasd is well worth the struggle. It is a great introduction and I suggest all of Hill's Stat mech book. Another great bargin from DOVER PRESS.

At the price I recomend it to all graduate chemical engineers and chemists ... Read more

Reviews (4)

it is a good course, but hard one
the classical dynamics course is very good one , however it needs a srtong background in calculus , the textbook focuses more on the mathematical point of vew rather than the theuretical consepts

Good solution manual for beginner
It's good for those who have no idea to start the calculation.

Ripped-off
Marion has ripped me off again. I'll get my hands on him one day

Not a good solution manual...
This solution manual only solves the first couple of problems of each chapter. These problems are usually the easier ones that you don't need much help with. All of the hard problems are left up to you. ... Read more