224 Book reviews

Numerous books have been written and proposed in the area of electrochemical engineering. A detailed presenta- tion of all the aspects concerned by this discipline would have represented a tremendous and somewhat useless job. The target has been well defined by the authors: electro- chemical synthesis in industry; Only the necessary ele- ments for comprehensive investigations in this domain are given. A good compromise has been found between a detailed description of transfer phenomena and reactions kinetics, and a directly applicable book filled with ready- for-use formulae, correlations, or recipes. The book can be considered as a reference for experienced chemical engi- neers: fluid mechanics is rapidly evoked, so are dimension- less numbers; conversely, the kinetics of electrode pro- cesses is presented from the activation complex theory used by chemists and engineers. As clearly expressed in the foreground, presentation of trendy items such as dis- cussion of software packages was avoided.

The reader may be charmed by the clear and pleasant style, since most elements have not been discussed using too rigid statements, but the author appreciation has often been indicated through numerous pieces of advice or per- sonal considerations. In addition, however, the many ex- amples of industrial relevancy provided make the reader feel quite comfortable with electrochemical processes without giving him a false impression of easiness. The volume is well documented and refers to numerous rele- vant papers, patents or textbooks, although with very few references from the present decade. The reader will appre- ciate the extensive notation of variables and the presence of an inoex. The text is easily readable owing to the numerous figures (schemes, plots and drawings), but one may regret the moderate quality of some of these.

To conclude, Electrochemical Process Engineering is a pleasant arid useful reference book for chemical engineers working in the area of electrochemical synthesis. The presentation adopted by the authors renders the book easily usable now, but its classical structure should prevent it becoming out of date within a few years.

of lasers from their undergraduate days will find in this book just how far the area has advanced. Those more familiar with laser spectroscopy will gain insight into the wealth of information that can be elicited using laser 'tools' by some of the leading practitioners of research in physical chemistry. I am sure that reading this book will suggest many laser applications outside the areas that are directly addressed in the text. Anyone who suspects that laser spectroscopy could be the answer to their research problems but is not sure what a laser could do for them should read this book, even if the subjects covered do not at first sight seem relevant to their own research areas.

The major spectroscopic techniques are all represented in the discussions, many with new and interesting twists, e.g. the use of Fourier transform techniques in non-linear spectroscopes. Areas that push the technology to the limit, such as the high resolution UV spectroscopy and the production and use of VUV radiation are well represented. Raman techniques occur throughout the book, showing that this area of spectroscopy continues to be enhanced by the development of modem lasers. Similarly, the ability to generate and use ultrafast laser pulses has led to many investigations of structure and dynamics in liquids and solids. The experiments described cover the whole range from very detailed chemical physics applications in biolog- ical chemistry. Taken together the breadth of chemical laser spectroscopy makes an exciting and thought provok- ing read.

This book is for anyone with a reasonable knowledge of spectroscopy who wants to obtain a good idea of the way lasers can and will be used to investigate chemistry.

The book iz printed to a high standard (_n_ot a camera ready copy) with clear diagrams and has a reasonable index. Ai~ the chapters have an extensive list of references to the primary literature.

Jeremy Frey Southampton

F. Lapicque Nancy

Techniques in Chemistry, Anne B. Myers and Thomas R. Rizzo (Eds.), Vol. 23, in Techniques of Chemistry, series editor W.H. Saunders, Jr., Wiley, Chichester, 1995, ISBN 0 471 59769 4, xii + 429 pp., £95.00

The ten chapters of this book provide an excellent description of some of the modem uses of lasers for spectroscopic investigation in gas, liquid and solid phases in the pursuit of chemical structures dynamics and the evolution of reactive systems. Researchers who are aware

Electric Field Applications in Chromatography, Industrial and Chemical Processes, Takao Tsuda (Ed.), VCH, Wein- heim, German.y., 1995, ISBN 3 527 28687 X, xvi + 311 pp., DM 178, OS 1388, SFr 165

This book covers a wide range of techniques which are induced by the application of an electric field. According to the Preface, the common features which unify them are that "the electric field causes primarily either a displace- ment of solvent or an orientation and/or a migration of solute". In other words: electro-osmosis and electrophore- sis. The book is divided into 14 chapters in three main sections. It starts with an introductory chapter by the editor which rather unconventionally consists of summaries of