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High vacuum techniques for chemical syntheses and measurements
BOOK REVIEWS
High Vacuum Techniques for Chemical Syntheses and Measurements. By P. H. PLESCH, Cambridge University Press, London/New York, 1989. 167 pp. $65.00. This book covers the applications of high vacuum techniques in chemical syntheses and in various types of analytical and spectroscopic measurements. The contents emphasize experimental techniques and are presented in a clear, systematic manner. They reflect the author's 40 years of experience with the methods of low pressure work. The book gives considerable practical advice and information which are not available anywhere else. It provides many experimental designs and details as well as warnings of possible dangers. It will serve as a good reference for novice and expert alike. Good figures illustrate the many types of apparatus available. The author starts with a brief coverage of theory. Here he goes beyond the usual explanations of pumping and flow equations by providing good descriptions of physicochemical phenomena that occur in vacuum systems. Next, he covers the design and purpose of the main vacuum line, describing its construction and testing, and even its eventual dismantling. The author goes on to describe a
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number of ancillary devices together with basic techniques and procedures for their use. Later, the author builds on these fundamentals to describe complex setups, including dilatometers, electrochemical cells, reactors, spectroscopy cells, viscometers, and calorimeters. He also gives extremely helpful, thorough descriptions of methods of reagent purification. Finally, he presents a number of detailed syntheses that give the reader a useful set of examples to draw from for developing new procedures correctly. Although the author's experience is largely in polymerization, the book is written for the general experimentalist. The style is at times old-fashioned, but it conveys well the enthusiasm of the author, who must have been an excellent teacher. In short, this work is a very useful reference book on practical aspects of vacuum work that stresses practical advice and information. S. TED OYAMA
Clarkson University Potsdam, New York 13699
Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, Vol. 137, No. 1, June 1990
High Vacuum Techniques for Chemical Syntheses and Measurements. By P. H. PLESCH, Cambridge University Press, London/New York, 1989. 167 pp. $65.00. This book covers the applications of high vacuum techniques in chemical syntheses and in various types of analytical and spectroscopic measurements. The contents emphasize experimental techniques and are presented in a clear, systematic manner. They reflect the author's 40 years of experience with the methods of low pressure work. The book gives considerable practical advice and information which are not available anywhere else. It provides many experimental designs and details as well as warnings of possible dangers. It will serve as a good reference for novice and expert alike. Good figures illustrate the many types of apparatus available. The author starts with a brief coverage of theory. Here he goes beyond the usual explanations of pumping and flow equations by providing good descriptions of physicochemical phenomena that occur in vacuum systems. Next, he covers the design and purpose of the main vacuum line, describing its construction and testing, and even its eventual dismantling. The author goes on to describe a
31 3
number of ancillary devices together with basic techniques and procedures for their use. Later, the author builds on these fundamentals to describe complex setups, including dilatometers, electrochemical cells, reactors, spectroscopy cells, viscometers, and calorimeters. He also gives extremely helpful, thorough descriptions of methods of reagent purification. Finally, he presents a number of detailed syntheses that give the reader a useful set of examples to draw from for developing new procedures correctly. Although the author's experience is largely in polymerization, the book is written for the general experimentalist. The style is at times old-fashioned, but it conveys well the enthusiasm of the author, who must have been an excellent teacher. In short, this work is a very useful reference book on practical aspects of vacuum work that stresses practical advice and information. S. TED OYAMA
Clarkson University Potsdam, New York 13699
Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, Vol. 137, No. 1, June 1990