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Applied systems engineering
Book reviews
77
technology. The achievement of these advantages depends much on the editor for his knowledge of the overall subject to select the areas of critical detail interest, his knowledge of the relevant experts with ability to communicate and the ability to weld the many parts into an associated whole. Dr Blazynski has succeeded in this case, and both he and all the individual authors are to be congratulated on producing a volume of considerable value to all interested in this growing technology. As a reviewer I do not intend to go on a 'Which' hunt to decide the relative virtues of this and the recent book on a similar topic by Professor Bernard Crossland (reviewed in this journal in Volume 13, Number 4). Both books are excellent examples of their individual types and the choice whether to have both or which one to choose depends on the individual need. The fact that two such authoritative volumes have appeared so close together is evidence of the rapid growth of interest in the topic, especially in the pressure vessel and heat-exchanger area, in respect to tube and tube/ tubeplate welds, tube plugging and expansion, vessel cladding, transitional welds and other similar applications. The present book also covers the topics of forming and compaction in its last two chapters, making it a comprehensive treatise on the application of explosive energy to metallurgical topics. The other topics covered are the theory and metallurgical effects of shock and pressure waves in metals; the effect of high-rate straining on properties; commercial process selection; the mechanics of explosive welding and its application to plates, foils, tubes, rods, mesh and transition joints. Many. of the chapters have helpful summaries, conclusions and indications of where development can occur. The book production is of the high standard that befits such a book being well laid out, well illustrated and well indexed, and a pleasure to handle and read. It is recommended to all engineers and scientists interested in this topic of rapidly growing interest. R. W. Nichols
AppliedSystems Engineering,by Adrian Gheorghe, published by Editura Academiei (Budapest) and John Wiley & Sons Ltd (London), 342 pp., 1983. This book is a translation ofa Romanian text published in 1979 and deals with the systematic approach to reliability, maintenance and safety
78
Book reviews
analysis of complex engineering systems. Much of it relates to the mathematical modelling and statistical approach to these problems, and these chapters are more appropriate to specialists in the field. Of more general interest is the discussion on probabilistic safety modelling for large scale technical systems (Chapter 4), which introduces a mathematical approach to answering the questions 'How safe is safe enough?' and 'How safe is too safeT Amongst several examples, one taken is that of a safety evaluation for a 1000 MWe nuclear reactor. R. W. Nichols
77
technology. The achievement of these advantages depends much on the editor for his knowledge of the overall subject to select the areas of critical detail interest, his knowledge of the relevant experts with ability to communicate and the ability to weld the many parts into an associated whole. Dr Blazynski has succeeded in this case, and both he and all the individual authors are to be congratulated on producing a volume of considerable value to all interested in this growing technology. As a reviewer I do not intend to go on a 'Which' hunt to decide the relative virtues of this and the recent book on a similar topic by Professor Bernard Crossland (reviewed in this journal in Volume 13, Number 4). Both books are excellent examples of their individual types and the choice whether to have both or which one to choose depends on the individual need. The fact that two such authoritative volumes have appeared so close together is evidence of the rapid growth of interest in the topic, especially in the pressure vessel and heat-exchanger area, in respect to tube and tube/ tubeplate welds, tube plugging and expansion, vessel cladding, transitional welds and other similar applications. The present book also covers the topics of forming and compaction in its last two chapters, making it a comprehensive treatise on the application of explosive energy to metallurgical topics. The other topics covered are the theory and metallurgical effects of shock and pressure waves in metals; the effect of high-rate straining on properties; commercial process selection; the mechanics of explosive welding and its application to plates, foils, tubes, rods, mesh and transition joints. Many. of the chapters have helpful summaries, conclusions and indications of where development can occur. The book production is of the high standard that befits such a book being well laid out, well illustrated and well indexed, and a pleasure to handle and read. It is recommended to all engineers and scientists interested in this topic of rapidly growing interest. R. W. Nichols
AppliedSystems Engineering,by Adrian Gheorghe, published by Editura Academiei (Budapest) and John Wiley & Sons Ltd (London), 342 pp., 1983. This book is a translation ofa Romanian text published in 1979 and deals with the systematic approach to reliability, maintenance and safety
78
Book reviews
analysis of complex engineering systems. Much of it relates to the mathematical modelling and statistical approach to these problems, and these chapters are more appropriate to specialists in the field. Of more general interest is the discussion on probabilistic safety modelling for large scale technical systems (Chapter 4), which introduces a mathematical approach to answering the questions 'How safe is safe enough?' and 'How safe is too safeT Amongst several examples, one taken is that of a safety evaluation for a 1000 MWe nuclear reactor. R. W. Nichols