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Chemical analysis of polycyclic aromatic compounds
356
Book reviews
good proportion of the mistakes could have been overcome by better typesetting and proofreading. Consequently, with these shortcomings, it is difficult to recommend this book to undergraduate and postgraduate students of environmental science, biology and environmental health.
M. H. Martin
Chemical Analysis of Polycyclic Aromatic Compounds. Edited by Tuan Vo-Dinh. John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1989. ISBN 0-471-62889-1. Price: £70.00. Eight years have elapsed since I reviewed a book with a very similar title. Is there a need for another? The answer must surely be yes, since this latest work on the subject very effectively illustrates the continued dynamism of research into PAC analysis. The use of the term research in the context of this book is appropriate. The reader new to PAC analysis who is looking for a handy guide to help him/her make the most cost-effective and appropriate choice of technique to solve their problem, may well be disappointed, even confused. However, one of the objectives of the book stated on the cover is to 'foster the critical and creative thinking needed to develop the full potential of analytical techniques in this critical field'. In this the editor may well be successful. An interesting feature of the book is the great diversity of techniques considered in its 15 chapters, varying from complex, high-cost instrumental procedures such as mass-spectrometry, to approaches such as immunoassay, designed for the rapid throughput of large numbers of samples. Furthermore, whereas techniques like mass-spectrometry could be described as mature, though still advancing, even the authors of the chapter on 'Micelle-Mediated Methodologies...' admit that the field is in its infancy. In general, the breadth of the book enhances rather than detracts from its readability, though I'm sure that parts of chapter 9 on 'Laser Multiphoton Ionisation Spectroscopy...' will be indigestible to the uninitiated! As a marine scientist I am somewhat disappointed at the frequency with which books of this type choose materials such as oil, diesel fuel and combustion particulates for their analytical examples. Perhaps it is inevitable that these key sources of PAC will be chosen for analytical development work, but an even greater challenge is to establish the fate of these highly complex materials once dispersed in and altered by the environment. The authors of several chapters carefully balance the advantages and disadvantages of their chosen technique with alternatives, but these assessments are invariably more limited than the scope of the book. A careful
Book reviews
357
read shows that for reasons of matrix or selectivity, certain techniques are the obvious choice for particular analyses, whereas there may be several practical solutions to some analytical problems (e.g. D N A adduct determination). Ronald Hites concludes his excellent chapter on massspectrometry with the statement, 'Clearly, MS will continue to play the most powerful role in the analysis of PACs." Do the other contributors to the book agree? A concluding overview chapter by the editor would have helped the reader to see the way ahead for PAH analysis. With hyphenated techniques such as C G C - R 2 P I - T O F M S - T E C D - L I F - F I D already a reality, the future must surely be interesting! P. Donkin
Book reviews
good proportion of the mistakes could have been overcome by better typesetting and proofreading. Consequently, with these shortcomings, it is difficult to recommend this book to undergraduate and postgraduate students of environmental science, biology and environmental health.
M. H. Martin
Chemical Analysis of Polycyclic Aromatic Compounds. Edited by Tuan Vo-Dinh. John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1989. ISBN 0-471-62889-1. Price: £70.00. Eight years have elapsed since I reviewed a book with a very similar title. Is there a need for another? The answer must surely be yes, since this latest work on the subject very effectively illustrates the continued dynamism of research into PAC analysis. The use of the term research in the context of this book is appropriate. The reader new to PAC analysis who is looking for a handy guide to help him/her make the most cost-effective and appropriate choice of technique to solve their problem, may well be disappointed, even confused. However, one of the objectives of the book stated on the cover is to 'foster the critical and creative thinking needed to develop the full potential of analytical techniques in this critical field'. In this the editor may well be successful. An interesting feature of the book is the great diversity of techniques considered in its 15 chapters, varying from complex, high-cost instrumental procedures such as mass-spectrometry, to approaches such as immunoassay, designed for the rapid throughput of large numbers of samples. Furthermore, whereas techniques like mass-spectrometry could be described as mature, though still advancing, even the authors of the chapter on 'Micelle-Mediated Methodologies...' admit that the field is in its infancy. In general, the breadth of the book enhances rather than detracts from its readability, though I'm sure that parts of chapter 9 on 'Laser Multiphoton Ionisation Spectroscopy...' will be indigestible to the uninitiated! As a marine scientist I am somewhat disappointed at the frequency with which books of this type choose materials such as oil, diesel fuel and combustion particulates for their analytical examples. Perhaps it is inevitable that these key sources of PAC will be chosen for analytical development work, but an even greater challenge is to establish the fate of these highly complex materials once dispersed in and altered by the environment. The authors of several chapters carefully balance the advantages and disadvantages of their chosen technique with alternatives, but these assessments are invariably more limited than the scope of the book. A careful
Book reviews
357
read shows that for reasons of matrix or selectivity, certain techniques are the obvious choice for particular analyses, whereas there may be several practical solutions to some analytical problems (e.g. D N A adduct determination). Ronald Hites concludes his excellent chapter on massspectrometry with the statement, 'Clearly, MS will continue to play the most powerful role in the analysis of PACs." Do the other contributors to the book agree? A concluding overview chapter by the editor would have helped the reader to see the way ahead for PAH analysis. With hyphenated techniques such as C G C - R 2 P I - T O F M S - T E C D - L I F - F I D already a reality, the future must surely be interesting! P. Donkin