- Email: [email protected]
Volume 5, 635 pp. and index
Book Reviews
2029
of the general presentation, discussion, formulae and diagrams. Apart from reference to the original literature, few scientists will find it necessary to look outside this volume for their material. C.C. ADDISON
Volm 4, QlM pp. and index-Volume 4 is concerned with the general chemistry of the lanthanides and some special topics in transition metal chemistry. Therald Moe&r has packed a great amount of the fundamental chemistry of the lanthanides into his 101 pp. in an interesting and scholarly manner with tables of essential data. Important recent developments in their organometallic chemistry have come too late to be included, but the chapter provides a useful fairly detailed first reference to their inorganic chemistry. The subjects of the surveys are topical and obviously bear the mark of the late Sir Ronald Nyholm. They vary considerably in detail of treatment, interest and authority. Generally they emphasise recent work until about 1969-70 but rarely show a sense of history. They vary in length from 60 to 200 pp., mostly around 100 pp. They are authoritative and useful surveys all giving numerous references to recent reviews and original work. The authors are well lmown chemists whose style and subject matter are familiar to most inorganic chemists. There are eight surveys as follows: Carbonyls, cyanides, isooyanides and nitrosyls by W. B. Griffith. Compounds of the transition elements involving metal-metal bonds by D. L. Kepert and K. Vrieze. Transition metal hydrogen compounds by J. C. Green and M. L. H. Green. Non-stoichiometric compounds: an introductory essay by D. J. M. Bevan. Tungsten bronzes, vanadium bronzes e4d related compounds by P. Hagenmuller. Isopolyanions and heteropolyanions by D. L. Kepert. Transition metal chemistry by B. F. G. Johnson. Organo-transition metal compounds and related aspects of homogeneous catalysis by B. L. Shaw and N. I. Tucker. This volume has its own subject index of sixteen and a half pages, and is well produced with numerous tables of data and references provided at the foot of each page. J. cHA!l'T
Volume 5, 885 pp. anti index-Volume 5 is devoted to the Actinides (635 pp.) and the Master Index (78 pp.). The latter serves little purpose since it merely indicates the subsections of CIC and thus repeats the indexes in each individual volume. Indeed, as the treatment of each element or series of elements follows a standard pattern, the volumes are essentially self-indexing anyway. A one-page table of contents at the beginning of Volume 5 would have been more helpful and is a curious omission. The running headings at the top of each double page are also singularly uniformative, only three being used: “The Elements” for 102 pp., “Compounds” for 361 pages and “Solution Chemistry” for the remaining 171 pp. The treatment of actinium and the actinides (elements 89-103) is both readable and authoritative. Nine of the contributors are from ABRE, Harwell, and the other five (with one exception) are from nuclear chemistry institutes in Sweden and Germany. In reviewing these 5 f elements it is salutory to recall that the majority have been synthesised for the first time within the last 30 years-yet the number of compounds known and the amount of information on them has already outstripped the more limited chemistry of their 4f congeners, the lenthanides. The suthors heve done a magnificent job in assembling, collating, assessing and systematizing a vast amount of data on the physical and chemical properties of these elements and their numerous oompounds. The work, whiah is extensively referenoed, will undoubtedly remain the standard flrst source of information in this area for many years to come. N.N.
GREENWOOD
2029
of the general presentation, discussion, formulae and diagrams. Apart from reference to the original literature, few scientists will find it necessary to look outside this volume for their material. C.C. ADDISON
Volm 4, QlM pp. and index-Volume 4 is concerned with the general chemistry of the lanthanides and some special topics in transition metal chemistry. Therald Moe&r has packed a great amount of the fundamental chemistry of the lanthanides into his 101 pp. in an interesting and scholarly manner with tables of essential data. Important recent developments in their organometallic chemistry have come too late to be included, but the chapter provides a useful fairly detailed first reference to their inorganic chemistry. The subjects of the surveys are topical and obviously bear the mark of the late Sir Ronald Nyholm. They vary considerably in detail of treatment, interest and authority. Generally they emphasise recent work until about 1969-70 but rarely show a sense of history. They vary in length from 60 to 200 pp., mostly around 100 pp. They are authoritative and useful surveys all giving numerous references to recent reviews and original work. The authors are well lmown chemists whose style and subject matter are familiar to most inorganic chemists. There are eight surveys as follows: Carbonyls, cyanides, isooyanides and nitrosyls by W. B. Griffith. Compounds of the transition elements involving metal-metal bonds by D. L. Kepert and K. Vrieze. Transition metal hydrogen compounds by J. C. Green and M. L. H. Green. Non-stoichiometric compounds: an introductory essay by D. J. M. Bevan. Tungsten bronzes, vanadium bronzes e4d related compounds by P. Hagenmuller. Isopolyanions and heteropolyanions by D. L. Kepert. Transition metal chemistry by B. F. G. Johnson. Organo-transition metal compounds and related aspects of homogeneous catalysis by B. L. Shaw and N. I. Tucker. This volume has its own subject index of sixteen and a half pages, and is well produced with numerous tables of data and references provided at the foot of each page. J. cHA!l'T
Volume 5, 885 pp. anti index-Volume 5 is devoted to the Actinides (635 pp.) and the Master Index (78 pp.). The latter serves little purpose since it merely indicates the subsections of CIC and thus repeats the indexes in each individual volume. Indeed, as the treatment of each element or series of elements follows a standard pattern, the volumes are essentially self-indexing anyway. A one-page table of contents at the beginning of Volume 5 would have been more helpful and is a curious omission. The running headings at the top of each double page are also singularly uniformative, only three being used: “The Elements” for 102 pp., “Compounds” for 361 pages and “Solution Chemistry” for the remaining 171 pp. The treatment of actinium and the actinides (elements 89-103) is both readable and authoritative. Nine of the contributors are from ABRE, Harwell, and the other five (with one exception) are from nuclear chemistry institutes in Sweden and Germany. In reviewing these 5 f elements it is salutory to recall that the majority have been synthesised for the first time within the last 30 years-yet the number of compounds known and the amount of information on them has already outstripped the more limited chemistry of their 4f congeners, the lenthanides. The suthors heve done a magnificent job in assembling, collating, assessing and systematizing a vast amount of data on the physical and chemical properties of these elements and their numerous oompounds. The work, whiah is extensively referenoed, will undoubtedly remain the standard flrst source of information in this area for many years to come. N.N.
GREENWOOD