Book Reviews

Advances in Catalysis. Vols. I, II, and III. Edited by W. G. FRANKENBURG, V. I. KOMEREWSKY, AND E. K. RIDEAL. Academic Press Inc., Publishers, New York. Vo]. I (1948), 321 pp., Price $7.80; Vol. II (1950), 292 pp., price $6.80; and Vol. I I I (1951), 360 pp., price $7.80.

Advances in Catalysis is a collection of papers by outstar~ding authorities in the various fields of catalysis. They differ from the usual types of papers found in published symposia inasmuch as they are in the nature of reviews or surveys and are reasonably detailed. In several cases the authors have presented some hitherto unpublished material. The papers are representative of the various approaches to the subject of catalysis and treat the material from points of view which might be categorized as follows:

(a) Surface Chemistry: "Heterogeneity of Catalyst Surfaces" by Hugh S. Taylor; and "Catalysis and the Adsorption of Hydrogen on Metal Catalysts" by Otto Beek.

(b) Surface Physics: "Surface Area Measurements. A New Tool for Studying Con- tact Catalysis" by P. H. tgmmett; and "The Application of X-Ray Diffraction to the Study of Solid Catalysis" by 3/[. A. Jellinek and I. Fankuehen.

(c) Unit Catalytic Processes: "Alkylation of Isoparaffins" by V. N. Ipatieff and Louis Schmerling; and "Chemical Characteristics and Structure of Cracking Catalysts" by A. G. Oblad, T. H. Millikan, and G. A. Mills.

(d) Catalyst Types: "Nickel Sulfide Catalysts" by Wm. J. Kirkpatrick; and "Hydro- gen Fluoride Catalysts" by J. H. Simons.

The first three volumes have eight such papers in each volume, averaging about forty pages per paper.

The editors have purposely omitted matter related to biocatalysis since this subject matter is adequately covered elsewhere. In studying heterogeneous catalysis whether it be liquid-liquid, gas-solid, or any of the other combinations in which more than one phase is involved, it is usual to consider some sequence of events such as diffusion to the interface, adsorption, formation of a chemical complex, reaction, desorption, and finally diffusion back into the main body of reactants and products. All these steps or modifi- cations of them, depending upon the phase relationships, should be considered in any rate study involving heterogeneous catalysis. I t is therefore felt that major sections on diffusion, heat, and mass transfer could, very profitably, have been included in an early volume. While these phenomena are not catalytic in themselves they have an important relationship to the subject especially where one is interested in the interpre- tation and application of rate data. The advances made in this field during the past few years certainly warrant recognition, summary, or review. Diffusion and flow are very briefly mentioned by G. M. Schwab, and diffusion in catalyst pores is extensivdy covered by A. Wheeler. Acid-base catalysis is another subject which could be profitably covered in an early volume. I t was felt, in one or two instances, that the editors had selected papers which, while worthy of publication, do not properly belong in a collection under the title Advances in Catalysis, but on the whole they have accomplished the difficult task of selecting suitable material with notable success.

As is usually the case with such collected works, there is no uniformity of style, use of symbols, and in some cases there is an unnecessary overlap of material coverage. The style of the section entitled "Catalysis and the AdsOrption of Hydrogen on Metal

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184 BOOK REVIEWS

Catalysts" by O. Beek has much to recommend it for a reference work of this type. Each section is headed by an italicized abstract which clearly informs the reader as to what is to be found in that section of the paper. Needless to say, this method of presen- tation considerably enhances, the ease with which the subject matter can be assimilated and its usefulness as a reference article.

The preface of the collection correctly summarizes the status of our understanding of catalysis, the difficulties involved, and the necessity for presenting the subject from many points of view.

Advances in Catalysis is a worth-while contribution to the chemical literature and should help speed the day when the foundations of catalysis will have been laid so that a science of catalysis can be erected.

CHARLES POTTER, New York, New York

Hydrogen Ion Concentration. New concepts in a systematic treatment. By JoHN E. Ricci. Princeton University Press, Princeton, N. J., and Oxford University Press, London, England, 1952. xxxvi q- 460 pp. Price $10.00.

This is an advanced, mathematical treatise developed on the author's thesis that : "The quantitative relations determining the hydrogen ion concentration of aqueous solutions constitute a purely mathematical problem subject to exact and systematic treatment and capable of simple and uniform presentation."

Two virtues of this book a r e : (a) I t repeatedly reminds the reader of the distinction between postulates that are necessary and sufficient for a particular mathematical treatment and postulates that may involve more than the adquate, mathematical requirements; and (b) it gives detailed mathematical treatments of a large number of problems.

With regard to the first virtue it should be said that some readers may object to certain statements in the introductory chapter if these statements are not read with appreciation of the author's apparently exclusive concern for the mathematics involved. For example, Dr. Ricci chooses to regard hydrogen and hydroxyl ions as exclusively "wate r ions" in the sense that " they are never 'contributed' by solutes" (such as acids). "Solute ions (acids, bases and ampholytes) contain the solute molecule unbroken." For example, the hydrated chloride ion, formally represented by ]C1.H20]-, cannot be dis- tinguished (analytically) from the ion formed by capture of O H - by HC1, formally the ion I t tC I -Ot t l - . In the opinion of the reviewer such views should be construed with regard for what Dr. Ricci considers convenient for his mathematics, most of his equations being oriented from the difference between the concentrations (or activities) of hydrogen and hydroxyl ions as affected by "solutes," and matters of mechanism being secondary. When, however, he uses classical equilibrium equations, such as

[H+][CH3-COO - ] [CH3.COOH] = K,

something will appear to be missing. Also, it will appear that the author has cut himself off from an easy transition to systems in those nonaqueous solutions where it has proved convenient to retain the concept of proton exchange and definitely from extension to Lewis acids and bases. The first transition is not impossible but would require consider- able reformulation of "species."

With regard to the second virtue it should be said that the owner of this book will have assembled in one monograph somewhat special treatments of problems, discussions of which are widely scattered in the literature. While more references would have been welcomed, the book remains a valuable compilation for the specialist. A~ the reader will find, it is impracticable to examine all detail without the expenditure of a great deal of