Physical Chemistry (Topics in Physical Chemistry) [Hardcover]

R. Stephen Berry (Author), Stuart A. Rice (Author), John Ross (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0195105893 | ISBN-13: 978-0195105896 | Publication Date: March 30, 2000 | Edition: 2

Every chemist should own a copy of this uniquely thorough yet incisive treatment of the basic principles of physical chemistry. Written by three eminent physical chemists, the second edition of this exceptional work is the most lucid and comprehensive physical chemistry reference available. The authors present the fundamentals of the three major areas of physical chemistry--the microscopic structure of matter, the equilibrium properties of systems, and the physical and chemical kinetics of transformations of systems--in a logical sequence, from the simple to the complex. Beginning with atomic and molecular structure, they progress to properties of condensed matter, to statistical and thermodynamic properties of systems in equilibrium, and then to transport phenomena and chemical reaction processes. The book's mathematical level begins with elementary calculus and rises to the use of simple properties of partial differential equations and the special functions that enter into their solutions. The conceptual structure of physical chemistry is emphasized throughout and appendices develop the details of the mathematical tools as they are needed.

This new edition features:
� In-depth and illuminating presentation of conceptual arguments
� No shortcuts--derives whole formulas
� 100 new problems
� New material on nuclear magnetic resonance
� Expanded treatment of linear and nonlinear irreversible processes and thermodynamics
� A completely revised treatment of electrode kinetics
� Many updates throughout
� Several vignettes--written by leaders in the field--that cover topics at the cutting edge of physical chemistry research

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I find the progression from microscopic to macroscopic more effective than following the chronological advancment of physical chemistry. In fact, students usually do very well when they start our current, and traditional, sequence midway. The vignettes are very well done and exciting."--Preston J. MacDougall, Middle Tennessee State University

"This is a well-written, logically-developed presentation of physical chemistry. It presents quantum chemistry first, as I believe should be done. It continues to be (in its new edition) the most demanding book in the field. Most of our undergraduates would find it too difficult, but it might be appropriate for our graduate students."--Hal Harris, University of Missouri, St. Louis

About the Author

R. Stephen Berry and Stuart A. Rice are both at University of Chicago. John Ross is at Stanford University.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1080 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 2 edition (March 30, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195105893
• ISBN-13: 978-0195105896
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 8.7 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #577,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clear, and comprehensive, and well organized, September 29, 2007

By 

RacemicMixture "Chemical Engineer" (Pittsburgh, PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Physical Chemistry (Topics in Physical Chemistry) (Hardcover)

This textbook is one of the best text in Physical Chemistry in the modern time. Although not a classic, it is well organized and pulls all the important information and problems from a variety of sources. The writing is clear and logical for both undergraduate and graduate students alike.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars The worst book ever, May 13, 2011

By 

C. Liu - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Physical Chemistry (Topics in Physical Chemistry) (Hardcover)

This is the worst physical chemistry book ever used. Luckily, for most, it is rarely used precisely because it is so terrible, especially as an undergrad text. Maybe this is a good textbook for graduate-level studies or, as my professors use it, as a reference text for someone who has a PhD in the topics already.

SUMMARY OF GIANT FLAWS:
- Typos in figures, equations, text, etc.
- Ambiguity and errors in wording (the difference between speed and velocity means a lot in solving homework problems!)
- Math comes out of nowhere with no justification
- Extremely wordy and unclear
- No example problems - a tragedy for use at the undergrad level
- Chapter and section are not listed at the top of each page, so have fun memorizing that Ch29 is on Dense Phases, not Kinematics!
- Information needed to solve problems (i.e. specific heats, etc) is often not even found within the text
- It is the weight of a small child

I would like to share with you a small sample of the reviews of the book from course evaluations from my last quarter of Thermodynamics:

"Berry, Rice, and Ross was the worst textbook I have ever used, in any class, ever. It actually decreased my understanding of the material every time I tried to read it. The text reads like it was translated badly from German--horribly convoluted and unclear. The entire thing was rife with errors--important equations would stated incorrectly, captions to figures made no sense, homework problems would refer to the wrong equations/figures, etc. There were no example problems, variables were poorly defined (you would have to search through huge paragraphs to find out what theta* was, and even once you found the reference you would still be confused), and stupidest of all, the chapter and section numbers were not listed at the top of each page, so that you were never sure what chapter you were in as you flipped through the book."

"BRR was the worst chemistry text I have ever had. NEVER AGAIN should it be used for this course, or any other undergraduate thermo course, for that matter."

"Physical Chemistry, by Berry, Rice, and Ross. Frankly, the book was not very useful at all. It was incredibly dense, not concise at all, and frankly sometimes downright confusing. I feel like some of the problems from this book were more difficult because you had no idea what they were asking than because of the science involved."

"SO BAD. BRR has way too many typos throughout. I hate it so much waj n jhmj, mmmvfhgt bh kh mnhg nbgn b. Sorry, its just impossible to express my frustration and rage with BRR in words. The problems are also very poorly written."

"Berry Ross and Rice is easily the worst textbook I have ever used in college. If you randomly picked a book from the Library of Congress catalogue, it would be more effective at teaching thermodynamics than BRR. It is incomprehensible gibberish, with a healthy dose of typos to further prevent learning."

"The text was awful (authors: BBR,Berry and Rice?). It was expensive, heavy, and terribly written. There were mistakes throughout the text, which made understanding the material only that much more difficult. Nothing was explained well and the limited derivations of equations were stilted and useless. It was really frustrating to have to spend so much money on something so unhelpful and even detrimental to my learning."

9 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome, May 17, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Physical Chemistry (Topics in Physical Chemistry) (Hardcover)

This book puts a high value on clarity and logic. Time invested with this book is repaid with UNDERSTANDING.