Product Description
This book provides a solid introduction to the classical and statistical theories of thermodynamics while assuming no background beyond general physics and advanced calculus. Though an acquaintance with probability and statistics is helpful, it is not necessary.Providing a thorough, yet concise treatment of the phenomenological basis of thermal physics followed by a presentation of the statistical theory, this book presupposes no exposure to statistics or quantum mechanics. It covers several important topics, including a mathematically sound presentation of classical thermodynamics; the kinetic theory of gases including transport processes; and thorough, modern treatment of the thermodynamics of magnetism. It includes up-to-date examples of applications of the statistical theory, such as Bose-Einstein condensation, population inversions, and white dwarf stars. And, it also includes a chapter on the connection between thermodynamics and information theory. Standard International units are used throughout. An important reference book for every professional whose work requires and understanding of thermodynamics: from engineers to industrial designers.ÿ ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Book is OK
The book is OK, but is severely lacking in examples. Assumes you remember your Intro to Thermo to a T in some cases.

Easy to understand, but lacking in vital info
I think this book is written in a really easy to read, accessible way - and takes you through all themath that you need to know in order to understand the derivations.However, all of the practice problems (or a majority) at the end of each chapter are nearly identical - after the 157th "prove this [ridiculous identity]" problem, I stop feeling like I'm learning something about physics and feel like I'm on a differential equation treasure hunt, where the hunting grounds get ever larger and the trails ever more complicated but the treasure gets no more valuable each time the book progesses to a new chapter!It feels like a lot of busy work to me.Other problems are either way way too easy, like one step, or just noticing that they moved something on one side of an equation to another, or are way too hard because there simply isn't enough information in the book to explain what they are asking.For instance, there are problems in there asking you to prove identities involving first order phase transitions, but the book never actually mathematically characterizes first order phase transitions!Either way, its not a bad book overall as long as you want a simple intro, skip the problems that don't have enough information to be solved, and don't want to go too in depth into any of the theory involved.

Great Beginner Level Thermo Textbook
In his discussion of Classical and Statistical Thermodynamics, Ashley Carter provides us with a brief yet rigorous introduction to the field. Very little advanced math is required (at most some simple line integrals, but any other math topics he in fact re-presents in an appendix), and the concepts are presented very succinctly and simply making the book ideal for one who needs to learn the material independently. Also, he provides an abundance of examples which help to solve the (sometimes simple-minded) end-of-chapter exercises.
The one downside to the book is that Carter devotes less time to the latter topic of discussion-- the Statistical Thermo. I used the text to help me with a class in Quantum Field Theory and found myself still lacking a firm understanding of the Grand Canonical Ensemble. Overall though, this book is a more than adequate tool for a Sophomore or Junior level Thermodynamics class, and, especially compared to a number of other nightmare textbooks I have used, Carter's book was a joy to read.

Perfect for an undergrad
I was one of the last students ever to be taught by Dr. Carter, and feel proud to have known the author of this book.Dr. Carter's course was one of my first upper-level undergraduate courses, and so the level of difficulty of this book made a great stepping stone to more rigorous courses.I loved that his quirky and friendly personality show in his writing, while the mathematical proofs and explanations are much clearer and more concise than many other thermal physics textbooks.Yes, his book is smaller than others, but that is simply because Dr. Carter gets to the heart of the matter without bogging the reader down with overly formal writing (like Reif does in his book, for example).I also liked that although the questions at the end of the chapters were easy, the reader could always gain a deeper understanding of the material from them.Dr. Carter never saw the point in long, tedious mathematical processes, when the student could get the concept with a shorter problem.

Not rrigourus enough
Honestly, I was dissappointed in this book. It was too basic and didnt really explain anything in a great amount of detail. The exersizes were way too easy. I am an undergraduate physics major, there is no reason I should be able to do every problem in a chapter in 2 or 3 hours. That is unheard of. I really did not learn any thing from this book. Maybe it is good for a review, but it really is not good for learning the topic for the first time. Find something more detailed and rigorous. ... Read more

Product Description
This revised textbook retains the basic objectives of the first two editions: to present a comprehensive and rigorous treatment of classical thermodynamics while retaining an engineering perspective. The new temperature scale ITS-90, and increased emphasis on rate processes, thermodynamic availability, and power and refrigeration systems are included. A computer disk is packaged with the text. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

specific and very practical
it has a lot of worked problems, covers every field in thermal and heat tranfer engineering.

¿HOW CAN I GET THE SOLUTIONS MANUAL? ¿HOW MUCH IS THE COST?

I'M A MARINE ENGINEERING, PROFESSOR AND LECTURER

specific and very practical
it has a lot of worked problems, covers every field in thermal and heat tranfer engineering.

¿HOW CAN I GET THE SOLUTIONS MANUAL? ¿HOW MUCH IS THE COST?

I'M A MARINE ENGINEERING, PROFESSOR AND LECTURER

specific and very practical
it has a lot of worked problems, covers every field in thermal and heat tranfer engineering.

¿HOW CAN I GET THE SOLUTIONS MANUAL? ¿HOW MUCH IS THE COST?

I'M A MARINE ENGINEERING, PROFESSOR AND LECTURER

specific and very practical
it has a lot of worked problems, covers every field in thermal and heat tranfer engineering.

¿HOW CAN I GET THE SOLUTIONS MANUAL? ¿HOW MUCH IS THE COST?

I'M A MARINE ENGINEERING, PROFESSOR AND LECTURER ... Read more

Product Description
Presents a comprehensive and rigorous treatment of thermodynamics while retaining an engineering perspective and, in so doing, provides a resource with considerable flexibility for the inclusion of material on thermodynamics. Updated for this Third Edition, it reflects an increased emphasis on environmental issues and a recognition of the steadily growing use of computers in the study of thermodynamics and solution of thermodynamic problems. Contains numerous examples, as well as problems at the end of each chapter that are carefully sequenced to reflect the subject matter. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

It's a CLASSIC!!!
Ok, lets's face it: "Thermodynamics is just HARD!" That being said, you should look for a good book, if you want to learn the basic principles. What most of the people don't understand is the depth of the first chapters of this book. They are the very basis for what's next. Every enginner I know have used this book, since the 1970's and still counting. It is not a very "easy-beast-to-tame", but once you master the basics everything else will be a consequence. Classics are like that! ; )

Good reference
I like this book as a reference/review, perhaps as a companion to other subject material.It doesn't have a lot or worked examples and so can't really be thought of as an introductory tutorial.It is very thorough and provides a moderately deep overview of the subject.Undergrad engineering math is a prereq for understanding the book.It is very expensive as a new book; however, in used form I think it is well worth the price (at just a fraction of the new price).

Good reference book, but a horrible textbook
This book is currently used in my Engineering Thermodynamics course, and is due to be phased out in favor of another textbook beginning in 2004.The authors of this text, Dr. Sonntag and Dr. Van Wylen, seem to know their stuff; however, they have not done a good job of writing a textbook that a typical engineering student can learn from.

The entire book is black and white text, with a few mediocre drawings, and a minimal number of worked example problems--some chapters do not have a single example problem.The few example problems that are given are usually solved by skipping most of the critical steps.The authors seem to assume that readers will be doing most of the complex calculations in their heads.

What is most annoying, however, is that for many of the book's end-of-chapter problems, the authors have not shown how to solve them anywhere within the chapter.Once again, the authors may have assumed that only geniuses would be reading their text and that they should be able to derive the necessary equations completely unaided by sample problems, illustrations, or other learning aids.

In short, I feel sorry for any full-time student who is forced to learn thermodynamics from this textbook.

For learning thermodynamics, I think "Fundamentals of Engineering Thermodynamics" by Michael Moran and Howard Shapiro is a much better choice.It has plenty of explanatory graphs and illustrations (in color even), as well as numerous worked examples.Dr. Sonntag and Dr. Van Wylen, are you paying attention?

I give this book 2 stars overall.
As a reference book, I give it 4 stars.
As a book to learn thermodynamics from, I give it 1 star.

The Best of Ternodynamics
Is a book wich explain detaily, all the laws on termodynamics, has a very good examples and excercises. Another issue, it works on International systems Units, and is very good because the world is changingfor usingthat units on all the industries, it has conversion factor forEnglish andmetrics units. I recommend it as the best book for the begining onTermodynamic studies. ... Read more

Product Description
This graduate-level text begins with basic concepts ofthermodynamics and continues through the study of Jacobian theory, Maxwellequations, stability, theory of real gases, critical point theory, andchemical thermodynamics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Instructive
Reading this book requires dedication - as the previous reviewer mentioned, it is not necessarily straight forward. However, the treatment of Jacobian methods in thermodynamics is excellent; I am usually disappointed by the brief coverage of this efficient and elegant tool given in other books. The remainder of the text is delivered with the same rigor, which will be appreciated by the determined student. If you are committed to the book, you will benefit greatly from the (many) hours required to decipher it!

Advanced Classical Thermodynamics
While techincally excellent, this book is extremely convoluted for even intermediate students of thermodynamics. More appropriately used as a reference, I would not use this book as a text for any but PhD level graduate students. ... Read more

Product Description
The laws of thermodynamics are amongst the most assured and wide-ranging of all scientific laws. They do not pretend to explain any observation in molecular terms but, by showing the necessary relationships between different physical properties, they reduce otherwise disconnected results to compact order, and predict new effects. This classic title, first published in 1957, is a systematic exposition of principles, with examples of applications, especially to changes of places and the conditions for stability. In all this entropy is a key concept. ... Read more

Product Description
The series of texts Classical Theoretical Physics is based on thehighly successful series of courses given by Walter Greiner andhis colleagues at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University inFrankfurt am Main, Germany.Intended for advanced undergraduatesand beginning graduate students, the volumes in this series willprovide not only a complete survey of classical theoreticalphysics but also an enormous number of worked examples andproblems to show students clearly how to apply the underlyingprinciples to realistic problems.

Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics covers:Thermodynamics- basic definitions of thermodynamics, equilibrium, state variables- the first and second laws- phase transitions and chemical reactions- thermodynamic potentialsStatistical Mechanics- statistics of microscopic states and connection to the entropy- the microcanonical, canonical and grand canonical ensembles- applications of Boltzmann statisticsQuantum Statistics- the density operator- many-particle wave functions- ideal quantum systems- the ideal Bose gas and applications to blackbody radiation, Kirchhoff's law, and lattice vibrations- the ideal Fermi gas and applications to condensed-matter physics, astrophysics, and nuclear physics- relativistic Bose and Fermi gases and applications to particle physicsReal Gases and Phase Transitions- real gases and the virial expansion- classification of phase transitions and critical indices- the Ising and Heisenberg models

FROM THE REVIEWS:

AUSTRALIAN & NEW ZEALAND PHYSICIST"As one might expect, it contains a thorough and complete coverage of a wide range of topics...It contains a wealth of worked examples: for instance, the theory of relativistic gases is illustrated by its application to one of Greiner's favorite topics, the quark-gluon plasma in the Big Bang and in heavy-ion collisions. It deserves serious consideration as a textbook for third-year courses in this area." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Ok but...
It seems like a pretty good textbook. I have read a bunch of chapters and found above-average insight and relevant examples that have been good at clearing up confusion. Concepts are clearly explained. What the student may like are the large number of worked examples. This is invaluable to have when you learn statistical mechanics for the first time.Most of Greiner's books are of a very high pedagogical value.True, there may be similarities with other texts, but hey, it must be difficult to present the same old classical material in a different manner.

Just a minor note: his discussion of exact differentials on pp.26-27 is wrong. He claims that curl F = 0 is a necessary and sufficient condition for f to be exact. It is a necessary condition, but not sufficient. It is not enough to show that curl F=0. All this shows is that the form is "close" (not exact). To prove that it is exact is a much more difficult task: one must prove that a potential function exists. This topic is covered in many elementary books on differential geometry..

Great graduate level text
A really good graduate level text that was useful as a supplement for my stat mech class. Lots of worked examples, would be great for self study also. Greiner's field theory book is a good one too.

Good standard textbook, many examples, good for beginners to the field
This book is typical for all books of the Greiner series.
It contains lots of solved sample problems scattered throughout the text. It has a readable, nice style but there are many unnecessary typing errors. All in all this is a readable book for beginners but nothing special.

No References and Many Careless Typos
A slightly better graduate text is that by Pathria which is in its second edition. It is fairly clear that Greiner has borrowed heavily from Pathria's approach. Greiner's book is more comfortable to look at and read though.

Greiner does not include a single reference in this book. I would like to point out that if this were an article submitted to a scientific journal, it would be rejected out of hand for this egregious lack of attribution. This is particularly bothersome with regard to comparing experiment with theory. Mr. Bromley, who wrote the preface, states that these comparisons are a plus for the book. While true, this is hardly unique. Every stat mech book I have quotes experimental results, but the others also cite the reference to the original work. This gives students (and teachers) the ability to look at the experimental work and to get the data for themselves, and it gives credit to those who did the work.

What could have been a much better text is marred by too many typos and references to incorrect equation numbers. As well, I find that some "derivations", again contrary to a statement by Bromley, are of the "it can be seen that" variety, which is odd in a text which does go into some detail on many things, e.g. the derivation of the partition function for an ideal gas in the microcanonical ensemble. An example of a non-derivation is given in the discussion that follows eqn 7.67 which arbitrarily splits the velocity distribution into 3 multiplicative pieces. Since the big new thing for a student in this subject is the use of probability, it would have been much more appropriate to find the one-dimensional velocity distribution by integrating the 3d distribution over two of the components. There are other places in the book where the author fails to use this approach. Students find this confusing, I find it inconsistent. As it stands, the formula is correct, but there is not even a hint that it should be derived or questioned.

I found the discussion of the purely classical derivation, the semiclassical derivation, and the quantum derivation of various quantities such as the IG partition function to be a bit confusing at times particularly when the Gibbs factor and the quantum correction h^3N were involved, perhaps it is just me. I would find it better if each derivation were given separately with a summary at the end. This would be more helpful, since some of the later derivations, e.g. Maxwell-Boltzmann are essentially classical in nature and could be arrived at from any of the formulas.

On the other hand I found Chapter 12 on the Grand Canonical Ensemble to be excellent, especially the discussion of the distribution of occupation numbers on p. 308ff, an important topic that is not often discussed in Stat Mech books.

All in all, though, this would be good book with a little more care and with an appropriate reference list. If you get it, pay attention as you read it.

Wow.
All I can say is that I wish this text had been used in my graduate statistical physics class.The thorough explainations and derivations are very helpful and the extensive examples are priceless for students new to the subject. ... Read more

Product Description
Thermodynamics of Materials A Classical and Statistical Synthesis

Designed as a reference resource for practicing professionals as well as a text for advanced students, Thermodynamics of Materials offers a lucid presentation that ties together classical and statistical treatments of thermodynamics within the framework of materials science. Unlike most books in the field, it emphasizes the natural connection between these two approaches, both as a way of obtaining useful information about real systems, and as a way of showing the relations between the molecular-level properties of systems, and their properties on a macroscopic scale. In this regard, the author's aim throughout the text is to introduce the rigorous, general relations that arise from classical thermodynamics, which are system independent, and then to use statistical thermodynamic relations to calculate the expected values of the macroscopic thermodynamic parameters of the systems.

Thermodynamics of Materials includes a review of classical thermodynamics, an introduction to statistical thermodynamics, and numerous practical problems in thermodynamics, especially those involving phase and chemical equilibrium. Handy appendices enhance the value of this outstanding text. ... Read more

Product Description
Because it is grounded in math, chemical thermodynamics is often perceived as a difficult subject and many students are never fully comfortable with it. The first authoritative textbook presentation of equilibrium chemical and phase thermodynamics in a reformulated geometrical framework, Chemical and Phase Thermodynamics shows how this famously difficult subject can be accurately expressed with only elementary high-school geometry concepts. Featuring numerous suggestions for research-level extensions, this simplified alternative to standard calculus-based thermodynamics expositions is perfect for undergraduate and beginning graduate students as well as researchers. ... Read more

Product Description
This book follows the interplay between allegory and physics in Europe from the inception of the laws of thermodynamics in the 1850s to the cultural acceptance of the theory of relativity in the 1920s. Bruce Clarke delves into the cultural poetics of this emergence, as well as using allegory theory to link the literature of that era to the consolidation of modern physics in England. In his examination of these correlating topics the author displays not only an impressive grasp on the scientific climate of that era, but also comprehensive knowledge of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century literature.
The book begins with an overview of the interconnections between allegory in literature and allegory in science, then analyzes the interaction between energy and entropy and their personification in the literature of the times. Energy Forms draws on the writing of well-known literary and scientific authors including H. G. Wells, Camille Flammarion, Charles Howard Hinton and D. H. Lawrence, among others. The focus then shifts to the broad cultural tension between thermodynamic malaise and electromagnetic aspiration. Energy Forms uncovers the works of important but overlooked authors in the fields of science and literature and will appeal especially to those who are intrigued by interdisciplinary studies.
Bruce Clarke is Professor of English,Texas Tech University. He is the author of Dora Marsden and Early Modernism: Gender, Individualism, Science; Allegories of Writing: The Subject of Metamorphosis; and editor of The Body and the Text: Comparative Essays in Literature and Medicine.
... Read more

Product Description
Using an applications perspective Thermodynamic Models for Industrial Applications provides a unified framework for the development of various thermodynamic models, ranging from the classical models to some of the most advanced ones. Among these are the Cubic Plus Association Equation of State (CPA EoS) and the Perturbed Chain Statistical Association Fluid Theory (PC-SAFT). These two advanced models are already in widespread use in industry and academia, especially within the oil & gas, chemical and polymer industries.

Presenting both classical models such as the Cubic Equations of State and more advanced models such as the CPA, this book provides the critical starting point for choosing the most appropriate calculation method for accurate process simulations. Written by two of the developers of these models, Thermodynamic Models for Industrial Applications emphasises model selection and model development and includes a useful “which model for which application” guide. It also covers industrial requirements as well as discusses the challenges of thermodynamics in the 21^st Century.

More information is available online at www.wiley.com/go/kontogeorgis

... Read more

Product Description
Solutions Manual available. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Bad book
I had to use this text in college and it was the worst book in four years of study. If you want a long boring explanation of thermodynamics choose this book. I can not in any way recommend this book. See Moran or Ceagel or JP Holman much better books.

Engineering is the application
Engineering is the application of scientific ideas to real world and the toughest thing is expressing the engineering principles in a simple way. Not all the books will be able to deliver the concepts more clearly but this book does. The way the author tried to express the entropy, exergy concepts were awesome and the worked out example for every topic made it simpler to understand the concepts and to apply them in real life situations. This book may be suitable for anyone who wants to understand the basics of thermodynamics, if you want to know how the basic laws and equations arrived then you may have to go for some other books. Since Internal combustion engines are a part of thermodynamics the author has given a brief introduction about the types of fuels and their combustion processes.
This book has failed to list about the biological relationship with thermodynamics and also the latest scientific advancements in the field of thermodynamics. Otto, Diesel, and Stirling cycles were explained in a nice way but the Dual cycle was absent and the details about aircraft propulsion systems and their governing cycle of operation were also absent in this text book. It would have been better if the book is presented with more number of real life engineering equipment pictures, without pictures it was difficult to think about the real life applications of the concepts. This book can be used for reference purposes and would help for a new comer to thermodynamics field. Those who need to project on related topics concerned with energy this would be the best thing to hang on. This book has its own style of explaining things in a conceptual manner which everyone can understand easily. Written in lucid language it is very easy to understand for a beginner. Just make it a point to take glance at it if you are an engineer or an engineering student.

very practical
I`m a marine engineering proffesor and lecturer and has been very, very interesant and very practical regarding to modern application.

¿How can i get from yours the solutions manualfrom this book? I Really want toacquire both book and solutions manual?

Kind regards

THE PUBLISHER, JOHN & SONS
SOLUTION TECHNIQUE IN ALL EXAMPLE PROBLE ... Read more

Product Description
This 1980 monograph develops from first principles the description of finite deformations of solids under stress and the forces acting, and also the expression of internal forces in terms of stress tensors. The important feature of the book is that elastic properties are discussed and developed consistently from classical thermodynamics. In other books, this point of view is acknowledged only by assuming the existence of an elastic energy function, thus restricting their range mainly to the problem of the spatial distribution of stresses and strains. Topics discussed as applications of the theory include thermal expansion, specific heats, stiffness and complicances, the effects of symmetry on thermodynamic properties, diffusion in a stressed solid, equilibrium in contact with a solution of the solid, phase stability, solid state phase transitions and twinning. ... Read more

Product Description
Professor Buchdahl presents a systematic exposition of classical thermodynamics, against a background of general physical theory and on a purely phenomenological (i.e. non-statistical) level. Although particular attention is paid to the meaning of the various concepts introduced, Professor Buchdahl is not afraid of making simplifications where these are likely to enhance the reader's understanding of the subject and the relationships between the principal and ancillary laws. The emphasis throughout is on meaning and physical significance. Specific applications of the general theory are discussed in two final chapters. This book, first published in 1966, is intended for the student who has taken a first course in analytical, though not axiomatic, development of the subject. It will supplement rather than replace, the many familiar introductory treatments of thermodynamics. ... Read more

Product Description
Sophomore or junior engineering students will appreciate this in-depth analysis of the fundamentals of thermodynamics. The text notes common student problem areas such as definition of systems boundary, units, processes, work and heat.A review of energy resource consumption shows theimportance of energy resources to the economy and emphasizes thermodynamic analysis.The systematic approach to solving thermodynamic problems is supported by numerous chapter-end problems graded in three levels of difficulty.Open-ended design problems are included in chapters 10-15 to reflectthe increasing emphasis on the need for design in core courses.Extensive treatment of second law analyses, including energy analysis/energy availability, helps students understand real systems.Explanation of how to maximize energy delivery from chemical reactions presents a solid background inimproving the design of reacting systems.Accompanying Thermo-Props software saves students time in looking up values from tables, and help in the analysis of psychmetrics, as well as heating, refrigeration, and air conditioning systems. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent Overview
This book is excellent textbook for obtaining a broad overview and a firm grasp of a difficult topic. I recommend it to professors of undergraduate students. ... Read more