Electrochemical Methods: Fundamentals and Applications

Electrochemical Methods: Fundamentals and Applications

Electrochemical Methods: Fundamentals and Applications

A.J. Bard and Larry R. FaulknerJohn Wiley and Sons, 2nd ed.2000.856 p.ISBN: 0-471-04372-9US $111.95, 146.50, £94.50 (Hardcover)

This book is an excellent introduction to electrochemical methods written by two experts in the field, and highly recommended for electrochemical courses. The authors have updated the first edition that was published 20 years back to add valuable new and updated developments in electrochemistry.

The book consists of 18 chapters that cover comprehensively the fundamentals of electrochemical methods. Chapters 1-4 handle electrode processes, thermodynamics and potential, and electron and mass-transfer kinetics. Chapters 5-11 integrate the basic chemical principles into the various electrochemical techniques. Chapter 12 deals with electrode and chemical reactions, while chapters 13 and 14 discuss double layer structure, adsorption and modified electrodes. Chapter 15 is devoted to electrochemical instrumentation, and Chapters 16-18 focus on techniques that combine electrochemistry with other techniques such as spectroscopy and microscopy. The book concludes with three Appendices for review of important mathematical tools, digital simulations of electrochemical problems, and useful reference tables.

The book provides a nice progressive transition from the basic chemical and physical principles, fundamentals of thermodynamics, kinetics, and mass transfer, to a thorough treatment of all important experimental methods. The reader will find thorough treatment of many topics, from double layer theory to impedance analysis and to photoelectrochemistry. The text treats application of electrochemical methods to understand reaction mechanisms, double layer structure and surface processes. In this second edition, many chapters have been modified and improved to add coverage of latest developments such as phenomena at well-defined surfaces, modified electrodes, scanning probe methods, ultramicroelectrodes, and spectroelectrochemistry.

The book is intended to be a textbook for senior undergraduate level and graduate level students. It contains plenty of problems at the end of each chapter, and a teacher's manual is available and sold separately. The book involves extensive mathematical treatment and the user should have a good mathematical background to be able to follow the derivations. In addition, background in physical chemistry is important for the reader to be able to benefit the most from the book.

The book is very well organized, with consistent writing style and uniform mathematical notation. Each topic is handled from very simple terms to progressively more complicated concepts; in this way, one could use it for self-study. Another strength of the book is its extensive illustrations, with sketches and diagrams that are used to simplify terms, explain concepts, and demonstrate different conditions. The book provides reference to manuscripts for additional information and plenty of scientific papers until recent years, and includes an extensive list of symbols, abbreviations and definitions.

In summary, the book is an excellent textbook for materials science, corrosion, chemistry and chemical engineering students, and a highly recommended addition to one's personal library.

Dr M.R. de RooijDelft University of TechnologyE-mail: m.derooij@citg.tudelft.nl