Chemical, Biochemical, and Engineering Thermodynamics

by Stanley I. Sandler

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 0471661740

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Book Description

A modern, accessible, and applied approach to chemical thermodynamics

Thermodynamics is central to the practice of chemical engineering, yet students sometimes feel that the discipline is too abstract while they are studying the subject.

By providing an applied and modern approach, Stanley Sandler's Chemical, Biochemical, and Engineering Thermodynamics, helps students see the value and relevance of studying thermodynamics to all areas of chemical engineering, and gives them the depth of coverage they need to develop a solid understanding of the key principles in the field.

Key Features

• Highlights applications of thermodynamics to subjects that chemical engineering students will see in later courses.
• Realistic problems introduce students to the types of challenges they will encounter in industry and graduate research.
• The Fourth Edition has been reorganized into 15 chapters, providing shorter chapters that introduce students to the subject in more bite-sized pieces.
• Presents biochemical examples, particularly in Chapters 11 and 12, and in all of Chapter 15 entitled "Biochemical Applications of Thermodynamics."
• Coverage of environmental and safety applications of thermodynamics provides course material useful for ABET accreditation.
• Includes a brief introduction to the new field of product engineering in Chapter 12.
• Instructional objectives and nomenclature lists at the beginning of each chapter provide useful study tools.
• Students can solve problems using MATHCAD(r), MATLAB(r) and Visual Basic programs that accompany this textbook.
• An accompanying CD features a 120-day trial version of MATHCAD, as well as MATHCAD worksheets, an extensive properties database, and Windows-friendly Visual Basic and MATLAB programs for equation of state and UNIFAC calculations. (These worksheets and programs are also available online at the book website.)
• Also included on the CD are PDF files of important data figures that students can download and print for use in solving homework problems.

Book Info

Presented in sufficient detail to provide a solid understanding of the principles of thermodynamics & its classical applications. Included are the applications of chemical engineering thermodynamics to issues such as distribution of chemicals in the environment, safety, polymers, & solid-state processing. DLC: Thermodynamics.

Customer Reviews

I personally find it very difficult to review this book. The subject matter is particularly hard; thus it could be the case that my inability to grasp the material might render me incapable of a sound judgment of the quality of the book.

When it comes to engineering books, a particular system of units may comes as annoyance to those unfamiliar with it. Prof. Sandler however managed to avoid the indulgence of deluging the book with non-SI units, a certain pitfall many authors fell victim to in their endeavor to expose students to the real-world situations where units don't come nicely in meters and Kelvins. Well, as they say, the road to thermodynamic hell is paved with good intentions.

The derivation of the equations are sufficiently rigorous, and the algebra can be dauntingly so. As someone who appreciates mathematical formalism and rigor, I should find the course satisfying this [interest] of mine. Events did not turn out that way however; when the conceptually simple but algebraically tedious calculation is repeated over and over again with different variables (eg calculating the partial molar property of G, then for H, then for S, etc) one easily becomes stultified; the mind thenceforth approaches the book merely as an exercise in clever manipulation of mathematical symbols. This is most probably not a particular "fault" of this book, but the field itself.

The book took an axiomatic development of thermodynamics; some historical snippets are inserted to help the intuition whenever necessary.

Much to the wisdom of Prof. Sandler, his examples are clear and illustrative of the underlying concept he wishes to clarify; again here he managed to avoid the all-too-common indulgence in "cute" story problems (eg "Your uncle's friend Fred has opened a plant ...") that in some books may span two annoyingly long paragraphs. (I have actually sit for a 50-minute exam where students were expected to extract vital informations from such vague story problems. As expected, the students did not find them funny.)

The last complaint I have for this book is the apparent lack of numerical answers at the back. At least numerical answers would help one check whether the solution worked out is reasonable. I know students who have become frustrated by this absence. The psychological effect is apparent: students, especially those motivated by instant gratification, simply refused to do the work reasoning that it is useless to labor on something without at least having the comforting feeling that one is nearing the answer at each step.

A tough undergrad textbook but too easy grad textbook, this book has always been looking for a market. If the teacher is good, this textbook can and should be used for undergrad courses. However, most teachers use Smith and Van Ness et al. which has not been edited properly in 20 years. While, S&VN is clearly written it was written in the 1950's when "large calculating machines" were not available to the general public. Sandler's book written originally in the 1980's brought chem eng thermo into the 20th and 21st century. It is a hard book but it is also correct throughout. Sadly most undergrad thermo textbooks are not correct throughout and the author's weaknesses are evident (again few of these books are edited). With Sandler's book the material is precise and correct. Not for the typical undergrad but with a good teacher it is much better than anything out there.

A truly excellent text on chemical thermodynamics...every topic is throughly and accurately explained in detail. However, this book is too intense for the average engineering student. But if you are sick of your lame thermo text and/or professor and want to know the real meat and potatoes of chemical thermo...this is a good place to start. This book teaches thermo at a level required of all ChemE's and ME's 20 or 30 years ago...it's too bad enigneering education has weaken to the point where people complain about a class "obviously being too hard because the majority of the class failed"...maybe the majority of class didn't have the desire or intelligence to be an engineer.

This book is applauded for its precision and details, but complained for its level of rigor that is not welcomed by an average undergraduate student. Students should have taken physical chemistry or at least be familiar with concepts of thermodynamic mixing in order to read this book.

Discussion on basic laws of thermodynamics is very terse that readers should look elsewhere (i.e. Atkins' Physical Chemistry or McQuarrie's Physical Chemistry: A Molecular Approach) for such topics. Treatise on liquids, chemical equilibrium, and real substances is excellent. Overall this is not a bad text if you've met the prerequisite.

What a major improvement and enlargement of the second edition is this third, new edition! I am stunned. It is ultramodern, even more complete, clearer, highly illustrated, better structured, contains any detail to be imagined with an incredible exactitud. A real textbook that you will use lifetime long to lookup and clear up any problems or questions. I have compared all existing textbooks in different languages incl. German covering Chemical Thermodynamics for Engineers. None reaches the complexity, exactness, clearity and completeness of this outstanding, immense work. Modern, very modern, useful and just beautiful. Nothing seems to be similar to the second edition, but everything new, modern and fully revised and updated. What can I say? This is definitely one of the must haves among Chemical Engineering textbooks, including works by John C. Slattery, Scott H.Fogler and Byron B. Bird. It is more than worth it investing in this book even if you are already in possession of an obsolete second edition.