Elements of Chemical Thermodynamics: Second Edition (Dover Books on Chemistry)

A really good undergraduate introduction to the topic.

Written by the legendary teacher L.K. Nash, this is the best introduction to thermodynamics you can buy, and Dover Publications make the book affordable. The author explains all confusing concepts (like entropy) with such clarity and detail that you will understand them forever. A large set of problems at the end will test your knowledge. I attended Prof. Nash's course 50 years ago, and it was fun!

The book is great not only as a refresher course in thermodynamics, but also as the main text for learning. It does not shy away from the use of calculus formulations like other introductory texts, but at the same time it "holds your hands" in the derivation of formulas so even a beginner with little to no knowledge of thermodynamics but good working knowledge of basic integrals and differentiation, will grasp easily. There is even a math refresher in the index section to teach those concepts if they are weak to the readers. Nash is an eloquent writer, the language style used in this book feels like a school lecture without being overly strait-laced which is good because it keeps the reader interested throughout. His explanations are thorough and builds upon what was discussed previously so there is little page flipping as you read on. The examples given after some topics is a nice touch as it gives a good picture of what he is trying to say, too bad the questions in the back are very confusing and you are left to guess what he is asking, and more so how to solve it. So what is bad about this book? Not much. Nash decided to leave out the Maxwell Relations due to the "difficulty" of partial derivatives, which is such a shame because it conjures a whole new insight into thermodynamic relations. This and perhaps the poor wordings in the problem section are my only qualms with the book. Aside from those minor flaws, with the explanation of all 3 thermodynamic laws and other concepts such as state functions, reversibility; this book is second to none. With the way Nash explains, you will conceptualize those "elements" of thermodynamics with a much deeper understanding.

Was not what I thought it was but will be interesting to read nonetheless

One of my favorite things about this text is the way it takes its time with the basic such as temperature and heat. For example, this book draws out that the ideal gas law is actually the gold standard for temperature in the modern world, and so the absolute temperature scale and the ideal gas law are actually inseparable. Similarly, this book takes goes to great lengths to help the reader understand the differences between reversible and irreversible processes and the amounts of work that are associated with them. With these basics in place, the author builds a careful introduction to chemical thermodynamics that is one of the best treatments I have ever seen. However, I'd also recommend reading Basic Chemical Thermodynamics (Fifth Edition) before this book. The two compliment one another nicely with Smith's book being a bit more elementary than Nash's. There really isn't much to not like about this book especially considering its price. I'd also recommend reading Elements of Statistical Thermodynamics: Second Edition (Dover Books on Chemistry) by the same author at a later date. Thermodynamics is a subtle subject and chemical thermodynamics doubly so, but this book does a better job of making both thermodynamics in general and chemical thermodynamics in particular understandable that just about any other book I have seen.

It's a very good book. It goes a little more in-depth than the thermodynamics you might learn in a Physical Chemistry class. It is written quite well and isn't too confusing. It's good for anyone looking to learn/refresh the basics and begin expanding your horizons on the field a little.

Everything was fine.