Olander (nuclear engineering, U. of California, Berkeley) considers a range of scientific and engineering disciplines, including mechanical and chemical engineering, chemistry and electrochemistry, materials science and biology in this lively text, which considers thermodynamics at a remarkably thorough yet broad level. He includes numerous worked examples as well as an extensive collection of exercises as he covers basic concepts, equations of state, applications of the First and Second Laws of Thermodynamics to processes in closed systems, heat engines, power cycles, the thermodynamics of open systems, phase equilibria in one-component systems, the mathematics of thermodynamics, gas mixtures and nonaqueous solutions, phase diagrams and binary phase equilibria, chemical thermodynamics, electrochemistry, and biothermodynamics. Olander's text is both rigorous and accessible and his illustrations and tables are exceptionally useful. The result is a good option for basic thermodynamics courses in science and engineering. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)