DeHoff (materials science and engineering, U. of Florida) keeps both students and practicing engineers in mind in his descriptions of how thermodynamic data are used to predict the behavior of materials. He focuses on the practical by showing how that data are used to make decisions in materials science and engineering applications, but retains the core principles and strategies for deriving relationships amongst variables, developing maps of equilibrium states such as phase diagrams, predominance diagrams, and Pourbaix corrosion diagrams. He covers the structure and study of thermodynamics, its laws, variables, and relations; equilibrium in thermodynamics and statistical thermodynamic; unary heterogeneous systems; multi-component homogeneous nonreacting systems and multi-component heterogeneous systems; the thermodynamics of phase diagrams; multi-component multiphase reacting systems; capillarity effects; defects in crystals; equilibrium in continuous systems; and electrochemistry. Appendices include answers to exercises. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)