Physical Chemistry, 9th Edition

Here is my opinion as a physical chemist. This book is wonderful for introduction to spectroscopy. The thermo is presented well, but you will need solutions to accompany the problems. People who give this a bad review take the route of avoiding rigorous material and just trying to scrap by (the organic chemistry way); but a real spectroscopist or physical chemist never avoid material. This book is not meant to have all the information that you need, but it will prepare you for more advanced literature and publications. This book is mathematical in its justifications and explanations, which in my eyes is the best proof. Atkins is explicit and never incorrectly presents a technique. This a very rich resource, but it alone will not get you through. These topics are rigorous, this is by far the best textbook though. I used this book for four undergraduate courses (Quantum chem, thermodynamics, PChem Lab I&II), it takes way longer than a semester to get through it all. This is by no means an easy read, but reading for physical chemistry isn't.

If you're tackling the world of physical chemistry, the newest edition of this textbook is like your trusty sidekick. It's like having a knowledgeable friend who speaks your language and helps you grasp those tough concepts. Imagine colorful visuals that make even the trickiest ideas pop, and cool online tools that bring chemistry to life in ways you never thought possible. This book takes the confusion out of physical chemistry and replaces it with excitement and understanding. It's not just a textbook – it's your ticket to acing that class and having a blast while you're at it!

People either like Atkins' Physical Chemistry or loathe it. I like his book. The problems at the end of each section are excellent. I like how justifications for fundamental concepts are provided. One of the better modifications of the book was moving the relevant mathematical reviews to the end of the chapters where they apply. I believe this was in the 8th edition (I don't remember), but in the back there is also a section about where the relevant equations come from. The publisher also made sure to use better binding this time around. The binding is very tight compared to the 8th edition. I still feel that too many of the theoretical problems are critical concepts and should not have to be proved by the student. I do understand having them prove some, but those should mostly be proved by the author or instructor. Proof at this level should be trivial results that are obvious extensions of fundamental concepts. Outside of that, Atkins is one of the better junior level physical chemistry books. If you need something more advanced, McQuarrie is a much better text for an advanced physical chemistry class.

Very good book by Atkins ! I used it in physical chemistry 1 and 2 (thermodynamics and quantum chemistry). I am currently taking a graduate level chemical engineering reactions engineering course, it was referenced by Pilling in Chemical reaction kinetics portion. This is a good book to have on hand that makes hard equations easier to understand! Great explanation an equations are well explained with detail derivation !

So if you're getting this book, here are somethings you will want to know. 1) Before reading the chapter, look at the end of the chapter, before and after the problem section for "Further Information" and the Math lesson supplement. You need not understand it off the bat, but be familiar with what is there so that when you're going through the chapter, you can refer back to further information to make sense of the details. 2) Don't expect a perfect walk-through for the math. You need to sit there with the paper and figure out the skipped steps. There are a lot of skipped steps. Some easy algebra, other harder differentials. 3) When reading the units, you need to beware that you will see things like T/K. This doesn't mean Temperature/Kelvin or anything other that you want to make T to be, but rather saying it is temperature expressed in Kelvin. Seems like a silly way to do it, but once you get that it makes some problems easier. 4) If you get the answer manual, It is only for odds and A parts of problems. Evens and B's are in the Purple version of the answer key and that is pain in the butt to find. So I recommend looking up the previous edition to this one (i.e 8th edition solution manual) and using that one. The problems will be found under different sections/numbering but after a little searching you'll find it. The editions don't change much. No surprise there though. 5) Beware, there are questions awkwardly phrased. There is one in the first chapter regarding a tire. I solved it with my Gen Chem knowledge and it turned out to be wrong. As a class, we discussed it with our professor and found that in order to accurately answer the question, we need to define what is a tire- Meaning is it an isolated system, or not? 6) Make sure to review your basic calculus. In particular partial differentials, cross derivatives, and the terminology. By terminology I mean, something like: You have an equation U. Express U as a function of T. Know what that means. This is a decent book, but DO NOT make the mistake of thinking it will hold your hand and walk you through a nice path of flowers. Take your time with it and do as much problems as you can as far as you can. If you can get your hand on both versions of the answer keys, I recommend doing all the problems with one, and then returning the next day and doing the B problems without the assistance of the answer key. GOOD LUCK! EDIT: I just remembered a quote I thought you all would enjoy, which I found to be true. Thermodynamics is a funny subject. The first time you go through it, you don't understand it at all. The second time you go through it, you think you understand it, except for one or two small points. The third time you go through it, you know you don't understand it, but by that time you are so used to it, so it doesn't bother you any more. -Arnold Sommerfeld

This book is really good and straight-forward. Some of the problems at the end of the chapters require research outside of what is in the book (Excel use, equation relations,etc) which is a bit annoying. The language is also a little different than what you might hear in class because its from Oxford and, at least at my University, some of the terms aren't the same. But great material and decently written.

The book was in very good condition. It was sold as like new and it was practically that. All pages were there. No writing in the book. Binding is good. It was a good buy. The material in the book seems like it was written in Greek and that it is partially literal, but it is quantum mechanics so it is just a difficult subject.

This is an absolutely excellent text that certainly meets my expectations for the topic - physical chem. Further, the shipping was done overnight apparently, from the US no less! There aren't too many choices in this particular field (versus organic chem., for example) but fortunately, this text is well written at an appropriate level. And you can't mistake the position of P. W. Atkins in the field.

I liked how fast i got it and how clean the book is. I didn't expect it to be the way it is, really nice.

Ok, if you are a new first year degree Chemistry student then brace yourself for this book. Physical Chemistry as you can imagine is basically the grey area between Physics and Chemistry. This book is pretty heavy with Maths. I personally find this book hard to read. Partly because it isn't an easy part of Chemistry and partly because this book is so dense with variables and constants it is hard to know what is going on at any one time (especially for a first year). Some sections mainly the first few sections are pretty steady. The later sections are pretty intense and you have to spend quite some times sifting through the information for the stuff you need. Some small things that are annoying is that you can be looking over a hard subject that uses equations and variables from other sections which are even more difficult so it can feel like the whole subject is trying to force itself onto every page. The great thing is that this book does a good job at making a difficult subject ordered somewhat. When you finally grasp this book you will wonder what the problem was in the first place, and that feels good. Physical Chemistry is a great subject but you just have to work at it (maybe more than Organic and Inorganic). Good luck, and just remember, stick with it, you will get there in the end.

hi,- bin Chemiestudent und habe eine gutes Lehrbuch gesucht. Benutze den Atkins' Physical Chemistry in Englisch Seit 3 Semestern um die PC-Vorlesung und PC-Übung nach zu arbeiten. Die englische Fachsprache stört recht wenig (,habe es mir zumindest schwieriger vorgestellt). Ich bevorzuge den Atkins, da er viele Grafiken und Text enthält, außerdem viele wichtige Gleichungen. Da ein Teil der Übung und Vorlesung ab dem 3.Semester in Englisch gehelten wird, erweis sich der Kauf als sehr gut. Positiv: -günstig -Grafiken+Erklärung -Übersichtlich -Angenehm zu lesen -Enthält alle Wichtigen Themen für die Vorlesung und noch mehr -Online PDF -Englische Fassung ist besser als die deutsch -Enthält Übungen und Lösungen Negativ: - wenig bis durchschnittlich viele Herleitungen -Übungen und Lösungen sind nicht immer nachvollziehbar. Insgesamt bin ich sehr zu frieden.

i am satisfied with the book, even if it is an used book but it is very good condition.

L'aricolo è arrivato puntuale (se non addirittura in anticipo) e come prometteva l'annuncio, nonostante il libro fosse usato, lo stato dell'articolo è "come nuovo", ovvero nessuna sottolineatura e/o strappi. Inoltre, rispetto al prezzo del prodotto nelle librerie, abbiamo risparmiato parecchio. Soddisfatissimi!