Petrological Abstracts and Reviews 



Edited by ALBERT JOHANNSEN 



DuPARC, Louis, et Monnier, Alfred. Traite de technique mine- 

 ralogique et petrographique. Vol. II- 1. Les methodes chimiques 

 qualitatives. Leipzig: Veit & Co., 1913. Pp. xii+372, j&gs. 

 117, colored plate i. 



This volume, the second of the series, deals with qualitative chemical 

 methods for the determination of minerals. A third volume on quantita- 

 tive methods is to appear shortly. 



The author discusses first the processes of separating the mineral 

 constituents of a rock, or a mineral from its impurities, by means of 

 sliming, heavy solutions, the electro-magnet, and chemicals. The 

 microchemical reactions are next treated. It would have been desirable, 

 from a petrographical standpoint, had the authors discussed these 

 methods more fully than in the 27 pages here given. While much work 

 has been done by Behrens, Streng, Brauns, Haushofer, and others in the 

 determination of the elements, no one, since Boricky, has fully taken up 

 the work from the mineralogist's side. 



The methods for blow-pipe determinations are given from the 

 chemical, rather than from the mineralogical side, since the determina- 

 tions are for the chemical elements. To the preparation of solutions of 

 minerals preparatory to chemical analysis, 19 pages are given. Follow- 

 ing this there are 196 pages of chemical reactions of the different elements. 

 This is very complete, all the methods which have ever been employed 

 for the identification or separation of the elements being given. There 

 are also 60 pages of spectroscopic methods and 5 of determinations of 

 radioactivity. 



The last chapter is devoted to the rapid determination of minerals by 

 the examination of certain chemical characters. The authors here 

 closely follow von Kobell's tables. 



A good index is added, something which was greatly missed from the 

 first part. 



The book is an important and needed contribution to the chemical 

 side of mineralogy. It is uniformly bound with the first part, in half 

 leather. 



Albert Johannsen 



27s 



