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Book review
Exergy Method: Technical and Ecological Application, J. Szargut. WIT Press (2005). 192 pp., Hardback, Price: US$ 123.00, ISBN: 1853127531 This volume presents the technical and ecological application of the exergy method. After a review of the development of the eld over the last 15 years, the book highlights many interesting topics, such as calculation of the chemical exergy of all the stable chemical elements, global natural and anthropogenic exergy losses, practical guidelines for improvement of the thermodynamic imperfection of thermal processes and systems, development of the determination methods of partial exergy losses in thermal systems, the thermo-ecological cost, sustainability index of the natural environmental, evaluation of the natural mineral capital of the Earth, and application of exergy for the determination of a pro-ecological tax, etc. This is the latest monographic work by Professor Szargut. The book contains seven chapters. The rst chapter, named Balance and exergy losses, covers the basic principles of exergy analysis, including the denition of exergy and exergy losses, exergy balance and exergy efciency, exergy and energy, typical irreversible phenomena, and anthropogenic and natural exergy losses. The second chapter discusses how to determine exergy of different types, such as kinetic exergy, potential exergy, physical exergy, chemical exergy, and unclear exergy. The denition of a standard reference environment is also presented in this chapter. Chapter 3 focuses on the cumulative exergy consumption (CExC) and partial exergy losses. The subtopics include: denition of CExC, the problem of CExC of human work, input-output equations, cumulative exergy efciency, cumulative and partial exergy losses, net coefcients of consumption, and sequence method for the evaluation of partial exergy loss. Chapter 4 presents a set of 20 practical rules (or guidelines) for improving thermodynamic imperfection based on the principles of exergy analysis. Chapter 5 explores the thermo-ecological cost, dened as the cumulative consumption of non-renewable natural resources, and provides a set of equations for determining thermo-ecological cost in global or regional scopes. In Chapter 6 on the economic application of exergy, a well-known Exergo-Economics theory that links the irreversible losses (exergy destruction) to the capital costs associated with their avoidance is presented. Based on this theory, the author presented the optimization of the thermo-ecological cost, the optimization of the exergetic cost, and the correction of economic optimization, analyzed the inuence of the thermodynamic imperfection on the investment cost, and evaluated the natural mineral capital and the freshwater resources of the Earth. Applying the principles of exergy method, Chapter 7 introduces a rational and well-founded proposal for a new taxation system taking into account not only the monetary income, but also the ecological cumulative burden. The exergy method, originating from the second law of thermodynamics, serves as a very useful tool for detecting and quantifying the possibilities of improving thermal and chemical processes and systems. This book would not be an easy read without basic knowledge of thermodynamics. It is most appropriate as a text book for graduate students and engineers in the eld of energy and ecological management and it contains many interesting examples and exercises. The book is also a valuable reference to research in related elds. Fu-Liu Xu College of Environmental Sciences & MOE Laboratory for Earth Surface Process, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Tel.:

+86 10 62765103; fax: +86 10 62751938. E-mail address: xu@urban.pku.edu.cn 0925-8574/$ see front matter 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2006.04.008