Air Engines: The History, Science, and Reality of the Perfect Engine
Theodor Finkelstein and Allan J. Organ. ASME Press, Three Park Ave., New York, NY 10016-5990. 2009. 288 pages. ASME members $64; List, $80. ISBN-13: 978-0-7918-0171-0.

Publication of Air Engines brings back a book originally published in 2001 but out of print for the past few years. The authors discuss the history of hot-air, or caloric, engines from their beginnings in the early 19th century, including recently discovered details of the original Stirling engine, and also look to the future prospects of the technology, including a new nitrogen-charged design for combined heat and power applications. Although long considered obsolete, the Stirling engine has seen developments in recent years that may lead to a revival of the concept, the authors say. Their enthusiasm is evident when they describe the achievement of a contemporary developer, Stefan Viebach, “who in a single design iteration has achieved gas-to-electrical conversion efficiency to match those of the long-established players, together with exhaust emission levels to surpass them.” Their hope, they tell us in their introduction, is that the book will stimulate interest in applying the thermodynamically efficient principle of the Stirling engine to purposes including power drives, gas liquefiers, electric generators, and other contemporary needs.

CAM DESIGN AND MANUFACTURING HANDBOOK, SECOND EDITION
Robert L. Norton. Industrial Press, Inc., 989 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10018. 2009. 608 pages. $99.95. ISBN 978-0-8311-3367-2.

Cams or their effects are everywhere, says the author of this handbook—in automobiles, washing machines, and even razor blades, which are made on machines that are controlled by cams. Robert Norton, an ASME Fellow and the Milton Prince Higgins II Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, should know. Part of his earlier career was spent designing cams for Gillette. After providing basics in the first chapter, the author devotes his second to exploring bad ideas for designing cams. They generally involve considering only the displacement function of the part. In his third chapter, which is discusses double-dwell cam curves, he tells readers, “The better approach is to start with consideration of higher derivatives, especially acceleration.” Special attention is paid to computer tools used in the design of cams. The chapter on splines has been completely rewritten from the first edition. Purchasers of the book are offered $100 off the price of Dynacam Plus software, which is a product developed by the author’s company, Norton Associates.

AIRCRAFT ENGINE CONTROLS
Link C. Jaw with Jack D. Mattingly. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 1801 Alexander Bell Drive, Suite 500, Reston, Va. 20191-4344. 2009. 400 pages. $99.95. ISBN 978-1-60086-705-7.

In the 70 years since it was invented, the gas turbine has become the primary means of propulsion for military and commercial aircraft, and a highly efficient driver of electric generators. According to the principal author, Link Jaw, the intention of this book is to focus on real-world applications of theories and engineering knowledge. The text primarily addresses gas turbines for flight, but the authors say much of the material is applicable to turbines used in power plants, ships, and elsewhere. The foundation for the text grew out of the material of two courses that Jaw developed for the U.S. Air Force. According to his foreword, Jack Mattingly’s association with Jaw dates to 2003, when he was asked by the head of the Propulsion Directorate at Tinker Air Force Base to find an author for this book. Chapters discuss engine modeling, various types of controllers and control concepts, engine monitoring, and systems integration.

METAL SHAPING PROCESSES
Vukota Boljanovic. Industrial Press, Inc. 989 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10018. 2009. 448 pages. $59.95. ISBN 978-0-8311-3380-1.

Metal Shaping Processes is intended as an introduction to the subject for associate and bachelor degree students in mechanical, industrial, and manufacturing engineering or technical programs. The author, who has been a professor of aerospace engineering and also a vice president of manfucturing technology R&D for an aerospace manuacturer, divides his subject into four parts, each devoted to a primary metal shaping process: Molding and casting, particulate processing, deformation processes, and metal removal processes. He analyzes each set of processes and aims to present them in a step-by-step manner so that readers can understand capabilities, limits, and potentials of the various metal-manufacturing methods. Each part ends with a list of review questions.

GEOMETRIC MECHANICS AND SYMMETRY: FROM FINITE TO INFINITE DIMENSIONS
Darryl D. Holm, Tanya Schmah, and Cristina Stoica. Oxford University Press, Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP. 2009. 532 pages. Paperback $60; hardcover $130. ISBN 978-0-19-921290-0.

The authors of Geometric Mechanics and Symmetry are addressing an advanced audience—late undergraduate and early graduate students of engineering and physics. Part I, which constitutes a little more than half the text, deals with finite-dimensional conservative mechanical systems and is intended to serve as a bridge between standard classical mechanics books and more advanced modern treatments of the subject. The first part of the book, the authors say, is a textbook for an upper-level course on geometric mechanics. Part II is aimed at a more advanced reader. It focuses on recent applications of geometric mechanics in such areas as fluid mechanics and image analysis. The reader will need to know linear algebra, multivariable calculus, and standard methods of solving ordinary and partial differential equations. “In summary,” the authors write, “the prerequisites are standard for an advanced undergraduate student or first-year postgraduate student in mathematics or physics.”

SOLAR ENERGY ENGINEERING
Soteris A. Kalogirou. Academic Press, an imprint of Elsevier, 30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803. 2009. 776 pages. $125. ISBN 978-0-12-374501-9.

The author, Soteris Kalogirou, says he has written his book to serve students and engineers as a resource on solar energy systems and processes. According to the Kalogirou, an instructor of mechanical engineering and materials sciences and engineering at the Cyprus University of Technology, the Earth’s share of the sun’s energy output is about 1.7 x 1014 kW. At that rate, 84 minutes of solar radiation falling on our planet’s surface is equal to the world’s estimated annual energy consumption of 900 exajoules. After an introduction to renewables in general and solar technologies in particular, he talks about tracking the sun by taking into account differences in the Earth’s rotational velocity and seasonal changes in the sun’s apparent elevation. Chapters are devoted to solar energy collectors, water heating, space heating and cooling, industrial process heat and drying, desalination, and electricity. A chapter discusses designing and modeling systems, and there is a final chapter on “Solar Economic Analysis.”