Robin Gill lectured in geochemistry and igneous petrology at the University of London for 22 years, and before that held postdoctoral posts at the Universities of Manchester, Western Ontario and Oxford. His other books include Igneous Rocks and Processes: A Practical Guide (2010) and Modern Analytical Geochemistry (editor, 1997)

• PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION ixPREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION xPREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION xiACKNOWLEDGEMENTS xiiiABOUT THE COMPANION WEBSITE xiv1 ENERGY IN GEOCHEMICAL PROCESSES 1Introduction 1Energy in mechanical systems 4Energy in chemical and mineral systems: free energy 5Stable, unstable and metastable minerals 10Further reading 132 EQUILIBRIUM IN GEOLOGICAL SYSTEMS 14The significance of mineral stability 14Systems, phases and components 16Equilibrium 18Phase diagrams in P–T space 20Phase diagrams in T–X space 26Ternary phase diagrams 36Review 41Further reading 41Sources of thermodynamic data for minerals 42Exercises 423 KINETICS OF EARTH PROCESSES 43Defining the rate of a reaction 44Temperature-dependence of reaction rate 47Diffusion 52Melt viscosity 55Persistence of metastable minerals: closure temperature 57Review 58Further reading 58Exercises 594 AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS AND THE HYDROSPHERE 60Ways of expressing the concentrations of major constituents 61Equilibrium constant 63Non-ideal solutions: activity coefficient 69Natural waters 70Oxidation and reduction: Eh-pH diagrams 75Further reading 81Exercises 815 ELECTRONS IN ATOMS 82Why does a geologist need to understand atoms? 82The atom 83Stationary waves 85Electron waves in atoms 88The shapes of electron orbitals 90Electron energy levels 93Review 98Further reading 98Exercises 986 WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM THE PERIODIC TABLE 99Ionization energy 99The Periodic Table 102Electronegativity 103Valency 104Atomic spectra 105Review 109Further reading 110Exercises 1107 CHEMICAL BONDING AND THE PROPERTIES OF MINERALS 111The ionic model of bonding 111The covalent model of bonding 118Bonding in minerals 126Other types of atomic and molecular interaction 129Review 132Further reading 132Exercises 1328 SILICATE CRYSTALS AND MELTS 133Silicate polymers 133Cation sites in silicates 140Optical properties of crystals 146Defects in crystals 148Further reading 151Exercises 1519 SOME GEOLOGICALLY IMPORTANT ELEMENTS 153Major and trace elements 153Alkali metals 154Hydrogen 156Alkaline earth metals 156Aluminium 157Carbon 159Silicon 166Nitrogen and phosphorus 166Oxygen 167Sulfur 168Fluorine 170Noble gases 171Transition metals 171Rare earth elements 175Actinides 176Further reading 177Exercise 17710 WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM ISOTOPES? 178Isotope systems 179Radiogenic isotope systems 181Stable isotope systems 195Cosmogenic radioisotope systems 203Review 204Further reading 204Exercises 20411 THE ELEMENTS IN THE UNIVERSE 206The significance of element abundance 206Measuring cosmic and Solar System abundances 206The composite abundance curve 210Cosmic element production 211Elements in the Solar System 215Chemical evolution of the Earth 219Review 224Further reading 225Exercises 225ANSWERS TO EXERCISES 226APPENDIX A: Mathematics revision 234APPENDIX B: Simple solution chemistry 240APPENDIX C: Alphabetical list of chemical abbreviations and element names, with atomic number and relative atomic mass 243APPENDIX D: Symbols, units, constants and abbreviations used in this book 245Glossary 248REFERENCES 258INDEX 261

"In short, Chemical Fundamentals of Geology and Environmental Geoscience is a highly readable and informative textbook that will quickly introduce students, even those without any background in chemistry, to the fundamental scientific principles of chemistry as it relates to geology and earth systems."(Tundraco, 1 October 2015)"The book is beautifully produced with clear text, together with well-drawn and informative diagrams."(Proceedings of the Open University Geological Society 2, 2016)"Gill's revised edition continues to provide a solid and readily comprehensible introduction to the scientific principles of chemistry underpinning geology and environmental Earth science."(Geoscientist, Nov 2016)