Gas! GAS! Quick, boys! reveals for the first time the true extent of how chemistry rather than military strategy determined the shape, duration and outcome of the First World War. Chemistry was not only a destructive instrument of war but also protected troops, and healed the sick and wounded. From bombs to bullets, poison gas to anaesthetics, khaki to cordite, chemistry was truly the alchemy of the First World War. Michael Freemantle explores its dangers and its healing potential, revealing how the arms race was also a race for chemistry to the extent that Germany's thirst for the chemicals needed to make explosives deprived the nation of fertilizers and nearly starved the nation. He answers question such as: What is guncotton? What is lyddite? What is mustard gas? What is phosgene? What is gunmetal? This is a true picture of the horrors of the 'Chemists' War'.

In the late 1990s, there was an explosion of research on ionic liquids and they are now a major topic of academic and industrial interest with numerous existing and potential applications. Since then, the number of scientific papers focusing on ionic liquids has risen exponentially, including a few edited multi-author books covering the latest advances in ionic liquids chemistry and several volumes of symposium proceedings. Much of the content in these books and volumes is written using technical jargon that only scientists at the cutting edge of ionic liquids research will understand and ionic liquids are hardly covered in most modern chemistry textbooks. This is the first single-author book on ionic liquids and the first introductory book on the topic. It is written in a clear, concise and consistent way. The book provides a useful introduction to ionic liquids for those readers who are not familiar with the topic. It is also wide ranging, embracing every aspect of the chemistry and applications of ionic liquids. The book draws extensively on the primary scientific literature to provide numerous examples of research on ionic liquids. These examples will enable the reader to become familiar with the key developments in ionic liquids chemistry over recent years. The book provides an introduction to: ionic liquids; their nomenclature; history; physical, chemical and biological properties; and their wide ranging uses and potential applications in catalysis, electrochemistry, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, analysis, biotechnology, green chemistry and clean technology. Notable and important chapters include "The Green Credentials of Ionic Liquids" and "Biotechnology." The chapter on "Applications" includes sections with brief descriptions of recent research on the development of ionic liquids: - for the construction of a liquid mirror for a moon telescope - for use as rocket propellants - for use as antimicrobial agents that combat MRSA - as active pharmaceutical ingredients and antiviral drugs - for embalming and tissue preservation Science students, researchers, teachers in academic institutions and chemists and other scientists in industry and government laboratories will find the book an invaluable introduction to one of the most rapidly advancing and exciting fields of science and technology today.

Within months of the start of the First World War, Germany began to run out of the raw materials it needed to make explosives. As Germany faced imminent defeat, chemists such as Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch came to the rescue with Nobel Prize winning discoveries that overcame the shortages and enabled the country to continue in the war. Similarly, Britain could not have sustained its war effort for four years had it not been for chemists like Chaim Weizmann who was later to become the first president of the State of Israel.

Michael Freemantle tells the stories of these and many other chemists and explains how their work underpinned and shaped what became known as The Chemists War. He reveals:

how chemistry contributed to the care of the sick and wounded and to the health and safety of troops;
how coal not only powered the war but was also an important source of the chemicals needed for the manufacture of explosives, dyes, medicines and antiseptics;
how Britain s production of propellants relied on the slaughter of tens of thousands of whales;
how a precious metal played a critical role in the war;
how poisonous chemicals were used as weapons of mass destruction for the first time in the history of warfare and how chemists developed gas masks for protection against these weapons;
how the British naval blockade of Germany imperilled agricultural production in the United States.

The book will appeal to the general reader as well as the many scientists and historians interested in the Great War.

Michael Freemantle is a science writer who has written numerous books and articles on chemistry, the history of science and related topics."