Despite more than 200 years of sulfur research the chemistry of elemental sulfur and sulfur-rich compounds is still full of "white spots" which have to be filled in with solid knowledge and reliable data. This situation is parti- larly regrettable since elemental sulfur is one of the most important raw - terials of the chemical industry produced in record-breaking quantities of ca. 35 million tons annually worldwide and mainly used for the production of sulfuric acid. Fortunately, enormous progress has been made during the last 30 years in the understanding of the "yellow element". As the result of extensive inter- tional research activities sulfur has now become the element with the largest number of allotropes, the element with the largest number of binary oxides, and also the element with the largest number of binary nitrides. Sulfur, a typical non-metal, has been found to become a metal at high pressure and is even superconducting at 10 K under a pressure of 93 GPa and at 17 K at 260 GPa, respectively. This is the highest critical temperature of all chemical elements. Actually, the pressure-temperature phase diagram of sulfur is one of the most complicated of all elements and still needs further investigation.

"Steude's book offers a very readable and easy-to-understand presentation of the key concepts of inorganic molecular chemistry. Following an introduction into chemical bonding, the book focuses on the material chemistry of the main group elements." Prof. Dr. Michael Ruck, TU Dresden

The current textbook is an excellent inroduction to the chemistry of the non-metallic elements. The book begins by reviewing the key theoretical concepts of chemical bonding and the properties of different bonding types. Subsequent chapters are focused on reactions, structures and applications of the non-metallic compounds. Combining careful pedagogy and clear writing style, the textbook is a must-have for students studying inorganic chemistry.

Despite more than 200 years of sulfur research the chemistry of elemental sulfur and sulfur-rich compounds is still full of "white spots" which have to be filled in with solid knowledge and reliable data. This situation is parti- larly regrettable since elemental sulfur is one of the most important raw - terials of the chemical industry produced in record-breaking quantities of ca. 35 million tons annually worldwide and mainly used for the production of sulfuric acid. Fortunately, enormous progress has been made during the last 30 years in the understanding of the "yellow element." As the result of extensive inter- tional research activities sulfur has now become the element with the largest number of allotropes, the element with the largest number of binary oxides, and also the element with the largest number of binary nitrides. Sulfur, a typical non-metal, has been found to become a metal at high pressure and is even superconducting at 10 K under a pressure of 93 GPa and at 17 K at 260 GPa, respectively. This is the highest critical temperature of all chemical elements. Actually, the pressure-temperature phase diagram of sulfur is one of the most complicated of all elements and still needs further investigation.

This updated and completely revised edition provides a detailed overview over the chemistry of all non-metallic elements.