In order to use rare earths successfully in various applications, a good understanding of the chemistry of these elements is of paramount importance. Nearly three to four decades have passed since titles such as The Rare Earths edited by F.H. Spedding and A.H. Daane, The chemistry of the Rare Earth Elements by N.E. Topp and Complexes of the Rare Earths by S.P. Sinha were published. There have been many international conferences and symposia on rare earths, as well as the series of volumes entitled Handbook of Physics and Chemistry of Rare Earths edited by K.A. Gschneidner and L. Eyring. Thus, there is a need for a new title covering modern aspects of rare earth complexes along with the applications.
The present title consists of twelve chapters. 1. Introduction2. General aspects3. Stability of complexes4. Lanthanide complexes5. Structural chemistry of lanthanide compounds6. Organometallic complexes7. Kinetics and mechanisms of rare earths complexation8. Spectroscopy of lanthanide complexes9. Photoelectron spectroscopy of rare earths10. Lanthanide NMR shift reagents11. Environmental ecological biological aspects12. Applications
The authors studied in schools headed by pioneers in rare earth chemistry, have a combined experience of one hundred and fifty years in inorganic chemistry, rare earth complex chemistry, nuclear and radiochemistry of rare earths and supramolecular chemistry. The present monograph is a product of this rich experience.
Vinny Sastri, Ph.D., is the President of Winovia, LLC, a consultancy company specializing in quality management systems, notably in the area of medical devices. Dr. Sastri’s areas of expertise include FDA and ISO quality management systems for medical devices and pharmaceuticals, product development processes, design controls, manufacturing and process validation, risk management, six sigma and design for six sigma, CA/PA, and materials. He is a certified Six Sigma black-belt, and has a strong track record in leading, managing, establishing and implementing growth and quality initiatives into client organizations around the world, resulting effective quality management systems and operational excellence.
Dr. Sastri was on the faculty of the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) that provides training (along with the FDA) on the FDA Quality Systems Requirements and Industry Practice, Design Controls, Process Validation and Risk Management to the medical device industry. He now conducts public and in-house training through his company Winovia LLC. Prior to starting Winovia, Dr. Sastri held global leadership positions in technology, quality, manufacturing and marketing in companies including BASF, AlliedSignal and General Electric. He earned a Ph.D. from Rutgers University, completed post-doctoral work at Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, and was an Adjunct Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. Dr. Sastri has over 20 publications and 6 patents, and has presented at many international conferences and webinars in the United States, Europe, and Asia.
