Book excerpt: The apatites and related calcium phosphates have been of considerable interest to biologists, mineralogists, and inorganic and industrial chemists for many years. This book contains a detailed description of the structures and structural interrelationships of the calcium orthophosphates, including the apatites. Their preparation, crystal growth and dissolution, chemical reactions including thermal decomposition, IR, Raman and NMR spectra and various physical properties are discussed. Apatites other than those containing calcium and phosphorus are included. Synthetic, mineral and biological carbonate apatites are also considered. A wide, but critical coverage of the literature is given, which includes a substantial amount not written in English. Research from many disciplines is included which results in a comprehensive compilation of recent work.