Specific ion effects are important in numerous fields of science and technology. They have been discussed for over 100 years, ever since the pioneering work done by Franz Hofmeister and his group in Prague. Over the last decades, hundreds of examples have been published and periodically explanations have been proposed. However, it is only recently that a profound understanding of the basic effects and their reasons could be achieved. Today, we are not far from a general explanation of specific ion effects. This book summarizes the main new ideas that have come up in the last ten years.

In this book, the efforts of theoreticians are substantially supported by the experimental results stemming from new and exciting techniques. Both the new theoretical concepts and the experimental landmarks are collected and critically discussed by eminent scientists and well-known specialists in this field. Beyond the rigorous explanations, guidelines are given to non-specialists in order to help them understand the general rules governing specific ion effects in chemistry, biology, physics and engineering.