Discovered: known in India and China before 1500 and to the Greeks and Romans before 20 BC as the copper-zinc alloy brass
Origin: The name is derived from the German ‘Zink’.
Atomic no: 30
Mass No: 65
Description: A grey metal with a blue tinge. World production exceeds 7 million tons a year, and it is used to galvanise iron to prevent it rusting. It is also employed in alloys and batteries, and as zinc oxide to stabilise rubber and plastics. Zinc is essential for all living things, and is important for growth and development. The average human body contains about 2.5 grams and takes in about 15 milligrams per day. Some foods have above average levels of zinc, including herring, beef, lamb, sunflower seeds and cheese.
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The most expensive metal in the world
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Octane Number
A number that indicates how smoothly a gasoline burns.
Critical Mass
The minimum mass of a particular fissionable nuclide in a given volume required to sustain a nuclear chain reaction.
Hydrophilic Colloids
Colloidal particles that repel water molecules.
Heat
A form of energy that flows between two samples of matter because of their differences in temperature.
Allotropes
Different forms of the same element in the same physical state.
Heat of Fusion
The amount of heat required to melt one gram of solid at its melting point with no change in temperature. Usually expressed in J/g. The molar heat of fusion is the amount of heat required to melt one mole of a solid at its melting point with no change in temperature and is usually expressed in kJ/mol.
Molality
Concentration expressed as number of moles of solute per kilogram of solvent.
Cis-Trans Isomerism
A type of geometrical isomerism related to the angles between like ligands.
Percent Composition
The mass percent of each element in a compound.
Peroxide
A compound containing oxygen in the -1 oxidation state. Metal peroxides contain the peroxide ion, O22
