Zinc metal was not produced on a large scale until the 12th century in India, though it was known to the ancient Romans and Greeks. In the second millennium BC it was used in the regions currently including West India, Uzbekistan, Iran, Syria, Iraq, and Israel. Zinc is refined by froth flotation of the ore, roasting, and final extraction using electricity ( electrowinning).īrass, an alloy of copper and zinc in various proportions, was used as early as the third millennium BC in the Aegean area and the region which currently includes Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kalmykia, Turkmenistan and Georgia. The largest workable lodes are in Australia, Asia, and the United States. The most common zinc ore is sphalerite (zinc blende), a zinc sulfide mineral. Zinc is the 24th most abundant element in Earth's crust and has five stable isotopes. In some respects, zinc is chemically similar to magnesium: both elements exhibit only one normal oxidation state (+2), and the Zn 2+ and Mg 2+ ions are of similar size. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic table. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a silvery-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |