Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic table. In some respects, zinc is chemically similar to magnesium: both elements exhibit only one normal oxidation state (+2), and the Zn2+ and Mg2+ ions are of similar size. Zinc is the 24th most abundant element in Earth's crust and has five stable isotopes. The most common zinc ore is sphalerite (zinc blende), a zinc sulfide mineral. The largest workable lodes are in Australia, Asia, and the United States. Zinc is refined by froth flotation of the ore, roasting, and final extraction using electricity (electrowinning).
Zinc sulfate describes a family of inorganic compounds with the formula ZnSO4(H2O)x. All are colorless solids. The most common form includes water of crystallization as the heptahydrate, with the formula ZnSO4·7H2O. It was historically known as "white vitriol". Zinc sulfate and its hydrates are colourless solids.
Zinc oxide is an inorganic compound with the formula ZnO. It is a white powder that is insoluble in water. ZnO is used as an additive in numerous materials and products including cosmetics, food supplements, rubbers, plastics, ceramics, glass, cement, lubricants, paints, sunscreens, ointments, adhesives, sealants, pigments, foods, batteries, ferrites, fire retardants, semi conductors, and first-aid tapes. Although it occurs naturally as the mineral zincite, most zinc oxide is produced synthetically.
Zinc sulfide is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula of ZnS. This is the main form of zinc found in nature, where it mainly occurs as the mineral sphalerite. Although this mineral is usually black because of various impurities, the pure material is white, and it is widely used as a pigment. In its dense synthetic form, zinc sulfide can be transparent, and it is used as a window for visible optics and infrared optics.
Zinc chloride is the name of inorganic chemical compounds with the formula ZnCl2. It forms hydrates. Zinc chloride, anhydrous and its hydrates are colorless or white crystalline solids, and are highly soluble in water. Five hydrates of zinc chloride are known, as well as four forms of anhydrous zinc chloride. This salt is hygroscopic and even deliquescent. Zinc chloride finds wide application in textile processing, metallurgical fluxes, and chemical synthesis. No mineral with this chemical composition is known aside from the very rare mineral simonkolleite, Zn5(OH)8Cl2·H2O.
Zinc iodide is the inorganic compound with the formula ZnI2. It exists both in anhydrous form and as a dihydrate. Both are white and readily absorb water from the atmosphere. It has no major application.
A nickel–zinc battery, abbreviated NiZn, is a type of rechargeable battery similar to NiCd batteries, but with a higher voltage of 1.6 V.
Zinc bromide (ZnBr2) is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula ZnBr2. It is a colourless salt that shares many properties with zinc chloride (ZnCl2), namely a high solubility in water forming acidic solutions, and good solubility in organic solvents. It is hygroscopic and forms a dihydrate ZnBr2·2H2O.
Zinc peroxide (ZnO2) appears as a bright yellow powder at room temperature. It was historically used as a surgical antiseptic. More recently zinc peroxide has also been used as an oxidant in explosives and pyrotechnic mixtures. Its properties have been described as a transition between ionic and covalent peroxides. Zinc peroxide can be synthesized through the reaction of zinc chloride and hydrogen peroxide.
Zinc fluoride is an inorganic chemical compound with the chemical formula ZnF2. It is encountered as the anhydrous form and also as the tetrahydrate, ZnF2·4H2O (rhombohedral crystal structure). It has a high melting point and has the rutile structure containing 6 coordinate zinc, which suggests appreciable ionic character in its chemical bonding. Unlike the other zinc halides, ZnCl2, ZnBr2 and ZnI2, it is not very soluble in water.
Zinc nitrate is an inorganic chemical compound with the formula Zn(NO3)2. This colorless, crystalline salt is highly deliquescent. It is typically encountered as a hexahydrate Zn(NO3)2·6H2O. It is soluble in both water and alcohol.
Zinc hydroxide Zn(OH)2 is an inorganic chemical compound. It also occurs naturally as 3 rare minerals: wülfingite (orthorhombic), ashoverite and sweetite (both tetragonal).
Zinc phosphide (Zn3P2) is an inorganic chemical compound. It is a grey solid, although commercial samples are often dark or even black. It is used as a rodenticide. Zn3P2 is a II-V semiconductor with a direct band gap of 1.5 eV and may have applications in photovoltaic cells. A second compound exists in the zinc-phosphorus system, zinc diphosphide (ZnP2).
The Leclanché cell is a battery invented and patented by the French scientist Georges Leclanché in 1866. The battery contained a conducting solution (electrolyte) of ammonium chloride, a cathode of carbon, a depolarizer of manganese dioxide (oxidizer), and an anode of zinc (reductant). The chemistry of this cell was later successfully adapted to manufacture a dry cell.
Zinc hydride is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula ZnH2. It is a white, odourless solid which slowly decomposes into its elements at room temperature; despite this it is the most stable of the binary first row transition metal hydrides. A variety of coordination compounds containing Zn–H bonds are used as reducing agents, however ZnH2 itself has no common applications.
Zinc compounds are chemical compounds containing the element zinc which is a member of the group 12 of the periodic table. The oxidation state of zinc in most compounds is the group oxidation state of +2. Zinc may be classified as a post-transition main group element with zinc(II). Zinc compounds are noteworthy for their nondescript behavior, they are generally colorless, do not readily engage in redox reactions, and generally adopt symmetrical structures.
Wet storage stain, more commonly known as white rust or white corrosion, is a type of zinc corrosion. It is called wet storage stain because it occurs when a fresh zinc surface is stored in a wet environment with limited oxygen and carbon dioxide sources; the restriction in air is usually due to the items being stacked on one another or otherwise stored in close quarters. This type of corrosion does not usually occur to zinc surfaces that have had time to form their normal layers of corrosion protection.
TSQ is 6-Methoxy-(8-p-toluenesulfonamido)quinoline, one of the most efficient fluorescent stains for zinc(II).
Zinc transporter proteins (Zrt), or simply zinc transporters, are membrane transport proteins of the solute carrier family which control the membrane transport of zinc and regulate its intracellular and cytoplasmic concentrations. They include two major groups: (1) the zinc transporter (ZnT) or solute carrier 30 (SLC30) family, which controls the efflux of zinc from the cytoplasm out of the cell and from the cytoplasm into vesicles; and (2) the zinc importer, Zrt- and Irt-like protein (ZIP), or solute carrier 39A (SLC39A) family, which controls the influx of zinc into the cytoplasm from outside the cell and from vesicles.
