Zinc (zn)
Zinc is a blueish-white, shiny metal that is obtained from ore after it is roasted, or heated for a long period of time. Zinc was commonly found in ancient India, and is often an ingredient of sunscreen. Zinc is the 23rd most commonly found element in the earth's crust. Zinc is a necessary element to keep your body healthy, although having too much zinc in your system can be harmful.
Properties
At room temperature, zinc is not ductile (able to be drawn into thin strings or wires) or malleable (able to be hammered into thin sheets or shapes); it is, however, somewhat malleable above 100°C. Zinc is a solid at room temperature. Its melting point is 419°C, and its boiling point is 908°C. Zinc's density is 7.14g per cm³. Zinc is considered a soft metal. Its hardness is 2.5 on the Mohs scale, which shows 0-10 the hardness of a material.
History
Zinc was discovered in 1746 by Andreas Marggraf, a German chemist. He discovered it by heating carbon and calamine. In other words, he managed to extract Zinc from calamine. The name Zinc comes from a German word, Zink, meaning sharp point. Zinc's atomic number is 30 and its atomic mass is 65.39.
The chemical properties of Zinc include its Ionization Potential, or the energy required to remove an electron from it, is 9.394 for the first electron, 17.964 for the second, and 39.722 for the third. The heat of fusion (the amount of heat needed to melt or freeze a fraction of a substance) for Zinc, is 7.322kJ/mol. Zinc's electron negativity is 1.65, its electrochemical equivalent is 1.22g/amp-hr, and its electron work function is 4.33eV.
Uses
Zinc has many uses. It is used to galvanize metals, protect them from rust, and its used as an alloy in things such as pennies and steel. The main metal zinc is used in is copper. In addition to being used as an alloy, and to galvanize metals, zinc is used in many other items. For example: roofing, gutters, automobile parts, organ pipes, batteries, electrical fuses, cosmetics, and others.
Sources:
http://www.chemicalelements.com/elements/zn.html http://environmentalchemistry.com/yogi/periodic/Zn.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc http://www.ktf-split.hr/periodni/en/zn.html http://elements.vanderkrogt.net/elem/zn.html http://dbhs.wvusd.k12.ca.us/webdocs/Thermochem/Molar-Heat-Fusion.html