Atomic Number: 30        Period Number: 4      Group Number: 12

Zinc & compounds

Zinc (Zn) is a silver-gray element usually considered either a transition metal or post-transition metal. Similar in many ways to magnesium, zinc ores are relatively abundant and a frequent source of rarer elements in mineral form. The commercial use of zinc and its compounds goes back thousands of years BC, as zinc along with copper produces the alloy brass.

Applications of Zinc and its compounds

While zinc has a huge number of commercial applications, the vast majority of zinc usage falls into one of two categories:

• Galvanizing. Consumes 55% of zinc used worldwide. As an anti-corrosive agent, zinc plays a critical role in the production of batteries, construction, machinery, and countless other industries.
• Alloys. Make up an additional 37% of zinc used worldwide, with brass and bronze alone making up for 16% of the worldwide total. These alloys are used in electronics, energy storage, construction, instruments, and hundreds if not thousands of other applications.

The remaining zinc goes to the rest of its uses, which include:

• Pigments.
• Fire retardants.
• Catalyst.
• UV protection.
• Propellant.
• Fungicides.

Available from AHP Materials

AHP Materials specializes in high purity elements and compounds. Our standard catalogue includes the following forms of zinc:

•           Zinc Metal, 99.999%, 99.9999% purity
•           Zinc oxide, 99.999% purity
•           Zinc Fluoride, 99.999%, 99.9999% purity
•           Zinc Antimonide, 99.999%, 99.9999% purity
•           Zinc Selenide, 99.999%, 99.9999% purity
•           Zinc phosphide, 99.999% purity

For a more complete listing of our offerings, or for inquiries about custom materials or purities not listed in our catalogue, contact AHP Materials today.

Zinc Resources:

Wikipedia - Basics on Zinc
Chemicool - Cool way to learn about Zinc
WebElements - The basic elements of Zinc
Jefferson Lab - Learning about Zinc