What is Zinc and What Are Its Uses?

What is Zinc?

Zinc is a metal that exists in big amounts in Earth’s crust. At room temperature, zinc is brittle and blue in color, but it can be polished. Zinc is used as the primary metal in the packaging process of steel, in order to protect it from corrosion.

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What are the Properties of Zinc?

• Zinc is a weak metal, and its strength is less than half the strength of steel.
• Pure zinc is of low hardness and it is generally brittle.
• Zinc becomes malleable between 212 and 302 Fahrenheit.
• At high temperatures, it returns to its fragile state.
• Zinc is slowly oxidized in moist air.
• Zinc is a good conductor of heat and electricity.

Also read: General Information About Aluminum

What Are the Uses of Zinc?

• Most zinc is used as a layer applied on other metals, such as iron, to prevent rust.
• Large amounts of zinc are used to produce alloys, which are important in the automotive and electrical industries.
• Zinc oxide is widely used in the manufacturing process of many products such as paints, rubber, cosmetics and batteries.
• Zinc sulfide is used in the manufacturing process of luminous paints and X-ray screens.

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