Zinc
From CreationWiki, the encyclopedia of creation science
| Zinc | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| General Info | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Atomic Symbol | Zn | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Atomic Number | 30 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Atomic Weight | 65.4 g/mol65.4 amu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chemical series | transition metals | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Appearance | bluish pale grey 
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| Group, Period, Block | 12, 4, d | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Electron configuration | [Ar] 4s2 3d10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Electrons per shell | 2, 8, 18, 2 
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| CAS number | 7440-66-6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Physical properties | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Phase | solid | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Density | 7.14 g·cm−3 g/ml | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Melting point | 692.68 K419.53 °C 787.154 °F 1,246.824 °R | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boiling point | 1180 K906.85 °C 1,664.33 °F 2,124 °R | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Isotopes of Zinc | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| All properties are for STP unless otherwise stated. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Zinc is a chemical element that can be found in group IIb of the periodic table. Zinc is the 23rd most abundant element in the Earth's crust. It is in everywhere including air , water, soil and our body. It has very important role in our body and most of them are concentrated in red blood cell. Zinc helps to maintain the sense of taste, smell and support immune system. Its main mining areas are USA, Russia, Peru, and Australia. It is essential to our body and manufactures. People use to make metals, paint, and rubber. [1]
Contents |
Properties
Zinc is a bluish-white, lustrous metal. It is crystalline and brittle at ordinary temperatures but malleable and ductile at 110°C and 150°C. [2] It is a fair conductor of electricity, also burn in air at high red heat with releasing white clouds of the oxide, hydrogen. [3] It is very reactive metal when it is with dilute acid. [4]
Occurrences
Metallic zinc was produced in the 13th century A.D. when India reduce calamine with wool. Also in 1746, Marggraf, found it again in Europe. He proof that we can get zinc by reducing calamine with charcoal. [5]
We can get zinc from the mining. About 65 grams found from the 1 ton of the Earth's crust. It is little more than copper. But most of them are not a pure ore. It is mixture of zinc, smithsonite, and hemimorphite. New Zealand, Australia, and the United States are countries that have been found native zinc. [6]
Uses
Zinc was used centuries before to make alloys and brass with other metals. Prestal is one of alloys and it contains 22% of aluminum and 78% of zinc. It is not only as strong as steel but also as easy to bend as plastic.[7]
Zinc is necessary to modern living. It uses in metal products, rubber, and medicine. About three-fourths of zinc use for coating metals to prevent corrosion and another one-fourths of zinc (oxide) is used to manufacture rubber, paint, plastic paint. Zinc sulfide is used for making X-rays and TV screen, and fluorescent lights. [8]
Health Effect
Zinc is the second main mineral that need in our body after iron. Zinc help a immune system to heal a wound body and also help to maintain a normal growth and development during childhood, adolescence, and pregnancy. [9] So too little of zinc can cause problems such as decreased sense of taste and smell, slow wound healing and skin sores but also too much of zinc is harmful to body such as skin irritations, stomach cramps, anemia, nausea, and vomiting. [10] It also disturb the protein metabolism and damage the pancreas. When a person is exposed to zinc chloride, it can cause respiratory disorders. [11] When a person age of 7 months to 3 years need 3 mg per day, 4 to 8 years is 5 mg per day, 9 to 13 years is 8 mg per day, 14 to 18 years for male is 11 mg per day and for female is 9 mg per day. Usually female need less Zinc than male.[12] So zinc is very dangerous to babies. [13] Zinc can be found everywhere. Food is one of source. Oysters are richest food that hold zinc than any other food. [14] Most American get zinc from shellfish, beef, and other red meats. From the plant, legumes and nuts are good source of zinc. [15] Because the cereals, breads, and other plant products have phytates which decrease zinc absorption, animal protein is higher zinc absorption than plant. [16]
Effects on the environment
People keep using zinc production. As recycle system, the zinc goes back to the environment. Therefore, the our environment has been polluted. From the wastewater of industrial plant, mining, and burning of waste can polluted water. It cause the fishes' health problems and animal that eats fish can get same problems. So it can corrupt environment and food chain. Polluted water also can go into the ground. [17] Then zinc attaches to the soil and dust particle in air but it is not dissolve in water. In zinc rich soil, plant can't live well and eliminate number of plants.[18]
References
- Zinc (Office of dietary supplement)
- Lenntech Zinc - Zn (Lenntech Water treatment & air purification Holding B.V.)
- Zinc (Agency for Toxic Substance & Disease Registry)
- Zinc (Oregon State University)
- Zinc (University of California for the US Department of Energy)
- Zinc (Encyclopedia Britannica)
- Isotopes of zinc (Wikipeida)
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