I.

Introduction

Zinc (German zink, “tin”), symbol Zn, bluish-white metallic element that has many industrial applications. Zinc is one of the transition elements of the periodic table (see Periodic Law). The atomic number of zinc is 30. The ores of zinc have long been known, but zinc was not recognized as a separate element until 1746, when the German chemist Andreas Sigismund Marggraf isolated the pure metal by heating calamine and charcoal.