Zinc was used still in the ancient time: alloy of this metal with copper is called brass. Long time in pure form this chemical element could not be allocated. Only in the middle of the 18th century it was learned to be received zinc oxide calcinating together with coal in the absence of air access. After that smelting of this metal commercially became possible.
Properties of zinc
Zinc belongs to the II group of the Periodic Table. It is metal with a bluish-white shade. Several dozen minerals containing zinc are known. Among them – red zinc, willemite, blende, a calamine. The zinc sulfides besieged from thermal waters have important industrial value. Zinc is capable to migrate in an underground and surface water. It is one of the major biogenous elements: living organisms contain a certain amount of this metal.
Hardness of zinc is estimated as average. In a cold state this fragile substance which does not have the expressed smell. When heating, metal becomes plastic and can be without effort turned into thin sheets or a foil.
Under the influence of air, zinc quickly grows dull and becomes covered by a film. In the conditions of damp air even at a usual temperature this metal begins to collapse. At considerable heating, zinc burns down with formation of white smoke. Acids can affect zinc. The intensity of their impact on metal is defined by content of impurity in it.
Receive zinc in generally electrolytic way, processing a concentrate sulfuric acid and cleaning from impurity.
Zinc is widely used in the protective structures protecting steel from corrosion. If galvanized iron appears in hostile environment, to destruction zinc is exposed to the first. This metal has excellent foundry qualities therefore it is used for production of fine details of machines and mechanisms. Various alloys of zinc with other metals are widely applied in the equipment (copper, lead and others).
The need of a human body for zinc becomes covered due to consumption of meat, bread, vegetables and milk.
Whether zinc smells?
The specific and peculiar smell which proceeds from any metal objects directly is not connected with metals. It has other origin. It fully belongs also to zinc.
Such smell is made by various chemicals which are synthesized at contact of metal with biological structures. First of all – with human then or the organic chemistry which got on a metal surface.
That the metal piece a long time kept a "metal" smell, small enough very amount of reagents. Metal at the same time acts as the catalyst of the chemical reactions leading to emergence of a smell. Rather extremely small concentration of odorous substances that the person felt such smell.