Zinc is widely used to coat steel and help prevent rusting. It also combines with copper in brass, while zinc compounds appear in materials such as pigments and luminous coatings. Its presence in many enzymes adds a biological connection to its engineering uses.
FROM ELEMENT TO APPLICATION
AN ELEMENT IN CONTEXT
How can zinc protect steel near a scratch?
Metallic zinc coating on steel
FOLLOW THIS RELATIONSHIP
Cover the steel surface
A galvanized coating separates the underlying steel from the environment, adding a material barrier whose continuity and condition contribute to the initial protection.
Explore the model (optional)
ZnFORM → INTERACTION → CONSEQUENCE
Follow the explanation in either direction. These are authored steps, not a physical clock.
Atomic identity, reference properties and structure models
INTERACTIVE 3D30 visible sites
An electron censusDrag to rotate · scroll or pinch to zoom
[Ar] 3d10 4s2. Grouping electrons by principal shell connects the neutral-atom configuration to periodic-table patterns.
What this representation means
A three-dimensional counting diagram. Dots are count markers, not measured electron positions; spherical placement and spacing are arbitrary. There are no electron trajectories here. Orbitals describe quantum states.
Zinc's history extends beyond one European discovery date. Metal production developed in India and expanded in China before Marggraf's 1746 investigation. Zinc also entered use through brass before its own identity was clearly understood. Practical production, use, and formal recognition represent different achievements, showing why laboratory accounts form only part of the development of material knowledge.
Medieval period
Metal produced in India
Zawar provides evidence of established zinc production before modern European identification.
1746
European chemical investigation
Marggraf demonstrated zinc preparation within the developing framework of European chemistry.
Zinc occurs in including sphalerite, smithsonite, and franklinite. These place it in , , or oxide-containing structures rather than as free metal. Different require suitable processing to obtain zinc, and associated elements can remain important to both separation and the properties of the eventual product.
Zinc is a bluish-white metal whose mechanical behavior changes with temperature. It can form alloys with other metals and reacts to produce compounds such as zinc . Comparing elemental zinc with its oxide or sulfide therefore requires attention to chemical form, rather than assuming a shared elemental ingredient ensures shared properties.
Each section links its supporting references. Descriptions and diagrams were authored for this atlas. Source checks completed. Source checks dated 2026-09-06.
CITE THIS PAGE
Family labels and the group-3 layout are teaching conventions. A table position does not establish an unknown bulk property. Electronic configurations refer to neutral atoms; ions and material environments require their own account.
Read each reference property together with its units, conditions and the reference information below.
Not yet recorded: electron affinity, second ionization energy, ground-state term symbol, van der waals radius, thermal conductivity, specific heat capacity, electrical resistivity, crystal structure, lattice parameter a, space group, abundance in seawater, abundance in the universe, annual production, supply-risk listing, hazard classification, biological role, cas registry number, pubchem cid, wikidata item. These families are declared and awaiting an ingestion run against the source each names; they are listed here rather than shown as empty rows.
Physical
Intended reference: CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics · CRC Press
Phase at 20 °C
solid
293.15 K, 101.325 kPa
Melting point in K
692.68 K
at standard pressure unless noted
Boiling point in K
1180 K
101.325 kPa
Density in g/cm³
7.14 g/cm³
solids and liquids at 293 K; gases at 273 K and 101.325 kPa
Atomic and electronic
Intended reference: Pauling electronegativity scale · Widely tabulated; original in The Nature of the Chemical Bond
Electronegativity in Pauling
1.65 Pauling
Pauling scale
First ionization energy in kJ/mol
906.4 kJ/mol
gas-phase neutral atom, ground state
Covalent radius in pm
122 pm
single-bond covalent radius
Common oxidation states
+2
states met in ordinary compounds; not exhaustive
Occurrence and identity
Intended reference: CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics · CRC Press
Abundance in the crust in mg/kg
70 mg/kg
upper continental crust, mass fraction
Has stable isotopes
Yesderived
Discovery year in CE
1746 CEderived
WHERE IT SITS AMONG ITS NEIGHBORS
Electronegativity across period 4
Zn 1.65 Pauling · Zinc
Electronegativity across period 4. Exact values.
K
0.82
Ca
1
Sc
1.36
Ti
1.54
V
1.63
Cr
1.66
Mn
1.55
Fe
1.83
Co
1.88
Ni
1.91
Cu
1.9
Zn
1.65
Ga
1.81
Ge
2.01
As
2.18
Se
2.55
Br
2.96
Kr
3
Electronegativity down group 12
Zn 1.65 Pauling · Zinc
Electronegativity down group 12. Exact values.
Zn
1.65
Cd
1.69
Hg
2
The trend uses the same reference-property values as the periodic table. Elements with no recorded value are left out of the line rather than drawn at zero.
