Zinc is a bluish-white metal and is used – among others – for galvanization of iron and steel parts, as well as for guttering. The name zinc derives from “tine”, because zinc congeals in tine form.
Zinc ores can be found especially in Australia, Peru, Canada, the U.S.A. and in China. On European ground zinc mines are- respectively were located in Ireland, Germany, Spain and Sweden. Chemically zinc classes among the ignoble metals.
Zinc is often used for production of inexpensive castings, because the zinc die-cast allows a fast assembly of large quantities of different products. Further advantages of this material in the zinc die-cast procedure are high dimensional stability, aptitude for different surface treatment, as well as the high resilience. The possible applications’ spectrum reaches from the automobile industry to the mechanical engineering and construction, the sanitary industry as well as the fine-instrument- and electrical engineering, to everyday objects and toys.
Titanium zinc is usually used in the roofer- and plumber craft, because it is mechanically sturdier. The metal’s ignoble character is also used for antirust protection through zinc coating. The zinc cover forms an electrochemical local cell together with the iron. Because of its low standard potential and its simple malleability zinc is also used as negative electrode in galvanic cells such as at the production of zinc-carbon-mono cells.
Further, zinc counts to the essential trace elements for the metabolism of living creatures. It is a component of many enzymes and fulfills many different functions in the human body. It takes in a key role in the sugar-, fat- and the protein metabolism and it is further participated at the structure of genetic substance and at the cell growth. Both the immune system and many hormones need zinc for their functioning. The trace element zinc can not be stored in the body and therefore has to be added external, regularly. Hypozincemia has become a global widespread disease because of wrong nutrition habits. Especially teenagers need much zinc for their growth.
Most important stock exchange centers: LME (London Metal Exchange).
Price quotation: U.S. Dollars per ton (t)
Contract-cycles: monthly out to 27 months.
Contract-size: 25 t
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