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Zinc (Zn), element 30
Zinc (Zn) is the chemical element with atomic number 30: a transition metal in group 12, period 4. At 25 °C it is a solid, with an atomic mass of 65.4 u.
Physical and chemical data
| Atomic number | 30 |
|---|---|
| Symbol | Zn |
| Atomic mass | 65.4 u |
| Density | 7.134 g/cm³ |
| Melting point | 419.53 °C (692.68 K) |
| Boiling point | 906.85 °C (1,180 K) |
| Electronegativity (Pauling) | 1.65 |
| Electron configuration | [Ar]4s2 3d10 |
| Atomic radius (van der Waals) | 139 pm |
| Oxidation states | +2 |
| Physical state at 25 °C | solid |
| Family | transition metal |
| Group and period | 12 / 4 |
| Discoverer and year | Andreas Sigismund Marggraf (1746) |
The discovery record belongs to Andreas Sigismund Marggraf, in 1746.
Neighbours on the table
Horizontally, one proton less lands on Copper (Z=29); one more lands on Gallium (Z=31). Vertically, group 12 gathers relatives with similar behaviour: Cadmium, Mercury, Copernicium.
The story behind the name
The name, attributed to Paracelsus, probably comes from the German Zinke, tooth or prong, after the spiky shape of the solidified metal's crystals. Europe records the isolation with Marggraf in 1746, but India got there centuries earlier: the Zawar mines in Rajasthan were distilling metallic zinc at industrial scale by around the 12th century, using retort furnaces that archaeology has excavated and documented. Without zinc there would be no brass (the copper alloy of taps and wind instruments) and no galvanising to keep steel from rusting; the human body uses it in hundreds of enzymes.
Physical and chemical data: PubChem Periodic Table (NCBI, compiling NIST and IUPAC), public domain, snapshot of 2026-07-10. Temperatures converted from kelvin; historical notes cross checked against classic chemistry references.
Last updated: · Methodology and sources