Zinc oxide facts for kids

Zinc oxide is a chemical compound that's super useful! Its chemical formula is ZnO. This means it's made of two main parts: the metal zinc and oxide ions, which come from oxygen. Think of it like a tiny building block made from zinc and oxygen.

What is Zinc Oxide Like?

Zinc oxide is a white, powdery solid. If you try to mix it with water, it won't dissolve, kind of like sand in water. But it's quite active when it meets other chemicals!

• It reacts with acids to create different kinds of zinc salts.
• It can also react with water to form zinc hydroxide.
• When it mixes with phosphoric acid, it makes zinc phosphate, which is a type of cement.
• If it meets hydrogen sulfide, it turns into zinc sulfide.
• It can dissolve in strong bases, which are the opposite of acids.
• You can even turn it back into zinc metal by using carbon to remove the oxygen. This process is called reduction.

How is Zinc Oxide Made?

Making zinc oxide is pretty cool and can be done in a few ways:

• You can heat up powdered zinc metal. When it gets hot enough, it reacts with the air to form zinc oxide.
• Another way is to heat zinc hydroxide.
• You can also boil zinc metal in the air, and it will create zinc oxide.
• Even Zinc carbonate (also known as smithsonite) will turn into zinc oxide when heated.

What is Zinc Oxide Used For?

Zinc oxide is used in many everyday things!

• It's really important in making rubber stronger and more flexible. This process is called vulcanization. It helps stop rubber from becoming brittle or breaking easily. It also protects rubber from tiny fungi and harmful ultraviolet light from the sun.
• It can be added to concrete to help it form and harden better.
• You might find it in calamine lotion, which helps soothe itchy skin.
• It's used in some deodorants and special creams because it can stop the growth of tiny germs (it's antibacterial).
• It's a common ingredient in sunscreen because it blocks harmful UV rays, protecting your skin from sunburn.
• Sometimes, it's added to food to make sure people get enough zinc in their diet.
• It's also used in paint as a white color pigment. Plus, it helps the paint stick better to certain metals.

Is Zinc Oxide Safe?

Generally, zinc oxide is not considered harmful. However, if you breathe in a lot of very fine zinc oxide dust, it can irritate your lungs. So, it's best not to inhale it directly.

Related pages

• Zinc chloride
• Zinc bromide

Images for kids

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  Zinc oxide powder

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  Hopeite

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  Wurtzite structure

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  The red and green colors of these synthetic ZnO crystals result from different concentrations of oxygen vacancies.

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  Photograph of an operating ZnO UV laser diode and the corresponding device structure.

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  ZnO as anode of Li-ion battery

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  A zincblende unit cell

See also

In Spanish: Óxido de zinc para niños