The simple answer is no.
Zinc isn’t essentially a material that you consider magnetic.
Its electronic composition shows that there’s an absence of the electrons that are required in the valence shell of any object.
These electrons are essential to ensure that an object is attracted through various degrees to a magnet.
Read on to learn more about zinc and magnetism.
Is Zinc Magnetic? (EXPLAINED)
What is Zinc?
Did you know that Zinc is one of the most abundant metals that are found on the earth’s crust?
This is why it has a myriad of uses, from biological to industrial.
When you find it at room temperature, you’ll notice that it appears brittle and an offish blue-white color.
Yet, you can still polish it to achieve a bright finish.
On the periodic table, Zinc is one of the base metals. It’s primary role is to galvanize steel if you want to protect your metals against any unwanted corrosion.
Zinc has alloys that are essential for a wide range of applications.
The physical properties of this metal can be categorized into the following.
1. Strength
It is a known fact that Zinc is a weak metal.
When compared to carbon steel, it has half the tensile strength.
This is why you can’t use it for load bearing applications.
2. Toughness
Since Zinc appears brittle at room temperature, it means that it has low toughness.
Yet, Zinc alloys surprisingly have higher impact strength when you compare them to others.
3. Ductility
If you were to have your Zinc at anything between 212 and 303 Fahrenheit degrees, you’ll notice that it will become ductile and malleable.
However, when you elevate these temperatures, it goes back to its original brittle state.
4. Conductivity
If you’re thinking of a metal’s conductivity, you should know that Zinc is just moderate.
It does have strong electrochemical properties.
These are ideal for galvanizing, and to serve your alkaline batteries.
What Does Magnetic Mean?
You’d be surprised to find that there are different extents of magnetism.
If you want to know more about the science that deals with magnetic phenomena, you’re not alone.
What does it mean when an object is said to be magnetic?
There are objects that can create their own magnetic fields when they’re subjected to certain circumstances.
A lot of objects have the capability of responding to magnetic fields in different ways.
Generally, how an object responds will depend on a number of factors.
For instance, the composition, nature, and the electronic composition of the object can determine whether your object is magnetic or not.
According to science, you can have objects that are either magnetic or non-magnetic.
The latter refers to when your object has a repulsive force from any magnet.
This means that they lack specific electrons to help them with pairing onto a magnet.
Metals such as copper and Zinc fall under this classification.
These are considered diamagnetic materials for term specific purposes.
On the other hand, you have magnetic materials.
These are objects that have various kinds of attraction to magnets.
They can be classified as three types.
Ferromagnetic. There are certain materials such as nickel and steel that are said to be pungently drawn to a magnet. These are generally characterized by their high permeability.
Ferrites. These are usually considered to be the middle line of magnetism. They either have higher or lower levels of paramagnetism. Materials such as ceramic magnets fall under this classification.
Paramagnetic. Sometimes you find materials that are weakly attracted to your magnet. Metals such as aluminum and tin have these properties. Their magnetic force isn’t that dominant.
Why is Zinc not Magnetic?
When you keep in mind the various factors that come into play to ensure that your object is magnetic or not, it’s easier to understand why Zinc isn’t a magnetic material.
First things first, the electronic configuration of Zinc shows that it lacks specific electrons in its valence shell.
This means that by its nature, Zinc isn’t attracted to the forces of your magnet.
Moreover, magnetism is defined by the movement of electric charges in your materials.
This is achieved by electrons spinning around the nucleus to generate electric currents while they’re in motion.
As a result, the electrons will end up behaving like tiny magnets on the object.
However, whet comes to Zinc, this process doesn’t happen.
Why is Zinc’s Lack of Magnetism Important?
Did you know that the lack of Zinc’s color in any solution and its non-magnetic properties delayed a lot of scientific discovery of this element’s value?
It wasn’t until the late 1940s when its role in biochemistry and overall science changed.
While there is still a lack of unpaired electrons in the valence shell of Zinc, its discovery has evolved greatly over the years.
Research has shown that there are various ways to study its properties outside of the magnetic properties.
Additionally, in cases where static magnetic fields have been a prominent factor to conduct research, there have been enzymatic systems that have been introduced to see how Zinc is affected by the exposure of these different magnetic fields.
Check out articles about copper, silver, aluminum, bronze, and sand.
