JoshAGS wrote:
Okay so, I ordered about 2 pounds of zinc off of ebay from a good seller.
At first I suspected it wasn't zinc because it was really soft. Zinc is a
soft metal but is it that soft? I asked the seller and he insisted greatly
that it was melted from zinc wheel weights, however, I think otherwise
because of this reasons. I experimented on the metal. I suspected lead
because it leaves a residue on my bare hands after handling and because
it's a tiny bit harder than lead, I also did the sound test by dropping
the ingot, it did not make a blunt sound but more of a "ding". So I ruled
out lead. Next, I got some zinc from a melted penny. Since I heard zinc
reacts with acid to produce hydrogen, I took some metal form the ingot and
the zinc from the penny and placed it in vinegar. After 1 hour, the zinc
from the penny was producing hydrogen and turning into a black powder
while the other did nothing at all. After a few days The zinc was totally
dissolved and the other metal was still perfectly fine. Next I did a
hardness test, I could not easly dent or scratch the zinc from the penny
but I was able to dent the other metal easily. it's harder than lead but
softer than zinc. The metal is a shiny gray color. Does anyone here know
what it could be? (I haven't tried to melt it because I don't want to
create toxic fumes if it is something other than zinc.)


More than likely it's a lead alloy. While there are zinc wheel weights
they are not in popular use, lead and steel are the common ones,

As for the (I haven't tried to melt it because I don't want to
create toxic fumes if it is something other than zinc.) Melting zinc
CREATES VERY TOXIC fumes. Ask anyone about welding and working with
galvanized metals.



--
Steve W.