page_title: Compounds of zinc
section_title: Binary compounds
hierarchical_section_title: Compounds of zinc / Binary compounds
caption_attribution_description: English: Yellow balls are zinc and violet balls are sulphur in pure sphlareite crystal lattice unit cells.&#160;
context_page_description: Compounds of zinc are chemical compounds containing the element zinc which is a member of the group 12 of the periodic table. The oxidation state of most compounds is the group oxidation state of +2. Zinc may be classified as a post-transition main group element with zinc(II). Zinc compounds are noteworthy for their nondescript behavior, they are generally colorless, do not readily engage in redox reactions, and generally adopt symmetrical structures.
context_section_description: Zinc oxide, ZnO, is the most important manufactured compound of zinc, with a wide variety of uses. It crystallizes with the Wurtzite structure. It is amphoteric, dissolving in acids to give the aqueous Zn²⁺ ion and in alkali to give the zincate (a.k.a. tetrahydroxozincate) ion, [Zn(OH)₄]²⁻. Zinc hydroxide, Zn(OH)₂ is also amphoteric.
  Zinc sulfide, ZnS, crystallizes in two closely related structures, the zincblende crystal structure and the Wurtzite crystal structure, which are common structures of compounds with the formula MA. Both Zn and S are tetrahedrally coordinated by the other ion. A useful property of ZnS is its phosphorescence. The other chalcogenides, ZnSe and ZnTe, have applications in electronics and optics.
  Of the four zinc halides, ZnF
  ₂ has the most ionic character, whereas the others, ZnCl
  ₂, ZnBr
  ₂, and ZnI
  ₂, have relatively low melting points and are considered to have more covalent character. The pnictogenides Zn
  ₃N
  ₂ (notable for its high melting point), Zn
  ₃P
  ₂, Zn
  ₃As
  ₂ and Zn
  ₃Sb
  ₂, have various applications. Other binary compounds of zinc include zinc peroxide ZnO
  ₂, zinc hydride ZnH
  ₂, and zinc carbide ZnC
  ₂.
caption: a unit cell of zincblende
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