Patent ID: 7759509

Claim:
A process for the preparation of a form of zinc comprising reacting zinc metal with a neutral or basic inorganic or organic compound of formula I X k Y l Z m M n wherein M is a cation of groups 1, 2, 12 or 13 of the periodic table of the elements, X, Y and Z are independently selected from H, halogen, OR, OSiR 3 , NR 2 , N(SiR 3 ) 2 , SR, SO 4 , HSO 4 , PO 4 , HPO 4 , H 2 PO 4 , CO 3 , NO 3 , NO 2 , CN, acetate and R; R is a saturated, unsaturated, branched, unbranched, functionalized, non-functionalized, aliphatic, cyclic, heterocyclic or aromatic organic fragment; wherein if M is a metal of group 1 of the periodic table of the elements: k=l=0, m=1 and n has the appropriate value for electrical neutrality of the compound of formula I; wherein if M is a metal of groups 2 and 12 of the periodic table of the elements: k=l=1, m=0 and n has the appropriate value for electrical neutrality of the compound of formula I; and wherein if M is a metal of group 13 of the periodic table of the elements: k=l=m=1 and n has the appropriate value for electrical neutrality of the compound of formula I; wherein the compound of formula I is an alkali-metal alcoholate or alkaline-earth metal alcoholates of the cations lithium, sodium, potassium or magnesium with an anion of formula MeO, EtO, n-PrO, iso-PrO, n-BuO, sec-BuO, iso-BuO, tert-BuO or and AmO, or an alkali-metal amide or an alkaline-earth metal amide of the cations lithium, sodium, potassium or and magnesium with the anions N(SiMe3)2, NMe2, NEt2, N(i Pr)2, N(n-Pr)2 and NH2, or a mixture thereof.