Pick Lake / Winston Lake Zinc Project
Zinc
Zinc is a naturally occurring metal found in nature in conjunction with lead in sulfide ores and the fourth most used metal after iron, aluminium and copper. Zinc is usually separated from other metals during the refining process. Zinc is widely used in industry due to its corrosion resistant properties and easy application.
Zinc is popularly used as a protective coating for iron and steel – effective in protecting them from corroding in the water, soil and atmosphere. This is made possible because zinc reacts preferentially to iron in most environments to form what is known as protective layers of carbonate, oxides or other similar zinc reaction to products that are resistant to atmospheric corrosion. Furthermore, in the event that the coating of zinc is scratched, it will still corrode before the iron – Zinc can be thought to be a sacrificial metal.
There are several methods of coating iron and steel with zinc. One of which is hot dip galvanising – where the material is soaked in a bath of molten zinc. Also, steel is commonly galvanised by uncoiling rolled steel sheet and passing them through a bath of molten zinc. This process is very useful in the production of several white goods (washing machines, refrigerators) and car frames.
Similarly, Zinc alloy anodes are crucial in both ship and marine applications as it is commonly applied to steel where they are allowed to corrode in preference to the steel – they are subsequently replaced when it must have completely corroded.
Zinc is also a constituent of ordinary dry cell battery which is the preferred battery option for devices that consume minimal power like remote controls. Brass, an alloy consisting of zinc and copper is also used to make both functional and decorative products like marine fittings, door handles, screw fixings and plumbing components.
Owing to heavy demand and dwindling reserves, there is said to be a supply imbalance that is approaching an all-time low. The price of Zinc has surged by more than 90% since January 2016, and it even reached a ten-year peak in August 2017. This zinc supply imbalance is predicted to still continue as some very key mines in China and Ireland have announced their closure.
The high demand for Zinc is said to be primarily driven by huge investment and demand for infrastructure across the globe. Demand for electronics, automobiles, consumer goods and raw materials for construction are soaring. One metal that is common to them all is Zinc.
The Demand for zinc has never been as high as it is today. High demand for consumer goods and infrastructure are some of the major forces driving demand for the fourth most used metal.
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