1 Explain the meaning of various chemical formulas (empirical, molecular, and structural formulas). 2  Calculate weight and mole percentages from a formula.  Derive chemical formulas from a given set of information.
A: Zinc belongs to the family of elements found in Group 12. Some other elements in this family are cadmium and mercury. These three elements are metals, but mercury is a metal that is liquid at room temperature, while zinc and cadmium are solids at room temperature.
Zinc sulfide is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula of ZnS. This is the main form of zinc found in nature, where it mainly occurs as the mineral sphalerite. Although this mineral is usually black because of various impurities, the pure material is white, and it is widely used as a pigment. In its dense synthetic form, zinc sulfide can be transparent, and it is used as a window for visible optics and infrared optics.