Each household product containing zinc has a declaration where it is written in which form zinc is present. In some products, the declaration states the exact amount of zinc. My research is based on the analysis of zinc in various household products. I analyzed capsules, powders, shampoo, baby cream and face mask. The chosen samples differ: two household products are intended for consumption and three are for dermal use. They also differ in the form of zinc that is present in them. The capsules and face mask contain zinc gluconate, powder and baby cream contain zinc oxide, and the shampoo contains zinc pyrithione. The zinc content was analyzed using various methods such as: compleximetric titration with EDTA, inductively coupled plasma with mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), flame atomic absorption spectrometry method (AAS), and thermogravimetric (TG) and PXRD solid residue analysis. The pedagogical part of the research includes a teaching unit that could be used in elementary schools in Experiments in chemistry which is an optional course. Teaching unit includes the presentation of the importance of zinc in everyday life, the qualitative determination of zinc by the dithizone paper method and interactive testing of the newly learned content. With this part of the research, I would like to acquaint children with the chemistry of zinc which is not part of the elementary school curriculum because it is too specific.
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