Q 01/05

What is the chemical symbol for iron?

A) In

B) Fe

C) Ir

D) I

Answer · why

B) Fe

It comes from the Latin word ferrum.

Q 02/05

What is the atomic number of iron?

A) 26

B) 27

C) 28

D) 30

Answer · why

A) 26

It sits in group 8 of the periodic table, in the first transition series.

Q 03/05

By mass, iron is the most common element where?

A) In the universe

B) On Earth as a whole

C) In the human body

D) In the Earth's crust

Answer · why

B) On Earth as a whole

On Earth as a whole. Most of the planet's iron is locked away in the core, which is largely made of it, so at the surface it is far scarcer: only abou...

Q 04/05

Which element is the only metal more abundant than iron in the Earth's crust?

A) Calcium

B) Aluminium

C) Magnesium

D) Copper

Answer · why

B) Aluminium

Aluminium. It bonds so tightly with oxygen that it is locked into the crust's rocks and almost never turns up as native metal, which is why nobody iso...

Q 05/05

Which metal is used to coat iron and steel in galvanising, shielding them from corrosion?

A) Tin

B) Chromium

C) Nickel

D) Zinc

Answer · why

D) Zinc

Zinc. It protects twice over: the coating seals the surface, and where it is scratched the zinc corrodes first, sacrificing itself so that the iron un...