Zinc chloride (also called soldering flux) is a water-soluble chemical compound.
Zinc chloride is the name of chemical compound with the formula ZnCl2 and its hydrates.
Zinc chlorides, of which nine crystalline forms are known, are colorless or white, and are highly soluble in water.
Zinc chloride finds wide application in textile processing, metallurgical fluxes, and chemical synthesis.
Industrial Applications
Zinc chloride is used in dry cell batteries both as an electrolyte, moisture absorbent and corrosion inhibitor. It is used in fluxes for soldering, galvanizing and tinning. As an excellent emulsion breaker,
zinc chloride is used to separate oil from water. It is also used as a packer fluid in oil and gas wells.
Zinc chloride is put to use as an inhibitor in potable water treatment plants, cooling towers, and gas and oil wells.
Zinc chloride has the ability to attack metal oxides (MO) to give derivatives of the formula MZnOCl2. This reaction is relevant to the utility of ZnCl2 as a flux for soldering — it dissolves oxide coatings exposing the clean metal surface. Fluxes with ZnCl2 as an active ingredient are sometimes called "Tinner's Fluid". Typically this flux was prepared by dissolving zinc foil in dilute hydrochloric acid until the liquid ceased to evolve hydrogen; for this reason, such flux was once known as killed spirits. Because of its corrosive nature, this flux is not suitable for situations where any residue cannot be cleaned away, such as electronic work. This property also leads to its use in the manufacture of magnesia cements for dental fillings and certain mouthwashes as an active ingredient.
Read more: http://www.tombarthite-pro.net/Chemicals/Zinc-Chloride-.html