Almost all metals are found in the crust of the earth. Some metals are also found in the form of salts in seawater. The most abundant metal present in earth’s crust is Aluminium. The relative abundance of some important metal in the crust of the earth is as follows:
| Sno. | Name | relative abundance |
| 1. | Al | 7% |
| 2. | Fe | 4% |
| 3. | Ca | 3% |
| 4. | Na | 2.5% |
| 5. | K | 2.5% |
| 6. | Mg | 2% |
| 7. | Ti | 0.6% |
In earth’s crust, some metals are found in the free state whereas others are found in their compound state. The metals which are present at the bottom of the reactivity series of metals are least reactive. So, these metals do not react with other substances and hence found in a free state. For example, gold, silver and platinum are the metals which are found in a free state on earth. On the other hand, the metals which are present at the top of the reactivity series of metals are most reactive. So, these metals form a compound with other substances present in the earth and hence never found in a free state. For example, potassium, sodium and calcium metals are always found in a combined state in the earth.
Test your understanding and answer these questions:
- Explain occurence of metals in nature.