Dissolution mechanisms suggested for Zn have been discussed. It has been shown that the anions adsorbed on the metal or metal hydroxide surfaces play an important role in the dissolution process, therefore involvement of anions in the charge and mass balance cannot be neglected. An attempt has been made to demonstrate that without taking into account the real meaning of charge transfer processes, the application of the suggested mechanism and the relevant kinetic equations may lead to serious problems in the interpretation of the experimental results. (C) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.