The present paper is the first of a series of two articles dealing with the development of an integrated process for the recovery of zinc from electric arc furnace dust (EAFD), a hazardous industrial waste generated in the collection of particulate material during steelmaking process via electric arc furnace. Part I presents the EAFD characterization and its leaching process by diluted sulphuric acid, whereas Part II deals with the purification of the leach liquor and the recovery of zinc by solvent extraction/electrowinning. The characterization of the examined electric arc furnace dust was carried out by using granulometry analysis, chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric/differential thermal analysis (TG/DTA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The leaching process was based on the Zn extraction with diluted sulphuric acid from EAFD under atmospheric conditions and without using any preliminary treatment. Statistical design and analysis of experiments were used, in order to determine the main effects and interactions of the leaching process factors, which were: acid normality, temperature and solid to liquid ratio. The zinc recovery efficiency on the basis of EAFD weight reached 80%. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy were used for the characterization of the leached residues. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.