Steps involved in the extraction of metals of low and medium reactivity:

i. Metals low in the reactivity series are very unreactive. The oxides of these metals can be reduced to metals by heating alone.

ii. For ex- Cinnabar (HgS) is an ore of mercury.

iii. When cinnabar is heated in air, it is first converted into mercuric oxide (HgO). The reaction is:

2HgS + 3O₂ + heat → 2HgO + 2SO₂

iv. Mercuric oxide is then reduced to mercury on further heating. The reaction is:

2HgO + heat → 2Hg + O₂