What are 4 important uses of copper?

What is copper used for?

For thousands of years, copper has been so widespread that most people encounter it without even noticing. Ancient Egyptians used copper to disinfect wounds and surgical tools, and the earliest copper alloy weaponry dates back to the mid-5th millennium B.C. From building tools to biology, copper is an essential part of human life. We even need 1.2 milligrams of copper daily to help enzymes transfer energy inside our cells. Here are some facts about common uses for copper today:

1. Copper alloys used in jewellery

Copper is an easily molded base metal that is often added to precious metals to improve their elasticity, flexibility, hardness, colour, and resistance to corrosion.

Gold alloys

Gold is one of the most common alloyed metals with copper. In most jewellery stores, you’ll spot:

• 18K yellow gold
• 18K palladium white gold
• 18K rose gold
• 18k pink gold
• 18K light green gold

In fact, 18K yellow gold is the most commonly used gold alloy in jewellery-making.

Sterling silver

Sterling silver is also a copper alloy used to make utensils, tableware, and jewellery. It’s a harder alloy than gold, making it an obvious choice for:

• Body jewellery
• Belt buckles
• Cufflinks
• Bracelets
• Rings
• Necklaces

Much sterling silver jewellery is also non-irritating thanks to copper’s hypoallergenic properties.

2. Medical uses for copper

As the Egyptians documented, copper is known to kill many germs on contact. Dr. Bill Keevil at the University of Southampton found that MRSA (an antibiotic-resistant strain of bacterial staph) cannot survive on copper surfaces the way it can on the platinum metals often used in hospital building railings, doorknobs, and beds. With the help of his research, hospitals are installing copper touch surfaces around the world to halt the spread of bacterial infections in hospital settings.

3. Copper use in home services

Copper wire, tubing, and piping are still some of the most commonly used building materials in the plumbing and electrical industries. Here are some of its most common uses:

• Motor parts: Copper conducts both heat and electricity more efficiently than many other metals
• Wiring: Copper is ductile, meaning it can be hammered into sheets and stretched into wires without breaking
• Type M copper piping: This piping works well for residential builds because it’s thin and affordable
• Industrial machinery: to help facilitate heat exchange
• Copper roofing: long-lasting with minimal upkeep
• Plumbing: its antimicrobial properties and malleability make it an ideal choice for industrial use

How copper is mined

We mine copper in large open-pits in Chile and Peru. Copper can occur naturally but is most often mined via minerals such as chalcopyrite and bornite. Leaching, smelting, and electrolysis processes purify this copper. it’s usually mined via:

Open-pit mining: This extraction method is used when ore deposits are relatively large and occur close to the ground’s surface. Learn more about open-pit mining methods.

Underground mining: Less common than open-pit mining because copper is often found near the ground’s surface.

Transcript :

Chemistry in its element: copper

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You're listening to Chemistry in its element brought to you by Chemistry World, the magazine of the Royal Society of Chemistry.

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Chris Smith

Hello, this week coins, conductivity and copper. To tell the tale of the element that has carried us from the Stone Age to the Information Age, here is Steve Mylon.

Steve Mylon

Poor copper, until only recently it seems to have been out shone literally and figuratively by its transition metal cousins, Silver and Gold. I guess this is a combined result that history have in abundance. It's almost never the case where the popular elements are that way because of their utility and interesting chemistry. But for Gold and Silver it's all so superficial. They are more popular because they're prettier. My wife for example, a non chemist, wouldn't dream of wearing a copper wedding ring. That might have something to do with the fact that copper oxide has an annoying habit of dyeing your skin green. But if she only took the time to learn about copper, to get to know it some; may be then she would be likely to turn her back on the others and wear it with pride.

Some report that copper is the first metal to be mined and crafted by humans. Whether this is or is not the case, there is evidence of civilizations using copper as far back as 10,000 years. For cultures to advance from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age it was copper that they needed. Bronze has 2 parts copper and one part tin, not silver or gold. Copper's importance to civilization has never let out and even now due to its excellent conductivity, copper is in great demand world wide, as rapidly developing nations such as China and India establish the infrastructure required to bring electricity to the homes of their citizens. In the past five years for example the price of copper has increased by more than four fold. Perhaps the greatest slap in the face to this important metal is its use in coins throughout many countries of the world. The orange brown coins are generally of low denomination while the shiny more silver like coins occupies the place at the top. Even in the United States' 5 cent piece, the nickel looks shiny and silvery, but actually contains 75% copper and only 25% nickel. Yet we don't even call it the copper.

Of course I could go on and on spotting out many interesting facts and factoids about copper and why others should warm up to it. They easily could because it's an excellent heat conductor as well, but I find this metal so interesting for many other reasons as well. Copper is one of the few tracer metals that is essential for all species. For the most part the biological requirement of copper is quite low as only a few enzymes such as cytochrome oxidase and superoxide dismutase require copper at their active sites. These generally rely on the oxidation-reduction cycling and play an important role in respiration. For humans, the requirement is quite low as well, merely 2mg of copper a day for adults. Yet too little copper in your diet can lead to high blood pressure and higher levels of cholesterol. Interestingly for copper the gap separating the required amount and the toxic amount is quite small. It may be the smallest for all the required trace metals. This is probably why it is commonly used as a pesticide, fungicide and algaecide, because such small amounts can get the jobs done.

In my opinion you're unlikely to find a metal on the periodic table that has the versatility of copper and still has not been given the respect amongst its peers that it deserves. While substantially more abundant than gold and silver it importance in history is unmatched and its utility at the macro scale is only matched by its utility at the micro scale. No other metal can compete.

So I'll try to explain this to my wife, when I present her with a pair of copper earrings or a nice copper necklace this holiday season. My guess is she'll turn up her nose because she'll think that this is the stuff that pennies are made of, even though these days they really aren't.

Chris Smith

A man married to copper, that's Steve Mylon. Next time we will be delving into the discovery of an element with a very firey temperament.

Peter Wothers

His younger cousin Edmund Davy was assisting Humphry at that time and he relates how when Humphry first saw the minute globules of potassium burst through the crust of potash and take fire, he could not contain his joy. Davy had every right to be delighted with this amazing new metal. It looks just like other bright shiny metals but its density was less than that of water. This meant that the metal would float on water. At least it would do if it didn't explode as soon as it came into contact with water. Potassium is so reactive; it will even react and burn a hole through ice.

Chris Smith

Peter Wothers with the story of element number 19, potassium. That's in next week's Chemistry in its element. I hope you can join us. I'm Chris Smith, thank you for listening and good bye!

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Chemistry in its element is brought to you by the Royal Society of Chemistry and produced by thenakedscientists.com. There's more information and other episodes of Chemistry in its element on our website at chemistryworld.org/elements.

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