Copper

Copper is a chemical element in the periodic table that has the symbol Cu and atomic number 29.

Applications

Copper is malleable and ductile, and is used extensively, in products such as:

Related Topics:
Malleable - Ductile

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• Copper wire.
• Copper plumbing.
• Doorknobs and other fixtures in houses.
• Statuary: The Statue of Liberty, for example, contains 179,200 pounds (81.3 tonnes) of copper.
• Electromagnets.
• Motors, especially electromagnetic motors.
• Watt's steam engine.
• Electrical relays, electrical busbars and electrical switches.
• Vacuum tubes, cathode ray tubes, and the magnetrons in microwave ovens.
• Wave guides for microwave radiation.
• There is increasing use of copper in integrated circuits, replacing aluminium because of its superior conductivity.
• Alloyed with nickel, e.g. cupronickel and Monel, used as corrosive resistant materials in shipbuilding.
• As a component of coins, often as cupronickel alloy.
• In cookware, such as frying pans.
• Most flatware (knives, forks, spoons) contains some copper (nickel silver).
• Sterling silver, if it is to be used in dinnerware, must contain a few percent copper.
• As a component in ceramic glazes, and to color glass.
• Musical instruments, especially brass instruments.
• As a biostatic surface in hospitals, and to line parts of ships to protect against barnacles and mussels. Bacteria will not grow on a copper surface because it is biostatic. Copper doorknobs are used by hospitals to reduce the transfer of disease, and Legionnaire's Disease is supressed by copper tubing in air-conditioning systems.
• Compounds, such as Fehling's solution, have applications in chemistry.
• Copper(II) sulfate is used as a poison and a water purifier. It is used in gardening powders and sprays to kill mildew.