Copper History

Copper

Copper, can today and historically, be described as one of the most important metals. It is located among the transition metals on the periodic table and is element 29, with the abbreviation Cu. Copper has been and continues to be an important metal because it contains a sizeable variation of desirable characteristics by which it can be used within many fields, as seen throughout history. If copper isn’t fully suited to the purpose it can be made into alloys such as bronze, cupronickel and brass which, depending on the ratios, different characteristics can be introduced/ utilized from the combined metals. These three alloys all contain a majority of copper, but the ratios at which metals are combined can be different.

Copper is believed to be the first metal extracted and utilized by man, with a copper pendant dated 8700BC found in the Middle East. Copper was a likely choice for early civilisation because it was a ‘soft’ metal. This meant even with a lack of technology, tools and knowledge humans had the capabilities to shape copper to form tools, armor, weapons, ornaments and cooking implements. However, as mentioned, copper is a relatively soft metal, so because of this it was not really ideal for armor, tools or weapons, so the discovery of the technique behind combining two or more metallic substances ie an alloy, was an important innovation. Processes to extract copper from compounds was not developed until around 5000BC, so the pure copper used came directly from what they found otherwise they could use copper bearing ores. With the passing of time came the discovery that under the right conditions copper and tin could be combined into bronze by heating the metal...

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... concentration may cause asthma. Sulfur dioxide can also cause acid rain when an accumulation builds in the atmosphere.

Resources such as copper are limited throughout the earth. To date about 12-13% of all known copper reserves have been mined. By recycling copper we lessen the demand for copper, this saves the environment by reducing the mines needed and therefore saving the ecosystems that dwell upon copper ore. Copper is an ideal recyclable metal because it is 100% recyclable meaning it is not damaged, or loses properties (ie strength, malleability etc) during the recycling process. The copper recycling process uses less energy than the extraction process; therefore toxins and other emissions, such as sulfur dioxide, are not pushed into the atmosphere. Recycling also means less waste, reducing landfill and waste dumping, therefore assisting ecosystems.