{"id":313,"date":"2020-04-09T10:35:44","date_gmt":"2020-04-09T10:35:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thechemicalelements.com\/?page_id=313"},"modified":"2023-08-15T12:13:06","modified_gmt":"2023-08-15T12:13:06","slug":"copper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thechemicalelements.com\/copper\/","title":{"rendered":"Copper (Cu)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Copper is a chemical element with an atomic number of 29 in the periodic table of elements<\/a>. The occurrence of this metal in Earth\u2019s crust is about 0.25%, concentrated in copper ores. Apart from gold<\/a>, copper is the only metal that does not naturally occur in gray or silver<\/a> color. It also has two valence electrons that provide a relatively stable configuration.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Chemical and Physical Properties of Copper<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Property<\/strong><\/td>Value<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Symbol<\/td>Cu<\/td><\/tr>
Name<\/td>Copper<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic number<\/td>29<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic weight (mass)<\/td>63.546 g.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
Group number<\/td>11 (1b)<\/td><\/tr>
Period<\/td>4<\/td><\/tr>
Color<\/td>A reddish-gold metal with an orange hue<\/td><\/tr>
Physical state<\/td>Solid at room temperature of 20\u00b0C<\/td><\/tr>
Half-life<\/td>From 75 ns to 61.83 hours<\/td><\/tr>
Electronegativity according to Pauling<\/td>1.9<\/td><\/tr>
Density<\/td>8.96 g\/cm\u00b3<\/td><\/tr>
Melting point<\/td>1084.62\u00b0C, 1984.32\u00b0F, 1357.77 K<\/td><\/tr>
Boiling point<\/td>2560\u00b0C, 4640\u00b0F, 2833 K<\/td><\/tr>
Ionic radius<\/td>0.096 nm (+1) ; 0.069 nm (+3)<\/td><\/tr>
Isotopes<\/td>6<\/td><\/tr>
Most characteristic isotope<\/td>63Cu<\/td><\/tr>
Electronic shell<\/td>[Ar] 3d10 4s1<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the first ionization<\/td>743.5 kJ.mol -1<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the second ionization<\/td>1946 kJ.mol -1<\/td><\/tr>
Uses<\/td>Most often used as an electrical conductor. Also used in the manufacture of water pipes. Its alloys are used in jewelry and for coins.<\/td><\/tr>
Description<\/td>Bluish-silver, ductile metal.<\/td><\/tr>
Crystal Structure<\/td>Cubic: Face centered<\/td><\/tr>
Covalent Radius<\/td>1.17 \u00c5<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic Radius<\/td>1.57 \u00c5<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic Volume<\/td>07.1 cm\u00b3\/mol<\/td><\/tr>
Name Origin<\/td>Symbol from Latin: cuprum (island of Cyprus famed for its copper mines).<\/td><\/tr>
Discovery date<\/td>Known to the ancients.<\/td><\/tr>
Pronounced<\/td>KOP-er<\/td><\/tr>
Oxydation States<\/td>(2),1<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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With the periodic table symbol Cu, atomic number 29, atomic mass of 63.546 g.mol<\/span>-1<\/span>, and electron configuration <\/span>[Ar] 3d<\/span>10<\/span>4s<\/span>1<\/span>, copper is both malleable and ductile metal with a face-centered cubic crystalline structure. Having excellent electrical and thermal conductivity, pure copper reaches its boiling point at 2560\u00b0C (4640\u00b0F, 2833 K), while the melting point is achieved at 1084.62\u00b0C (1984.32\u00b0F, 1357.77 K). <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, the corrosion-resistant copper metal has an electronegativity of 1.9 according to Pauling, whereas the atomic radius according to van der Waals is 0.128 nm. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Copper can be polished to a bright lustrous finish, which places this element in the same group as silver and gold. The pure, elemental form of copper is softer than zinc<\/a> and highly malleable. When copper forms a reaction with oxygen<\/a> when exposed to high temperatures, it results in cuprous oxide (Cu2O).<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Cryogenic Properties of Copper <\/span> <\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When exposed to temperatures below zero, copper and copper alloys display greater ductility and strength.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How Was Copper Discovered?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The first evidence of copper suggests that this reddish-gold metal with an orange hue was discovered by the ancient civilizations of Chaldea and Sumer. Chaldeans of Mesopotamia and Sumerians of the Tigris and Euphrates river valleys had used this non-precious metal 5,000 to 6,000 years ago. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Copper was the first metal to be smelted from sulfide ores. Ancient people also created art-objects by applying thin copper sheets on a wooden background with a bitumen lining. Such figures have been found in the archeological site at <\/span>Tell al Ubaid<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Copper Age<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Chalcolithic Period, or the Copper Age, is a period that lasted for around 1000 years, from 500 B.C. to 3500 B.C. The period\u2019s name is derived from the Greek words \u201cchalco\u201d (copper) and \u201clithos\u201d(stone). Present-day northern Iraq holds <\/span>the oldest copper ornament<\/span><\/a> dating from around 8700 B.C.  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Right after the Copper Age, around 3500 BC, the ancient civilizations began making alloys of copper and tin<\/a> in order to add hardness to the reddish-gold metal. In fact, the copper-tin alloy was used in construction around 3000 BC by the ancient civilizations. This period is referred to as the Bronze Age.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How Did Copper Get Its Name?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This soft metal used since ancient times was presumably named after the main location<\/a> from where the ancient people living in Mesopotamia, the Middle East, Egypt, Phoenicia, Greece, and Rome were obtaining copper – the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Namely, the ancient Romans have labeled the copper-producing ore as \u201c<\/span>aes Cyprium<\/span><\/i>\u201d, i.e “the metal of Cyprus” in Latin. Throughout the times, the name \u201ccyprium\u201d was modified by oral lore from \u201c<\/span>coprum<\/span><\/i>\u201d, into \u201c<\/span>cuprum<\/span><\/i>\u201d, to the present-day name of this chemical element – <\/span>copper<\/i><\/b>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Where Can You Find Copper?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The pure elemental form of copper, also labeled as \u201cnative copper\u201d, can be found in ashes of seaweeds, sea corals, and the human liver. In nature, it\u2019s obtained from various types of geological deposits and rocks, such as porphyry, sediment-hosted copper deposits, volcanic-hosted massive sulfide deposits, deposits of ultramafic, mafic, ultrabasic, and carbonatite rocks, veins in metamorphic rocks, as a primary mineral in basaltic lavas, etc. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, copper can be obtained from oxidized ores (cuprite and tenorite), azurite, bornite, digenite, copper sulfosalts such as tetrahedrite-tennantite, and enargite, copper carbonates (azurite and malachite), and sulfide ores (chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), covellite (CuS), as well as from chalcocite (Cu2S)).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Copper Mining Processes<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The copper ores can be obtained via the following types of mining:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n