Copper is the chemical element that is presently an essential part of our modern lives. You may say that it is part of the progress and development of humanity. Copper is an excellent versatile metal that has significantly driven the nation’s economy. The history is vast, but you should know that copper is the oldest metal used by humans, way back more than 10,000 years.
Properties Of Copper
The physical and chemical properties of copper have made it easily recyclable without losing any quality. It has facilitated global sustainability. Many companies are worldwide operating to improve exploration and mining services. Three Valley Copper and BHP are the companies that are expanding their operations to utilize capacity. Three Valley Copper TVC is significantly fueling the future with copper. The production of copper improved our standard of living, and you should consider it a positive contributor for centuries. There are several properties and uses of copper that have made it a highly valuable metal for us.
- Antibacterial Properties
Copper has an antimicrobial property that has made it significant for the medical field. In many hospitals, the bed rails and call buttons are made with the help of copper or its alloys. According to Cassandra Salgado, who is a professor and epidemiologist at the Medical University of South Carolina, copper interferes with electric charge through the cell membrane of microbes leading to the killing. Along with her team, conducted an experiment by giving copper lining on the stethoscope. The experiment concluded that a copper-coated stethoscope had fewer bacteria comparatively while 66% was free from it.
- Thermal Conductivity
Copper is a great conductor of heat. Even if you heat one end of copper, the other end will quickly heat itself. Copper is widely used for many heating applications due to its high melting point and corrosion resistance property. You will find copper in heat sinks of computers, disk drivers, TV sets. Copper is also utilized in the heat exchanger, underfloor heating systems, car radiators, and many resources.
- Electrical Conductivity
Due to small resistance, the current easily flows through it without much wastage of energy. You might have seen copper wires in the mains cables of houses. Copper is highly ductile and can be easily transformed into thin wires. It is used in main adaptors, electricity substations, and power stations for transformers. It is used in different home appliances as well.
- Non-Magnetic
Copper is also known for its non-magnetic and non-sparking properties. Therefore, it is often used to manufacture special tools related to the military. It doesn’t interact with other magnets to some extent. Due to this property, copper is also used to generate an electric current in power plants.
Conclusion
Copper is enriched with highly desirable properties like good electrical and thermal conductivity, corrosion and biofouling resistance, ductility, malleability, recyclability, and many more. You may say that copper is the metal of civilization. It has improved our lives in a way better. Every industry has benefited from copper production.
