Copper Makes the World Go Round Too
I'm pretty sure you know what copper is. After all, it's found
in a lot of the things we come across in our day-to-day
experiences.
Copper wires. Copper plumbing. Doorknobs. Sterling silver.
Flatware (dining utensils). Electromagnets; electromagnetic
motors; the steam engine; spare change (coins); brass musical
instruments; ceramic glazes; electrical relays, busbars, and
switches; mildew killer; vacuum tubes; cathode ray tubes; spare
change; and tons more.
Copper is also used as a biostatic liner in hospitals and ships.
Bacteria and living things will not grow on biostatic surfaces.
Doorknobs are made of copper in hospitals to help prevent
disease transfer. Ships are lined with copper so that barnacles
and mussels will not cling to its outside surfaces.
Fun fact of the day: The Statue of Liberty contains 179,000
pounds of copper.
Rumor even has it that sucking on a copper penny will let the
breathalyzer test read 0.
In fact, I bet copper has been ingrained in each of our minds
because of the existence of Chemistry class in our high school
curriculum.
Copper isn't always that red element with a bright lustre and
shine you see almost everywhere. Sometimes it comes in a blue
solution of copper ions. Sometimes it's mixed in with other
metals, such as otherwise pure bricks of gold, because gold is
much too soft to keep in brick forms all by themselves.
Copper has been used since the dawn of the most ancient
civilizations. It may well be the oldest metal in use, being
utilized by the people for over ten thousand years. In fact, for
five millenia ancient civilizations did not know any other
metal.
Because of its malleability they simply hammered out the native
ore into the shapes they desired, usually containers. It was
called "chalkos" in Greek times. In Roman times the term was
"Cyprium," from which copper's symbol in the periodic table of
elements is derived.
So how is copper extracted from the earth's crust? Native copper
is mineral form, and they are found in ores, being extracted
from open-pit mines. The ores are extracted from a hard, igneous
rock containing crystals called porphyry. Even then, the amount
of copper you can extract is as little as 0.4 to 1 percent.
While copper is necessary for all higher plants and animals, it
can be toxic if found in exceedingly high amounts. It can lead
to schizophrenia.
There is an inherited illness that retains copper called
Wilson's disease, which prevents copper from being excreted into
bile by the liver. If left untreated, the excess copper found in
the body can lead to brain and liver damage.
Copper is surely a valuable metal to all. In fact, there was
even a group that was formed, with an aim to try and regulate
copper export, trying to gain the same power that OPEC has.
It did not succeed because America was never a member, it being
the second largest producer of copper in the world today. It's
largest copper mine can be found in the state of Utah.
So look around you for a while. Chances are, you can find a hint
of copper. In fact, there might be a copper wire poking through
from your CPU right now. Never underestimate it, as surely the
world wouldn't be what it is today without copper. Copper makes
the world go round too.