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Copper is used as a conductor of heat and electricity, as a building material, and as a constituent of various metal alloys, such as sterling silver used in jewelry, cupronickel used to make marine hardware and coins, and constantan used in strain gauges and thermocouples for temperature measurement.
Latten is a further term, mostly used for coins with a very high copper content. Today the term copper alloy tends to be substituted for all of these, especially by museums. [1] Copper deposits are abundant in most parts of the world (globally 70 parts per million), and it has therefore always been a relatively cheap metal.
An example of a copper alloy conductor is cadmium copper wire, which is used for railroad electrification in North America. [5] In Britain the BPO (later Post Office Telecommunications) used cadmium copper aerial lines with 1% cadmium for extra strength; for local lines 40 lb/mile (1.3 mm dia) and for toll lines 70 lb/mile (1.7 mm dia). [23]
Common 50-50 tin-lead bar solder is often used for uncoated copper; 60-40 tin-lead solder is used for lead-coated copper. [61] Many lead-free solders are also acceptable. Adhesives can be used in certain applications. Relatively thin sheet alloys can be bonded to plywood or certain types of foam which act as rigid insulation.
As a significant product of copper mining, copper(II) oxide is the starting point for the production of many other copper salts. For example, many wood preservatives are produced from copper oxide. [3] Cupric oxide is used as a pigment in ceramics to produce blue, red, and green, and sometimes gray, pink, or black glazes. [3]
Copper and its alloys have a huge variety of uses that reflect their versatile physical, mechanical, and chemical properties. Some common examples are the high electrical conductivity of pure copper, low-friction properties of bearing bronze (bronze that has a high lead content— 6–8%), resonant qualities of bell bronze (20% tin, 80% copper ...