Copper In Our Lives

The diverse use of copper has significantly raised its importance in our everyday lives. This reddish appearing chemical element is the oldest metal used by man over 10,000 years ago.

Copper Mining

Copper processing is composed of complicated steps. The ore can be removed from the earth by open-pit or underground mining method. The widely used method is open-pit mining. The process is further followed by concentrating, roasting, smelting with fluxes, conversion of matter, anode casting, electrolytic refining, leaching, and recycling to obtain usable copper from its ore. Several companies like SRHI and Codelco are involved in enhancing copper production growth and exploration services. The Three Valley Copper company is working as a mining company and serves clients in Canada.

Uses Of Copper

The enormous use of copper is done for building or construction industries. Even copper alloys like bronze and brass are important versatile engineering materials. If we break the list of copper consumption for different purposes, around 47% of copper is used for the building industry, while 23% is consumed in manufacturing electronic products. Almost 10% of copper is used for transportation. You will be delighted to know that there is around 370 copper alloys’ commercial composition. Copper is a tough, ductile, malleable, and conductive element that’s why it is utilized for various purposes. It has excellent heat and electricity conductivity.

Copper Productions And Demands

Talking about the world’s leading producers of copper, Chile occupied the topmost position with an estimation of 5.7 million metric tons of copper production in 2020. The list is followed by Peru, China, and the United States. It is an essential mineral that will be high in demand for building energy systems. Renewable energy systems like tidal, wind, solar, biomass, or geothermal are already consuming large quantities of the element. According to the US Geological Survey 2019, the global reserves of copper are estimated at 830 million tons, whereas the annual demand is estimated at 28 million tons. This data significantly implies that there is enough copper present to meet the present and future demands. But the demand for copper is expected to rise in the future; therefore, sustainable use of copper is necessary. The demand is expected to rise due to its increased usage in electronics, vehicles, renewable energy sources, and other machinery. With the commencement of advanced technology, the production by copper mining industries has been boosted. According to a Bernstein Research note, copper production will need to rise by 3%-6% per annum worldwide by 2030 to meet the targets. Copper is a recyclable metal; that’s why industries are focusing more on its recovery and recycling. Around 35% of copper demands are met by recycled copper.

Conclusion

Copper is the most commercially used metal due to its highly desirable physical and chemical properties, including resistance to corrosion, strength, conductivity, and many more. The element is capable of retaining its mechanical and electrical properties at cryogenic temperature. Copper mining is stabilizing the demands of metal that can be used for the advancement and betterment of society.