Metal finishing Q&As since 1989

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WHAT IS COPPERS HAZARDS/ ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS?

2004

HI,

I'M DOING A PROJECT ON COPPER AND I NEED TO KNOW WHAT ARE THE HAZARDS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS ARE ABOUT IT. COULD YOU PLEASE ANSWER THAT?

THANK YOU,

CHRISTINE H.
STUDENT - PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, UNITED STATES

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First of two simultaneous responses --

Go to your trusty search engine and type in MSDS, copper and you will get most of the information that you need. There are several free sites that you can get a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) from. Copper is a very powerful biocide, so you do not want a lot of copper in the ionic form in nature. Think of some evil things that it could do beside killing your teachers flower garden.

James Watts
- Navarre, Florida
2004

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Second of two simultaneous responses -- 2004

You need to look up the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for copper. I would also suggest you look up a copper salt such as copper sulphate, as this will give you extra information. These are easily available on the web.

Good luck,

Trevor Crichton
R&D practical scientist
Chesham, Bucks, UK