Quick answerCopper (Cu) is a transition metal with atomic number 29 and an atomic mass of 63.546 (2023), in group 11, period 4. It has been known since ancient times. It is used for electrical wiring and plumbing pipes. Its electron configuration is [Ar] 3d10 4s1.
Copper is humanity's oldest metal, worked for over 10,000 years, and still the wire inside every home, phone, and power grid, second only to silver at conducting electricity. It also carries water in pipes, kills germs on touch surfaces, and gives the Statue of Liberty its green skin. Bronze, brass, and the coins in your pocket are all copper alloys.
Key facts
| Symbol | Cu |
|---|---|
| Atomic number | 29 |
| Atomic mass | 63.546 (IUPAC standard atomic weight, 2023) |
| Category | transition metal |
| Group | 11 |
| Period | 4 |
| Block | d-block |
| Electron configuration | [Ar] 3d10 4s1 |
| Discovered | Known since ancient times |
| Uses | electrical wiring, plumbing pipes, coins and currency, antimicrobial surfaces, bronze and brass alloys |
Overview
Copper is humanity's oldest metal, worked for over 10,000 years, and still the wire inside every home, phone and power grid. It has atomic number 29, an atomic mass of 63.546, and the electron configuration [Ar] 3d10 4s1, and it sits in group 11, period 4 of the periodic table. It has been known since ancient times, found as native metal and smelted from ore, and no single discoverer is credited with it. Copper is second only to silver at conducting electricity, and it carries heat almost as well, which is why it wires houses, winds motors and pipes hot water. It also kills germs on touch surfaces, so hospitals fit copper handles and rails, and it gives the Statue of Liberty its green skin, a layer of copper carbonate formed over a century in the air. Bronze, the alloy of copper and tin, launched the Bronze Age, and brass, its alloy with zinc, still makes instruments, taps and ornaments. Copper coins have been money for millennia, and today copper is mined mainly in Chile, Peru and China, and recycled eagerly, because recycled copper works as well as new.
Frequently asked questions
What is copper used for?
Copper is mainly used for electrical wiring, because it is second only to silver at conducting electricity, and for plumbing pipes, which carry hot water. It also makes coins, bronze and brass, winds motors and generators, and kills germs on hospital touch surfaces. It is mined mainly in Chile, Peru and China, and widely recycled.
What is the symbol for copper?
The chemical symbol for copper is Cu, from its Latin name cuprum, after Cyprus, the island that supplied copper to the Roman world. It has atomic number 29 and a standard atomic mass of 63.546, and it sits in group 11 and period 4. Copper has been known since ancient times, so no single person discovered it.
What is the atomic number of copper?
Copper has atomic number 29, so it is the twenty-ninth element in the periodic table. Its atom holds twenty-nine protons and twenty-nine electrons, and its standard atomic mass is 63.546. It is a transition metal in group 11 and period 4, with the electron configuration [Ar] 3d10 4s1, and it is humanity's oldest metal.
Is copper a metal?
Yes, copper is a metal, a transition metal in group 11 of the periodic table. It is reddish-brown, soft and easy to shape, and it conducts electricity and heat better than almost any other metal except silver. It has been worked for over 10,000 years, and it still wires homes, phones and power grids today.
Why is the Statue of Liberty green?
The Statue of Liberty is green because it is clad in copper, and over a century in the sea air the copper surface oxidised into a green layer called patina, a mix of copper compounds. The green layer is only skin deep, and it protects the metal underneath from further corrosion, so the statue has kept its green colour.
Quick quiz
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Keep exploring
- Periodic table — all 118 elements
- Scandium (Sc) — another transition metal, atomic number 21
- Titanium (Ti) — another transition metal, atomic number 22
- Vanadium (V) — another transition metal, atomic number 23
- Chromium (Cr) — another transition metal, atomic number 24
- Manganese (Mn) — another transition metal, atomic number 25
- Iron (Fe) — another transition metal, atomic number 26
- Cobalt (Co) — another transition metal, atomic number 27
- Nickel (Ni) — another transition metal, atomic number 28
- Zinc (Zn) — another transition metal, atomic number 30
- Yttrium (Y) — another transition metal, atomic number 39
- All transition metal elements — on the periodic table
Sources & last updated
Last updated: . Figures are shown with their year; where sources disagree, the value is left out rather than estimated.