2014-Sustainable Industrial Processing Summit
SIPS 2014 Volume 7: Energy Production, Environmental & Multiscale
| Editors: | Kongoli F |
| Publisher: | Flogen Star OUTREACH |
| Publication Year: | 2014 |
| Pages: | 528 pages |
| ISBN: | 978-1-987820-09-6 |
| ISSN: | 2291-1227 (Metals and Materials Processing in a Clean Environment Series) |
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Copper and Environment
Maryam Dehghani1;1NATIONAL IRANIAN OIL COMPANY, Omiodieh, Iran (Islamic Republic of Iran);
Type of Paper: Regular
Id Paper: 158
Topic: 15
Abstract:
Toxic metals, including heavy metals, are individual metals and metal compounds that have been shown to affect people's health negatively. In very small amounts, many of these metals are necessary to support life. However, in larger amounts, they become toxic. They may build up in biological systems and become a significant health hazard. Copper is a heavy metal that can be toxic in certain environments. We use copper because it is one of the heavy metals that is easy to find and it is not very toxic to humans. We use copper sulfate as a source of copper that is soluble, meaning it will dissolve, or turn into a solution, when mixed with water. Copper is a very common substance that occurs naturally in the environment and spreads through the environment through natural phenomena. Humans widely use copper. For instance, it is applied in the industries and in agriculture. The production of copper has lifted over the last decades. Due to this, copper quantities in the environment have increased. The world's copper production is still rising. This basically means that more and more copper end up in the environment. Rivers are depositing sludge on their banks that is contaminated with copper due to the disposal of copper-containing wastewater. Copper enters the air, mainly through release during the combustion of fossil fuels. Copper will remain in the air for an eminent period of time, before it settles when it starts to rain.