Copper (Cu) is an extremely easy element to acquire, as it is all around us. Most wiring uses copper, as does a lot of modern plumbing. Its name comes from the latin word cuprum, which evolved from aes cyprium, or “from Cyprus”, where it was mined extensively during Greek and Roman times.

Copper readily oxidises with oxygen, forming a coating over itself that prevents further corrosion, as seen in the photo below. However, copper will not react with water. Store your copper in a water-filled jar to keep it in its elemental form.

Aside from plumbing and wiring, copper is used for its thermal properties, as well as alloyed with tin to form bronze.

I got my sample from an old laptop. The copper heatsink for the CPU is a rather generous amount. To clean off the thermal grease, I did as one would with pennies – left it emersed in Coca-Cola for several hours.