Continue reading to learn more about copper and other highly conductive metals found on Earth today.
Silver and Gold
Although gold is most known for its beauty and resistance to corrosion, it is also a decent conductor of electricity. But gold is not as conductive as copper. Another interesting metal that is a very good conductor of electricity is another precious metal, silver. Pure silver is probably the best electricity conductor, with the exception that it tarnishes quickly and easily. This is why copper is used in most electrical manufacturing applications.
Copper
Copper is one of the most common, naturally-occurring metals used in electronics and electrical conductor technology today. It is a soft, malleable, ductile, and highly conductive metal that is best distinguished by its reddish-orange hue. It is a primary material used in the manufacturing of anodes, rods, electrodes, electrical wiring, computer circuit board parts, and much more.
Not only is it an excellent conductor of electricity, copper also has high thermal conductivity. Copper is such a good electrical conductor that many metals are measured against copper to identify their electrical conductivity level. This “measure” is called the International Annealed Copper Standard (IACS).
METAL ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY CHART:
Based on the International Annealed Copper Standard…
#1 PURE SILVER 105% Conductivity
#2 COPPER 100% Conductivity
#3 PURE GOLD 70% Conductivity
#4 ALUMINUM 61% Conductivity
#5 BRASS 28% Conductivity
No matter what percentage of conductivity a metal retains, it can be recycle and reused to make new commodities. Be sure to recycle all of your metal to reduce the need to mine for new materials and natural resources. Not only can you help the environment by recycling junk scrap metal, you can make fast cash while doing it too!