Is there a way to chemically reduce suspension or solution containing copper (II) oxide powder, back to copper metal. I know with Copper (II) oxide powder I can make copper sulfate, copper nitrate or copper hydroxide. But I need to know that can I make chemical reduction of either of these compounds to make copper metal directly or indirectly.
Simple task. Dissolve your copper oxide in acid (e.g. H2SO4) and then add some metal with lower electrochemical potential than Cu/Cu2+ , e.g. Fe or Zn. Slightly acidic pH after CuO dissolving in acid is beneficial. Chemical reaction is as follows: CuSO4 + Fe → Cu + FeSO4 . If some base metal (Fe, Zn) remains unreacted, you can dissolve it in HCl when soluble chlorides formation takes place while Cu remains unchanged. However precipitated Cu has large surface and may be suffered by oxidation on air.
Thanks Jan Gutwirth, I shall give it a try. M Farooq Wahab, I am planning to apply copper onto a flexible substrate to make it conductive in this way. By the time I have copper (II) oxide powder, to apply it on my substrate I have to make aqueous solution and then I wanted to convert it back to copper metal.
Dear Muhammad Farooq, you mentioned that solid CuO oxide can be easily reduced with carbon at not very high temperatures. Could you please let me know the reference or if you have it done by yourself. Like what temperature and which type of carbon either activated carbon or any other form and how much?
Perhaps the key is to get the copper that is forming to plate out on the non-conductive substrate. The reduction step is relatively easy, as mentioned by others. One alternative is to create a chelating agent for the copper that also has a functionality that is attracted to the substrate (most acid functionalities will attach to most fibers). Then one could reduce the adsorbed chelated copper to the metal which might more readily deposit on the substrate.
If You need to cover some non-conductive surface by conductive layer, the reduction of Cu2+ by metal as I mentioned above may not works because as far as I know, the reduction takes place on metal (Fe, Zn, ...) surface. In that case may be more suitable way will be the reduction of solution of AgNO3 dissolved in NH3/H2O by some compound containing aldehyde group. Under some circumstances, formaldehyde may reduce elementary copper from Cu2+ solution, however this reaction for most of aldehydes produces Cu2O. Both this reaction were used in analytical chemistry, search for Fehling/Tollens solution/reagent.
You can buy rolls of copper tape several inches wide with a peel off paper backing over an adhesive layer.
Copper oxide is unstable in presence of carbon/carbon monoxide and forms metallic copper at about 70-80 oC, higher temp is beneficial from kinetics point of view.For this, substrate or coating medium in your material should be able to tolerate this much temp, then you may try with carbon powder (Try with charcoal). However, you need to develop a procedure for the solid state reduction of Copper oxide suitable to the system.
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Physical Sciences
- Materials Science
- Materials