Copper: resources, processes and products

In terms of tonnage, copper ranks third behind steel and aluminum. Worldwide reserves currently stand at around 300 Mt for an economic cut-off of 0.5% copper. Uses take into account the metal's functional properties: electrical and thermal conductivity, corrosion resistance, ductility, suitability for various coatings, suitability for welding and brazing, and fungicidal properties. The electrical construction sector is the main consumer, and new uses are emerging, particularly in the high-tech sector.

Physical and physico-chemical ore beneficiation, or mineralurgy, accounts for 80% of primary copper. In most cases, this enrichment is carried out by flotation, and the resulting concentrate is processed by smelting or pyrometallurgy. Direct treatment of ores by chemical means, or hydrometallurgy, applies only to oxidized ores.

This article looks at the economics of copper, the different ores, the development of deposits, the cost of metallurgical operations and the manufacture of sections and rolled products from compact metal formats, previously cast into bars, ingots, slabs and billets.

The complete study of the subject includes the articles :

— M 2 240 - Copper: resources, processes and products (this article) ;

—  - Pyrometallurgy and electrorefining of copper ;

—  - Copper hydrometallurgy ;

— M 2 243 - Copper recycling and the environment ;

- Copper metallurgy.