| Copper - A reddish or salmon-pink isometric mineral, the native metallic element Cu. It is ductile and malleable, a good conductor of heat and electricity, usually dull and tarnished, and formerly an important ore. Copper is the only metal that occurs native abundantly in large masses; it frequently occurs in dendritic clusters or mossy aggregates, in sheets, or in plates filling narrow cracks or fissures. It has many uses, notably as an electric conductor and as the base metal in brass, bronze and other alloys. |