Wednesday, November 20, 2013

When You Would Use Copper Screws

By Bonnie Contreras


Not everybody is aware of this, but copper screws are little motors called actuators. An actuator is a motor that moves something. In this case, a screw is acting as a linear actuator. Linear actuators convert cyclical motion into linear, or straight movement. By comparison, a conventional gasoline-powered or electrical motor produces circular motion.

The shaft, or pointy end of a screw, has a helical thread, while the head is either flat or slightly rounded. In some cases, the external threads of a screw are made to fit into an internally threaded nut. The basic function of a screw once it has performed its motoring function is to hold things together.

A little-known use for a copper screw is as a contact screw in a tattoo machine. You can easily make these yourself in your garage or workshop because the metal is very soft. What you need is a length of thick wire, a die with the appropriate internal thread, a set of pliers, fine sandpaper that you get in a hobby shop, a vise and a small bottle of acidic gun bluing solution. The bluing solution, when used with iron metal, protects it from rust and corrosion. Here, it just makes your screw look pretty.

The atomic number of copper metal (Cu) is 29. This metal conducts electricity and head very well. This is how come it is used in copper kitchen pots and pans and in electric wiring. Because it is so ductile and malleable, it is very easy to work with. That is why you can make your own tattoo machine screws on your own.

When the Romans were in charge, the metal was mined in Cyprus. That is how it came to be named cyprium, and then cuprum. Hence, the chemical symbol, Cu. It has many uses in the human body, mainly as a constituent in the enzyme cytochrome. In sea animals such as crustaceans and molluscs, it forms part of the respiratory pigment called hemocyanin, which is blue. Humans do not use hemocynanin, but instead use the iron-based pigment, hemoglobin, to ferry oxygen and carbon dioxide into and out of the cells, respectively.

In people, cuprum is mainly located in the liver, muscles and in bone. Because of its bacteriocidal (germ-killing) action, it is used as a wood preservative and as a fungicide. It is also used as a lining for laboratory incubators that are used for cell and tissue culture.

What else can be done with a copper screw except as a bacteriocide or in a tattoo machine. They are useful for screwing into wood, particularly if it is exposed to corroding elements. This is because the pretty, reddish metal is less prone to rusting than steel or iron. As a substitute for cuprum, zinc, nickel, cadmium or brass may be used.

So, that is what pretty copper screws to. It can kill germs and look ornamental. As soft as it is, you have to choose carefully when to use it. They would be pretty terrible at holding sheets of metal together that are used in commercial airplanes.




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