Copper hydroxide

The copper (II) hydroxide compound is a bright blue crystal, it can also have an amorphous (powdery) structure. It is insoluble in water, the safety registry is average. The chemical formula of the substance is Cu (OH) ₂, it is a weak base, which is usually obtained as a result of the action of strong bases on copper salts.

The use of this compound is widespread in a wide variety of fields of chemical and industrial production. Thus, copper hydroxide is used as a pigmenting component in the composition of glasses, ceramic products used in engineering and jewelry, glazes. The pigmentation properties of the compound are successfully used in the manufacture of highly resistant paints that are used for application to the bottoms of ships and even submarines, since this substance prevents the fouling of underwater parts of ships by algae and other water elements that spoil the metal structures of ships.

Great prospects are opened by the use of this substance in the modern electrical and electronic industry. Here it can become an indispensable component of the technology for manufacturing high-temperature superconductors. In addition, the application in electrical engineering has already been sufficiently tested in the course of laboratory practice.

Actually in chemical production, copper hydroxide is widely used as a catalyst for chemical reactions. In addition, you can also point out the application of this substance, such as the preparation of mixed fodders for livestock, the production of cements of various grades, especially decorated (colored) cements.

Although the safety classification does not refer to highly toxic and hazardous chemicals, certain important precautions must be taken when working with it. First of all, this refers to the observance of storage regimes of the substance and prevention of cases of its spillage in the open air. If this happens, immediate measures should be taken to isolate the location of the powder and remove the hydroxide to a safe distance.

As the formula shows, copper hydroxide is an alkaline compound. Therefore, all existing and promising options for its practical use are due to alkaline properties.

Before answering the question of how to obtain copper hydroxide, a reservation should be made that there are several such variants.

Consider some of the most common ones.

Copper hydroxide can be obtained from its sulfate. This substance is a highly water-soluble white powder with a crystalline structure. Its chemical formula is CuSO. If this substance, called copper sulfate, is dissolved in water, you can get all the known copper sulfate. Then, if alkali is added to this solution, a reaction will occur during which Cu (OH) ₂ is released as a blue precipitate .

It is possible to obtain hydroxide from copper (II) nitrate, which is a crystalline substance that does not have a color, with the chemical formula Cu (NO₃) . If you carry out the reaction for the production of hydroxide, then copper (II) nitrate must be added to the NaOH solution. The resulting blue-colored precipitate is the desired copper hydroxide.

A common way of obtaining the substance is the use of copper (II) chloride for this purpose, which has the chemical formula CuCl. To produce hydroxide, a yellow powder, which is copper chloride, must be dissolved in a certain amount of alkali. In the course of such a reaction, the yellow crystals disappear, and instead of them the same precipitate of the blue hue, Cu (OH) выпа, falls out.