The results proved that after treatment, copper metal could be transformed from ‘chicken’ to ‘phoenix’.
According to a study recently published in Science Advances magazine, a group of Chinese scientists successfully converted cheap copper into a new material that closely resembles gold.
This is a breakthrough invention, promising to reduce the use of precious and expensive metals in manufacturing plants. Because it will be replaced with new metal, changing from copper is very cheap.
Professor Sun Jian and colleagues at the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Liaoning, performed this transformation by firing charged and charged argon beams into copper.
These fast-moving ionizing particles can blow copper atoms away from the mass of material. These atoms will cool down and condense on the surface of a collection device, forming a thin layer of sand. Each grain of sand is only a few nanometers in size, equal to one-thousandth of the size of bacteria.
The researchers then placed the material in the reaction chamber and used it as a catalyst for turning coal into alcohol. This is a complex and difficult process, but only precious metal as a catalyst can be effectively processed.
"Copper nanoparticles achieve extremely catalytic performance similar to gold and silver," Professor Sun said. "The results prove that after treatment, copper metal can completely change from chicken 'into' phoenix '.
Copper has weight and looks very similar to gold. That's why for centuries, alchemists have been working to find a way to turn copper into gold.
However, research by professors Sun Jian cannot turn copper into valuable gold blocks. Because the molecular density of this new material is still the same as conventional copper.
But this new material can completely replace gold in production processes, saving a great deal of cost for precious and expensive metals. As we know, the components of electronic devices contain a large amount of gold, silver and platinum.
Copper cannot replace gold in industries, mainly because atoms have fewer electrons. These electrons are also relatively unstable, so copper tends to react with other chemicals.
The method of Professor Sun Jian's team can inject large amounts of energy into copper atoms, making the electrons more dense and stable. As a result, new materials are resistant to high temperatures, oxidation and corrosion as well as gold.
"It is like a warrior with golden armor on the battlefield, able to fight off all enemy attacks," Professor Sun Jian said.
This is a breakthrough invention, promising to reduce the use of precious and expensive metals in manufacturing plants. Because it will be replaced with new metal, changing from copper is very cheap.
Professor Sun Jian and colleagues at the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Liaoning, performed this transformation by firing charged and charged argon beams into copper.
These fast-moving ionizing particles can blow copper atoms away from the mass of material. These atoms will cool down and condense on the surface of a collection device, forming a thin layer of sand. Each grain of sand is only a few nanometers in size, equal to one-thousandth of the size of bacteria.
The researchers then placed the material in the reaction chamber and used it as a catalyst for turning coal into alcohol. This is a complex and difficult process, but only precious metal as a catalyst can be effectively processed.
"Copper nanoparticles achieve extremely catalytic performance similar to gold and silver," Professor Sun said. "The results prove that after treatment, copper metal can completely change from chicken 'into' phoenix '.
Copper has weight and looks very similar to gold. That's why for centuries, alchemists have been working to find a way to turn copper into gold.
However, research by professors Sun Jian cannot turn copper into valuable gold blocks. Because the molecular density of this new material is still the same as conventional copper.
But this new material can completely replace gold in production processes, saving a great deal of cost for precious and expensive metals. As we know, the components of electronic devices contain a large amount of gold, silver and platinum.
Copper cannot replace gold in industries, mainly because atoms have fewer electrons. These electrons are also relatively unstable, so copper tends to react with other chemicals.
The method of Professor Sun Jian's team can inject large amounts of energy into copper atoms, making the electrons more dense and stable. As a result, new materials are resistant to high temperatures, oxidation and corrosion as well as gold.
"It is like a warrior with golden armor on the battlefield, able to fight off all enemy attacks," Professor Sun Jian said.