THESPECTROPHOTOMETRICDETERMINATION.docVIP

THE SPECTROPHOTOMETRIC DETERMINATION OF THE COPPER CONTENT IN THE COPPER-CLAD PENNY (2-6-96) PURPOSE The purpose of this experiment is to determine: (1) the percentage of copper in a copper-clad penny and (2) the thickness of the copper layer on the copper-clad penny. These analyses will employ spectrophotometric techniques. BACKGROUND Pennies minted in the United States since 1982 no longer contain pure copper metal. This change was due to the fact that the cost of the copper metal required to produce a penny was higher than the face value of the penny. In fact, pennies minted af