Dangers of copper sulphate

A. Search for "MSDS Copper Sulphate" or "SDS Copper Sulphate" on the web and see if you can download a "(Material) Safety Data Sheet" for copper sulphate, Jenny. Good luck.

A. I wouldn't recommend bathing in it or eating it but if you are careful, it is not unduly harmful. Copper can be harmful in large doses, but in small doses, say from a copper bangle, it is supposed to help relieve rheumatism. Copper is also an essential trace element, so without it you may die! I was once told that fish and frog blood is based on copper, unlike human blood which is based on iron, but I have no proof for that - you may like to find out for yourself! If it is true, copper clearly doesn't do them any harm!

The important thing with almost all metals is their ability to be "bio-available" - that is, it must be in a form that can be reacted with the biological system. Pure copper will slowly dissolve in the natural skin secretions such as sweat, but copper sulphate is already in a water soluble form, so it will be absorbed through the skin that much faster. I would simply recommend that you treat copper sulphate as you would all chemicals, with respect.

After handling ANY CHEMICAL you should really wash your hands with soapy water. NEVER eat or drink whilst handling chemicals, or you will be courting trouble.

Finally, NEVER smoke when handling chemicals because you may inhale them; if they are flammable, you may ignite them and go up like a roman candle!

A. Hi Jenny,

copper sulphate is acidic in nature. When bonding with the moisture on your hands, the crystals may liberate a tiny bit more acidity, but I believe that some corrosivity is the extent of it's danger to tissue. copper sulphate is usually used in a sulfuric acid media, so, obviously you will encounter more corrosivity should that be the case. A few minutes of washing your hands with tap water should dismiss any concern. I am not a toxicologist, but I have had copper sulphate solutions splashed on my hands since the early 1980's, and I can still play guitar! You may want to check out an MSDS sheet.

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A. copper sulphate is only an acute hazard if ingested as a solid, or inhaled as a mist. In these conditions, it can kill in gram quantities. However, the acidic nature of the compound, as described above, means that it acts as an irritant in the stomach, prompting vomiting, which means that the fatal dose is usually much higher. In contact with the skin, less drastic 'Irritant' effects are observed, and sensitive individuals may suffer dermatitis as a result of long term exposure. In practical terms, copper sulphate can be handled routinely in large quantities with no adverse effects, providing basic precautions are taken - such as the sensible advice above about hand washing given above.

Some reptiles, fish and spiders do indeed use copper as the basis of their blood. The oxygen-carrying component of blood consists of a transition metal complex, and under certain evolutionary conditions, it is an advantage for this metal to be copper. The different complex formed means that this blood is blue, instead of the red associated with haemoglobin.

Legislative data: The oral LD50 of copper is 472 mg/kg in rats. This is the dose that killed 50% of a test population that were subjected to it.

PEL (permissible exposure limit) is 1.0 mg/m3 (per 8-hours)in industry.

A. I too live in Ottawa, and my father-in-law uses Cu Sulphate in his pool religiously. He only uses two tablespoons in a 27-foot diameter above-ground, round pool. I have the same pool and am only starting to use it. So far, it's harmless once it's in that large quantity of water. It does make the pool water crystal clear and keeps the algae away. It's more common use is in agriculture, for keeping algae out of watering troughs for livestock. It they can drink water with it in, we can surely swim in much larger amounts.

A. Hi. Although copper sulphate discourages algae growth, it is not a disinfectant so it does not sound to me like an adequate replacement for chlorine.

Regards,

A. Hi Cody. It's CuSO4.5H20 and made in a factory, but why are you asking? It would help us know if we are correctly interpreting your question.

Regards,

A. Hi Harjinder. It sounds unrelated to me based on the passage of 2 years. But I'm not a doctor and if I was I wouldn't offer a diagnosis without a lot of facts. See your doctor for stomach pain. Good luck.

Regards,

Copper toxicity

A. Hi Mahesh. You'll almost surely be sick to your stomach and vomit it up. The vomit may contain your blood, which could contaminate the experiment. It's possible that you'll die and not be able to complete your report.

But discounting the myriad medical problems it may cause, and assuming you live through it, I think the "side effect" would be turning your eyes copper color; I don't know if that means the girls will like you more or less.

What is "mpc"? It sounds like a great course :-)

Regards,

A. One of the major principles in science is before you do an study or experiment, check to see if anybody else has explored the same topic.

In this case, Wikipedia alone has plenty of information:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copper(II)_sulphate#Toxicological_effects
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copper_toxicity

For that matter, the MSDS for the copper sulphate almost certainly advises against this.

August 2016

Standing on the shoulders of giants

"We stand on the shoulders of giants" ... but they all lie dead. Was it from drinking copper sulphate? :-)

Regards,

Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey

Hi James. Personally I would not worry about it. copper sulphate is in lot of ponds, lakes, and swimming holes; used in drains to discourage roots; and even used as a topical treatment for some skin diseases. But that's just a layman's personal opinion, and your library has books on occupational exposure to such chemicals; and a search with scholar.google.com might be productive. Good luck.

Regards,