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Present day pennies (1983 on) have a mass of 2.5g and a copper percentage of 2.5%, which comes to 0.0625g or 0.0022 oz Older ones have more copper. http://lrs.ed.uiuc.edu/students/tsullivl/commoncents/PennyComposition.htm

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16y ago
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14y ago

Gently sand about 1/3 of the edge of the penny just enough to remove the copper and expose the zinc.
Then soak the coin in 5% Muriatic acid in a glass dish until it stops bubbling.
The Muriatic acid will dissolve the zinc and leave the copper shell intact.
Wear rubber gloves and use tweezers to gently remove the copper shell.
Thoroughly rinse the copper shell and handle it very carefully as it is very thin.

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13y ago

Except for 1982 cents, you can tell by the coin's date:

> All Lincoln cents dated 1981 and earlier, except the famous "steel pennies" from 1943, are made of bronze which is 95% copper.

> All cents dated 1983 and later are 97.5% zinc plated with 2.5% copper.

The composition was changed in 1982 so the simplest way to tell is by weight: a bronze cent weighs about 3.11 gm while a zinc one weighs 2.5 gm.

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14y ago

i am not sure but i think you weigh it then subtract weight of copper sorry if you don't understand

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13y ago

Yes, as long as there is no chemical interaction between them.

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Q: How do you calculate the copper and zinc in a penny?
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Related questions

How do you calculate the percentage of copper in a penny?

It depends on the date. If it's before 1982, the coin is 95% copper and 5% zinc. If it's newer than that, it's 97.5% zinc and 2.5% copper.


How does one find out if a penny is made of copper or zinc?

You can tell if a penny is made out of zinc or copper by the date on the penny. If the date is before 1982 then the penny is 95% copper. Pennies dated 1983 or later are 97.5% zinc with a thin copper coating.


How does the mass of zinc penny compare to a copper penny?

Copper pennies (95% copper, 5% zinc) weigh 3.11 grams. Modern zinc pennies (97.5% zinc, 2.5% copper) weigh 2.5 grams.


What is the amount of zinc in a penny?

There is 97.5 percent zinc in a penny and 2.5 percent copper


Is a copper zinc penny magnetic?

no


What elements are in a penny?

zinc is 97.5% of the penny and copper is 2.5% of the penny


Is it a copper OR zinc penny that dissolves in phosphoric acid?

Zinc


What alloy is a penny covered in?

Current pennies (since 1982) are copper-plated zinc, so the answer is it's covered in copper. The penny is 2.5% copper, and 97.5% zinc. See the related links for a history of penny composition over the years.


What metal is penny made of?

Copper or zinc


What year was penny changed in amount of copper?

Midway through 1982, the composition of the US penny changed from 95% copper and 5% zinc to 97.5% zinc and 2.5% copper (in the form of a coating of pure copper over a core of zinc).


What is the copper content of a 1983 penny?

2.5% copper and 97.5% zinc.


What can you bring to school that is made of zinc?

A penny is both made of copper and zinc