How to Get the Copper Shell off a Penny
At one time the coins in this country were actually of some value. It has been a long time since that was true though. Now this country mints its money out of plated slugs with little real value. In the case of the penny, copper plating covers over a slug of zinc and when stamped at the mint shows the famous face of Abraham Lincoln.
- Difficulty:
- Moderately Easy
Instructions
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1
Take the penny and scratch the edge with the file. Look at the edge of the penny and see if you can see a sliver of silver colored metal under the surface of the copper. If you don't see it, file a bit deeper. Pennies after about the 1982 should have this zinc core.
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2
Place the penny in a plastic tray and put on your goggles. Pour enough of the acid into the tray to cover the coin by about a half inch. You should see the acid react with the silver metal showing through and lots of bubbles form. Gently swirl the tray to keep fresh acid on the coin. When all fizzing has stopped, the reaction is over.
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3
Place the tray in a sink and sprinkle small amounts of baking soda into the tray until no foaming occurs when you add more baking soda. Turn on the water and rinse the liquid in the tray down the drain being careful not to lose the copper penny. The penny is fragile so pick it up gently. The inner core of zinc dissolved in the acid. Even though the copper is very thin, you can still see a very good likeness of Abraham Lincoln in the center.
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