In nature, natural copper reserves are extremely small and generally exist in the form of metal associated minerals. Copper ore often contains various heavy metals and rare metals, such as gold, silver, arsenic, antimony, bismuth, selenium, lead, tellurium, cobalt, nickel, molybdenum, etc.

According to the properties of copper compounds, copper minerals can be divided into three types: natural copper, sulfide minerals, and oxide minerals, mainly sulfide minerals and oxide minerals. Especially sulfide minerals are widely distributed, and currently about 90% of steel production comes from sulfide minerals. Copper ore is enriched through mineral processing to obtain concentrate, which is commonly brown, gray, black brown, yellow green, in powder form, with a particle size generally less than 0.074mm.

The scope of copper scrap is relatively wide, including scrap materials of purple copper, brass, bronze, and white copper. The copper scrap materials specified in this standard only refer to purple scrap copper. Purple copper refers to various types of waste and scrap generated from copper products. Such materials as waste cables, copper tubes, rods, plates, blocks, strips, and those with thin coatings, as well as other non alloy copper waste materials.