Antimicrobial copper-alloy touch surfaces follows: The following claims are now legally permitted when marketing EPA-registered antimicrobial copper alloys in the U.S.: The registrations state that “antimicrobial copper alloys may be used in hospitals, other healthcare facilities, and various public, commercial and residential buildings.” The EPA copper alloy registrations were granted “with public health claims,” meaning that they permit manufacturers of copper-based products sold in the U.S. to claim on their labels the ability of copper, brass, and bronze to kill harmful, potentially deadly bacteria. As a condition of registration established by EPA, the Copper Development Association (CDA) in the U.S. is responsible for the
Zinc–copper couple greater than 90%, although an alloy containing similar proportions of zinc and copper is used in some cases. The couple is frequently prepared as a darkly-colored powder and is slurried in an ethereal solvent prior to being used in slight excess relative to the substrate. Activation of zinc by copper is essential to the couple’s utility, but the origin of this effect is poorly documented. It is speculated that copper enhances reactivity of zinc at the surface of the alloy. Zinc–copper couple has been prepared by numerous methods, which vary mainly with respect to the source of copper, but also