Visual classification
Confirm material form, coatings, attachments, oxidation, mixed grades, foreign material and whether the visible surface is representative.
A commercially useful specification connects the grade name to measurable chemistry, physical condition, sampling, weight and the receiving plant's acceptance criteria.
For recycled copper, the economic issue is often recoverable metal and the treatment required to reach the buyer's desired product. For cathode, trace chemistry, applicable standard, brand and physical quality can matter. In both cases, the contract should state what is measured, how it is measured and what happens if the lot falls outside tolerance.
Confirm material form, coatings, attachments, oxidation, mixed grades, foreign material and whether the visible surface is representative.
Agree sample selection, lot definition, increments, sealing and chain of custody. A convenient sample is not necessarily a representative sample.
Define the test method, laboratory, reporting basis and relevant elements. Avoid relying on a supplier's single headline purity number.
Agree gross, tare and net weight source; where moisture matters, define sampling, limit and settlement formula.
Assess whether the receiving plant can remelt, refine or otherwise process the material economically within its impurity and preparation limits.
Set notification period, survey rights, umpire testing, evidence standard, rejection/deduction formula and settlement process before shipment.
Depending on product and process route, a buyer may require information on elements such as lead, tin, zinc, nickel, iron, arsenic, antimony, bismuth, sulphur or oxygen in addition to Cu. The required panel should be buyer-led; Moorgate does not impose one universal chemistry table across all copper materials.