U.S. Marines in Saipan, during WW2 drink from aluminum canteens. Today troops drink from cheap canteens made of hardened plastic. Research suggests canteens made from copper is a much better idea. Unfortunately the Pentagon just doesn’t get it. Picture by W. Eugene Smith. Circa 1944.
Copper is a strange metal that has been used throughout history.
The ancient Egyptians, for example used copper as a sterilization agent for drinking water.
Modern tests confirm that copper has certain antimicrobial properties which could be exploited by the military. Especially where water (H2o) is concerned.
Simply put water carried or contained in copper vessels systems was of better quality (i.e. no or little visible slime formation that water contained or transported in other materials).
It seems the 3-Dimensional structure of proteins can be altered by copper, so that the proteins can no longer perform their normal functioning. The result is inactivation of bacteria and viruses. Copper complexes form ‘radicals’ that inactivate viruses…
Question: If the science is there why isn’t the U.S. military using copper for such things as canteens?
Answer: We can’t figure that out? Especially when all the research is there you would think someone would have suggested the idea before?
Currently the U.S. Military uses cheap “plastic canteens” for some odd reason?
I guess because they were cheaper than the old metal ones they used to use.
It may seem like a innocuous thing “a canteen” and many people say who cares what it is made out of. But these people would be greatly mistaken.
A canteen is basically a portable container for water, carried by infantry.
It is one of the most common items of individual equipment for ground units around the world.
How important is the canteen?
The canteen provide the vital link between the unit water supply and the individual soldier on the move. With the high level of arduous physical activity which is common in military operations, every person needs a significant ration of water on a regular basis. This need is , of course accelerated in warm climates,especially desert environments, but does not disappear even in cold environments.
Having a canteen made of copper that helps keep drinking water safe is a “no brainer”. The problem is convincing the Pentagon, that a critical mission critical upgrade of something as simple as the common canteen can improve water quality and purity is a good idea. The science is there to prove that already.
Is cost a factor here?
Yes – the cost of copper is expensive, and it would cost the military about 10 times as much as a regular cheapo plastic canteen they issue to troops.
Plastic, it should be understood, is after all one of the worst containers to carry water in and many people are troubled by the potential health problems caused by drinking from plastic canteens.
It is one of those sleeper issues out there that the military doesn’t want to deal with.
Additionally we have seen the recent trend towards the aluminum bottles- which also present certain safety concerns.
In terms of an investment copper canteens will pay off over time, each and every time you put water in it, lessening the chance our soldiers catching some water borne illnesses…this could save over time untold millions of dollars in health cost alone.
Canteens are a mission critical items the Pentagon should really consider upgrading to benefit our soldiers in the fields. Why they don’t makes absolutely no sense to me. I guess it is one of those things that gets overlooked in favor of fancy new multi-billion dollar missile systems and smart bombs…