Try for Free
tab list
Rock Identifier
English
arrow
English
繁體中文
日本語
Español
Français
Deutsch
Pусский
Português
Italiano
한국어
Nederlands
العربية
Home Application Download FAQ
English
English
繁體中文
日本語
Español
Français
Deutsch
Pусский
Português
Italiano
한국어
Nederlands
العربية

Tungsten

Tungsten

A species of Minerals

Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively combined with other elements in chemical compounds. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isolated as a metal in 1783. Its important ores include scheelite, and wolframite, lending the element its alternate name. The free element is remarkable for its robustness, especially the fact that it has the highest melting point of all the elements discovered, melting at 3,422 °C (6,192 °F; 3,695 K). It also has the highest boiling point, at 5,555 °C (10,031 °F; 5,828 K). Its density is 19.25 grams per cubic centimetre, comparable with that of uranium and gold, and much higher (about 1.7 times) than that of lead. Polycrystalline tungsten is an intrinsically brittle and hard material (under standard conditions, when uncombined), making it difficult to work. However, pure single-crystalline tungsten is more ductile and can be cut with a hard-steel hacksaw. Tungsten occurs in many alloys, which have numerous applications, including incandescent light bulb filaments, X-ray tubes, electrodes in gas tungsten arc welding, superalloys, and radiation shielding. Tungsten's hardness and high density make it suitable for military applications in penetrating projectiles. Tungsten compounds are often used as industrial catalysts. Tungsten is the only metal in the third transition series that is known to occur in biomolecules, being found in a few species of bacteria and archaea. However, tungsten interferes with molybdenum and copper metabolism and is somewhat toxic to most forms of animal life.

General Info About Tungsten

Instantly Identify Rocks with a Snap
Snap a photo for instant rock/gemstone/mineral ID and properties analysis, gaining quick insights on characteristics, market value, collecting tips, care, real vs fake, and health risks, etc.
Download the App for Free

Physical Properties of Tungsten

Colors
grey
qrcode
Img download isoImg download android

Chemical Properties of Tungsten

Formula
W
Elements listed
W

Characteristics of Tungsten

Your Comprehensive Rock Characteristics Guide
In-depth exploration of rock types, features, and formation aspects
Download the App for Free

Characteristics of Tungsten

In its raw form, tungsten is a hard steel-grey metal that is often brittle and hard to work. If made very pure, tungsten retains its hardness (which exceeds that of many steels), and becomes malleable enough that it can be worked easily. It is worked by forging, drawing, or extruding but it is more commonly formed by sintering. Of all metals in pure form, tungsten has the highest melting point (3,422 °C, 6,192 °F), lowest vapor pressure (at temperatures above 1,650 °C, 3,000 °F), and the highest tensile strength. Although carbon remains solid at higher temperatures than tungsten, carbon sublimes at atmospheric pressure instead of melting, so it has no melting point. Tungsten has the lowest coefficient of thermal expansion of any pure metal. The low thermal expansion and high melting point and tensile strength of tungsten originate from strong metallic bonds formed between tungsten atoms by the 5d electrons. Alloying small quantities of tungsten with steel greatly increases its toughness. Tungsten exists in two major crystalline forms: α and β. The former has a body-centered cubic structure and is the more stable form. The structure of the β phase is called A15 cubic; it is metastable, but can coexist with the α phase at ambient conditions owing to non-equilibrium synthesis or stabilization by impurities. Contrary to the α phase which crystallizes in isometric grains, the β form exhibits a columnar habit. The α phase has one third of the electrical resistivity and a much lower superconducting transition temperature TC relative to the β phase: ca. 0.015 K vs. 1–4 K; mixing the two phases allows obtaining intermediate TC values. The TC value can also be raised by alloying tungsten with another metal (e.g. 7.9 K for W-Tc). Such tungsten alloys are sometimes used in low-temperature superconducting circuits.

Formation of Tungsten

Tungsten is found mainly in the minerals wolframite (iron–manganese tungstate (Fe,Mn)WO4, which is a solid solution of the two minerals ferberite FeWO4, and hübnerite MnWO4) and scheelite (calcium tungstate (CaWO4). Other tungsten minerals range in their level of abundance from moderate to very rare, and have almost no economical value.

Cultural Significance of Tungsten

Your Ultimate Guide to Understanding Rock Culture
Unveiling the mysteries of rock culture - exploring uses, history, and healing properties, etc
Download the App for Free

Uses of Tungsten

Approximately half of the tungsten is consumed for the production of hard materials – namely tungsten carbide – with the remaining major use being in alloys and steels. Less than 10% is used in other chemical compounds. Because of the high ductile-brittle transition temperature of tungsten, its products are conventionally manufactured through powder metallurgy, spark plasma sintering, chemical vapor deposition, hot isostatic pressing, and thermoplastic routes. A more flexible manufacturing alternative is selective laser melting, which is a form of 3D printing and allows creating complex three-dimensional shapes.

Common Questions People Also Ask

Get Quick Rock Answers with a Snap
Snap a photo for instant rock ID and answers on characteristics, market value, collecting tips, care, real vs fake, and health risks, etc.
Download the App for Free

More Rocks You Might Enjoy

Img topic
Glauberite
Glauberite is a monoclinic sodium calcium sulfate mineral with the formula Na2Ca(SO4)2. It was first described in 1808 for material from the El Castellar Mine, Villarrubia de Santiago, Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It was named for the extracted Glauber's salts after the German alchemist Johann Rudolf Glauber (1604–1668). Glauberite often forms in continental and marine evaporite deposits, but may also form from hydrothermal deposits, as mineral sublimates deposited near fumaroles, in amygdules in basalt, and in nitrate deposits in arid climates. It occurs associated with halite, polyhalite, anhydrite, gypsum, thenardite, mirabilite, sassolite and blodite. Because of its solubility, glauberite is often dissolved away from the crystal matrix leaving a distinctly shaped hollow cast. Its mineral composition is readily altered into other minerals as pseudomorphs. Gypsum pseudomorphs are common due to increased humidity. Glauberite, its cast impressions, and its pseudomorphed crystals are often easily recognizable due to its common crystal twinning, and crystal habit displayed by uniquely shaped flattened, often seeming rhombohedral, large individual 'floater crystals'. The mineral is commercially mined for its sulfate contents.
Read More
Arrow
Img topic
Rainforest Rhyolite tumbled
Rainforest Rhyolite tumbled is valued for its beautiful, unusual patterns and bright, intense colors. This unique stone is produced from the material mined only at Mt Hay in Western Australia. It's commonly sold tumbled, but it's also used for jewelry and home decor.
Read More
Arrow