Symbol: W
Atomic number: 74
Category: transition metals
Group: 6
Period: 6
Block: d
Atomic weight: 183.84 g/mol
Electrons per shell: 2, 8, 18, 32, 12, 2
CAS number: 7440-33-7
Phase: solid
Density: 19.25 kg/dm3 (near room temperature)
Melting point: 3695 K (3422 °C, 6192 °F)
Boiling point: 5828 K (5555 °C, 10031 °F)
Crystal structure: cubic body centered
Oxidation states: 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0, -1
Electronegativity: 2.36 (Pauling scale)
Name's origin (tungsten): tung sten (Swedish)
Name's meaning: heavy stone
Name's origin (wolfram): volf rahm (Swedish)
Name's meaning: wolf's roth - a reference to the large amounts of tin consumed when the substance is extracted
Facts:
- is a steel-gray metal that is often brittle and hard to work
- is an essential nutrient for some organisms (fexample, enzymes called oxidoreductases use tungsten in a way that is similar to molybdenum by using it in a tungsten-pterin complex
- is used in light bulbs, cathode-ray tubes, vacuum tubes, heating elements and rocket nozzles
- has the lowest coefficient of thermal expansion of any pure metal