Tungsten

Atomic Number: 74
Symbol: W
Atomic Mass: 183.84 u
Number of Neutrons: 110
Melting Point: 3422°C
Boiling Point: 5555°C
Electrons per shell: 2.8.18.32.12.2
Electron configuration: [Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d⁴ 6s²

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Tungsten is the 74th element in the periodic table and it is one of the trasition metals. It is a greyish-white shnny metal, which is very hard. Tungsten has the highest melting point from the periodic table which is why it is very helpful in many alloys. It is even 4 times harder than titanium! It measures between 8 and 9 on the Mohs hardness scale. Tungsten is mined from the ground in ores and minerals such as scheelite and wolframite. This element is mined in China, Russia, Portugal, Austria and Bolivia. China is the main producer of tungsten and has 75% of the world's supply. The person that discovered tungsten is Carl Wilhelm Scheele a German chemist in 1781. Tungsten's symbol comes from the earlier German name for this element "wolfram". Then in 1783, tungsten was named after the swedish word for "heavy stone".

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