Knowra Tungsten Tungsten Tungsten is a dense, hard metallic element with symbol W and atomic number 74. Its exceptionally high melting point makes it useful in high-temperature applications.
Tungsten carbide : A very hard compound of tungsten and carbon used in cutting tools, wear-resistant parts, and abrasives. Its hardness makes it one of tungsten’s most widely used industrial materials.
Melting point : The temperature at which a substance changes from solid to liquid at a specified pressure. Tungsten’s melting point is the highest among metals at standard pressure.
Carl Wilhelm Scheele : A Swedish chemist whose investigations identified several chemical substances, including the acid later linked to tungsten ores. His 1781 study of scheelite revealed tungstic acid, though not the isolated metal.
Molybdenum : A transition metal with symbol Mo and atomic number 42, used in strong alloys and high-temperature equipment. Molybdenum shares high-temperature uses but melts substantially below tungsten.
Incandescent light bulb : An electric lamp that produces light by heating a filament until it glows. Tungsten wire became the standard filament because it tolerates extreme operating temperatures.
Metallic bonding : Chemical bonding in metals involving shared, delocalized electrons among positively charged atomic cores. Strong metallic bonding contributes to tungsten’s high melting point and mechanical strength.
Juan José Elhuyar : A Spanish chemist who, with his brother Fausto, isolated tungsten in 1783. The Elhuyar brothers reduced tungstic acid to produce the metal and establish its discovery.
Tantalum : A corrosion-resistant transition metal with symbol Ta and atomic number 73. Tantalum is also refractory, but its corrosion resistance and formability distinguish it from tungsten.
Gas tungsten arc welding : An arc-welding process that uses a nonconsumable tungsten electrode and an inert shielding gas. The electrode’s high melting point lets it sustain an arc without melting into the weld.
Crystal structure : The orderly, repeating arrangement of atoms in a crystalline solid. At ordinary conditions, tungsten atoms form a body-centered cubic lattice.
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