Tungsten (W)
Element 74 · Transition metal · Solid at 25 °C · Group 6, Period 6
Tungsten has the highest melting point of any metal (3,422 °C). It glowed in incandescent filaments for a century and still tips drills and cutting tools.
On the periodic table, tungsten sits in group 6 in period 6. It is one of 38 elements classified as a transition metal, and at room temperature (25 °C) it is a solid.
Transition metals occupy the wide d-block in the middle of the table. As a family they are hard, dense, high-melting metals that conduct heat and electricity well. Their partly filled d-orbitals let many of them take several oxidation states, form vividly colored compounds, and act as catalysts — which is why so much of industry, and so much of biology, runs on this block.
Properties of tungsten
| Atomic number (Z) | 74 |
|---|---|
| Symbol | W |
| Atomic mass | 183.84 |
| Category | Transition metal |
| Group | 6 |
| Period | 6 |
| Block | d-block |
| Metal / nonmetal | Metal |
| State at 25 °C | Solid |
| Electron configuration | [Xe] 4f14 5d4 6s2 |
| Electronegativity (Pauling) | 2.36 |
| Melting point | 3,422 °C (3,695.15 K / 6,191.6 °F) |
| Boiling point | 5,555 °C (5,828.15 K / 10,031 °F) |
| Density | 19.25 g/cm³ |
Position in the periodic table
Tungsten shares group 6 with Chromium (Cr), Molybdenum (Mo), Seaborgium (Sg). Elements in the same group have the same number of outer electrons, so they tend to behave alike chemically — comparing them is one of the fastest ways to see periodic trends in action.
Within this dataset, it has the #8 highest measured density of the 97 elements with recorded values; its melting point is the #2 highest of the 102 elements with measured melting points.
Physical properties
Tungsten melts at 3,422 °C (3,695.15 K / 6,191.6 °F) and boils at 5,555 °C (5,828.15 K / 10,031 °F), giving it a liquid range of about 2,133 °C at standard pressure.
Its density is 19.25 g/cm³.
See also: the interactive periodic table, how to read the periodic table, periodic trends.