Tungsten
Real Metals · Uncommon · Modern
Nothing stays solid longer. Tungsten melts at 3422°C, well past the point where iron has already boiled away, which is why it was the wire inside every light bulb. It also weighs almost exactly what gold weighs, to within half a percent, and that is why bullion is drilled and assayed rather than simply hefted.
Identity
- Symbol
- W
- Atomic number
- 74
- Source
- Natural element
- Also known as
- Wolfram, W
- Ores of the industrial age
- Scheelite, Wolframite
- Ore deposits
- Placer deposit, Hydrothermal vein (lode), Skarn, Pegmatite deposit
- Used in alchemy
- Tungsten Powder
Physical Properties
- Appearance
- Steel-grey to tin-white, extremely hard, brittle in pure form
- Luster
- Metallic
- Density
- 19.25 g/cm³
- Melting point
- 3422 °C
- Boiling point
- 5555 °C
- Lighter
- Siltgold
- Denser
- Gold
- Magnetism
- Non-magnetic
- Electrical conductivity
- Medium
Mechanical Properties
- Mohs hardness
- 7.5
- Tensile strength
- 980 MPa
- Softer
- Wootz Steel
- Harder
- Ayar
- Workability
- Difficult
- Brittleness
- Brittle
- Malleability
- Low
- Ductility
- Low
Chemical Properties
- Corrosion resistance
- Very High
- Reactivity
- Very Low
Lore & Narrative
Tungsten's German name, Wolfram, comes from the mineral wolframite, so called because the ore ate tin during smelting 'like a wolf devours a sheep'. The chemical symbol W is the one place that older name still survives.
- Notable uses
- Light bulb filaments, cutting tools, armor-piercing ammunition, radiation shielding
- Forge uses
- Cutting tools, Armor-piercing, High-temperature applications
- Worldbuilding traits
- Extreme, Hard, High-temperature, Dense
Sources
- U.S. Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2025: Tungsten, USGS, 2025
- Wolframite, Wikipedia
- Tungsten, Wikipedia
- Scheelite, Wikipedia
Browse the Metal Encyclopedia — MGS Toolbox