Period 6 element niobium, occurs in the minerals tantalite, columbite and coltan (a mix of columbite and tantalite). Tungsten, also known as wolfram, is a chemical element with the chemical symbol W and atomic number 74. The word "tungsten" comes from the Swedish language "tung sten" directly translatable to "heavy stone", though the name is "volfram" in Swedish to distinguish it from Scheelite, in Swedish alternatively named "tungsten". A hard, rare metal under standard conditions when uncombined, tungsten is found naturally on Earth only in chemical compounds. It was identified as a new element in 1781, and first isolated as a metal in
Melting-point depression in Figure 1, and the shape of the curve is in general agreement with those obtained through experiment. Equation 2 gives the general relation between the melting point of a metal nanoparticle and its diameter. However, recent work indicates the melting point of semiconductor and covalently bonded nanoparticles may have a different dependence on particle size. The covalent character of the bonds changes the melting physics of these materials. Researchers have demonstrated that Equation 3 more accurately models melting point depression in covalently bonded materials. formula_3 Where: T=Bulk Melting temperature Equation 3 indicates that melting point depression is less pronounced