Period 6 element 1783. Its important ores include wolframite and scheelite. The free element is remarkable for its robustness, especially the fact that it has the highest melting point of all the non-alloyed metals and the second highest of all the elements after carbon. Also remarkable is its high density of 19.3 times that of water, comparable to that of uranium and gold, and much higher (about 1.7 times) than that of lead. Tungsten with minor amounts of impurities is often brittle and hard, making it difficult to work. However, very pure tungsten, though still hard, is more ductile, and can be cut
Melting point a liquid phase only exists above pressures of and estimated (see ). Tantalum hafnium carbide (TaHfC) is a refractory compound with a very high melting point of 4215 K (3942 °C, 7128 °F). At the other end of the scale, helium does not freeze at all at normal pressure even at temperatures close to absolute zero; a pressure of more than twenty times normal atmospheric pressure is necessary. Many laboratory techniques exist for the determination of melting points. A Kofler bench is a metal strip with a temperature gradient (range from room temperature to 300 °C). Any substance can be