If you were asked what the toughest natural material out there is, diamonds might be top of mind. But don't sleep on tungsten (Elemingle answer for May 4), one of the hardest metals on earth with a rating of 7.5 on the Mohs hardness scale. Tungsten is so hard that we use diamonds to shape tungsten alloys!

This remarkable strength makes tungsten invaluable across many applications. In industry, tungsten compounds are used to harden saw blades and create drill bits that can cut through almost anything. For consumers, tungsten carbide has become popular for wedding rings due to its scratch resistance and durability. In defense applications, tungsten's high density (19.3 g/cm³, nearly twice that of lead) makes it ideal for armor-piercing bullets and missile components.

With all that rough and tough exterior, you might be surprised to know that tungsten is also responsible for that cozy, warm glow that Instagram home design accounts are always touting. Its unique properties—particularly its extraordinary melting point of 3,422°C (the highest of all elements)—make it perfect for lamp filaments. When electricity passes through the thin tungsten wire, it can heat to incandescence without melting, producing that characteristic warm light.

This application was pioneered in the early 1900s by William Coolidge at General Electric. Through persistent experimentation from 1904-1909, Coolidge developed a process to convert tungsten powder into fine, durable filaments. By 1910, commercial tungsten filament bulbs reached the market, quickly becoming the new standard that eclipsed Edison's carbon filament bulbs. These tungsten bulbs dominated household lighting until the recent emergence of LEDs and compact fluorescent bulbs over the past couple of decades.

Learn more: Britannica, WebMD, American Scientist, Live Science

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