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Sulfur S
Where is sulfur used--or where does it impact our everyday lives?
Sulfur and sulfur compounds are found in volcanoes and geysers.
Sulfur
Symbol: S Atomic # 16
A powdery yellow solid at room temperature
Melting Point: 388.36 K ​(115.21 °C or 239.38 °F)
Boiling Point: 717.8 K ​(444.6 °C or ​832.3 °F)
Density (at R.T): 2.0 g/mL
Hazards: Sulfur oxides cause irritation of the eyes, nose and respiratory tract. The fire hazard comes from the potential explosion from when sulfur dust mixes with oxygen (sulfur dioxide) and is ignited. When sulfur comes into contact with moisture it can react rapidly with metals, causing them to rust, giving reason to the corrosive hazards. Lastly, the environmental hazards come from the damage sulfur dioxide causes on animal’s internal enzyme system.
Reaction with Oxygen: Creates SO2 (sulfur dioxide) S + O2 --> SO2 and SO3 (sulfur trioxide) with a vanadium pentoxide, V2O5, catalyst; 2S + 3O2 --> 2SO3
Reaction with nitrogen: forms sulfur nitrides including S4N4
Insoluble in water:
Electron configuration: 2,8,6 Is2, 2s2 2p6, 3s2 3p4
Main Uses: Sulfur is mainly used as a precursor to other chemicals. For example, it is the starting material for sulfuric acid which is an extremely important industrial chemical for the extraction of phosphate ores and for the manufacture of fertilizers. Sulfur is also used in vulcanizing car tires, which makes the rubber far stronger with crosslinking with sulfur atoms
Class of 2019 student Nico Z with a sample of roll sulfur during the Chemistry One Metal, Non-metal, Metalloid Lab
WIS Photographer
Sulfur is used in medications, particularly skin preparations. The image of the Sulphur Ointment is from an antique store in Somerton, Somerset, UK
Many minerals are sulfides. This is pyrite, FeS2, mineral from the Cavestone quarry, Indiana, USA viewed at the National Museum of Natural History, Washington DC during a Chemistry ONE field trip--yes, it is fool's gold!
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This is antimony sulfide, stibnite, Sb2S3, found in the Ochinokawa mine, Ehime, Japan viewed at the National Museum of Natural History, Washington DC during a Chemistry ONE field trip.
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The element sulfur is also found in sulfate minerals. Here is a sample of celesite with aragonite, SrSO4, from Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy on display at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C. viewed during a Chemistry One field trip.
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Another sulfide is the mineral tetrahedrite twinned with chalcopyrite (FeCu)12Sb4S9 from Clausthal, Niedersachsen, Germany viewed at the National Museum of Natural History, Washington DC during a Chemistry ONE field trip
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When sulfur burns (in a fume hood, it does so with a vibrant blue flame to form sulfur dioxide S + O2 --> SO2 This lab was a stoichiometry lab during the IB Chemistry unit 1. Joanna B was the experimenter during the lab to determine the formula of a metal sulfide.
Class of 2015 students complete a kinetics experiment with a reaction that produces a precipitate of sulfur. The fogginess of the liquid increases until the image (Posy) under the flask can no longer be seen. Different concentrations of reactants are tested.
Na2S2O3 + 2HCl --> 2NaCl + SO2 + H2O + S
The image to the left shows a sample of crushed, roll sulfur as used in the Chemistry One Metal, Non-metal, Metalloid lab
