The Element Sulfur [Click for Isotope Data] Atomic Number: 16
Atomic Weight: 32.065 Melting Point: 388.36 K (115.21°C or
239.38°F) Boiling Point: 717.75 K (444.60°C or 832.28°F)
Density: 2.067 grams per cubic centimeter Phase at Room
Temperature: Solid Element Classification: Non-metal Period
Number: 3 Group Number: 16 Group Name: Chalcogen What's in a
name? From the Sanskrit word sulvere and the Latin word
sulphurium. Say what? Sulfur is pronounced as SUL-fer. History
and Uses: Sulfur, the tenth most abundant element in the
universe, has been known since ancient times. Sometime around
1777, Antoine Lavoisier convinced the rest of the scientific
community that sulfur was an element. Sulfur is a component of
many common minerals, such as galena (PbS), gypsum
(CaSO4·2(H2O), pyrite (FeS2), sphalerite (ZnS or FeS), cinnabar
(HgS), stibnite (Sb2S3), epsomite (MgSO4·7(H2O)), celestite
(SrSO4) and barite (BaSO4). Nearly 25% of the sulfur produced
today is recovered from petroleum refining operations and as a
byprodu