Sarah Vanduyn

11/4/05

5^th/science

Element report

SULFUR

NAME: SULFUR

HISTORY OF NAME: CAME FROM THE SANSKRIT WORD SURVERE, SULURIUM, MEANING SULFUR.

WHEN IT WAS DISCOVED AND BY WHOM: IT HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE ANCHIENT TIMES.

USES: ITS USED FOR MATCHES GUN POWDER ANND MEDACINE.

COMMON COMPOUNDS: CARBON DISULFIDE AND GUNPOWDER.

WHERE IS IT FOUND: ITS FOUND IN UNDERGROUND SALT DOMES AND IN NATURAL GAS AND CRUDE OIL.

ATOMIC WEIGHT: 32.06

ATOMIC MASS: 32.066 AMU

ATOMIC NUMBER: 16

NUMBER OF PROTON, NEUTRONS, AND ELECTRONS: 16

Other information:

Sulfur is widely dispersed in nature. It is found in many minerals and ores, e.g., iron pyrites, galena, cinnabar, zinc blende, gypsum, barite, and epsom salts and in mineral springs and other waters. It is found uncombined in some volcanic regions and in large underground deposits in Sicily and in Texas and Louisiana. Sulfur sometimes is made with coal, petroleum, and natural gas. Sulfur is found in meteorites, and deposits of it may be present near the lunar crater Aristarchus. The distinctive colors of Jupiter's moon Io are believed to result from forms of molten, solid, and gaseous sulfur. Sulfur is a component of all living cells. The amino acids cysteine, methionine, homocysteine, and taurine contain sulfur as do some common enzymes; it is a component of most proteins. Some forms of bacteria use hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) in place of water in a rudimentary photosynthesislike process. Sulfur is absorbed by plants from soil as sulfate ions.

Sulfur is produced chiefly by the Frasch process, although it is also produced by the Sicilian method and by other methods. In the Sicilian method the sulfur-bearing ores are piled in a mound and ignited. The heat produced by the burning melts some of the sulfur, which is collected and cast. This sulfur is impure and is usually purified by sublimation. Sulfur is also recovered from natural gas, coal, crude oil, and other sources, e.g., the flue dusts and gases from the refining of metal sulfide ores. Elemental sulfur is obtained in several forms, including flowers of sulfur, a fine crystalline powder, and roll sulfur (cast cakes or sticks). Elemental sulfur is used in black gunpowder, matches, and fireworks; in the vulcanization of rubber; as a fungicide, insecticide, and fumigant; in the manufacture of phosphate fertilizers; and in the treatment of certain skin diseases. The principal use of sulfur, however, is in the preparation of its compounds. The most important sulfur compound is sulfuric acid. Other important compounds include sulfur dioxide, used as a bleaching agent, disinfectant, and refrigerant; sodium bisulfite, used in paper manufacture; carbon disulfide, an important organic solvent; hydrogen sulfide, sulfur trioxide, and thionyl chloride, used as reagents in chemistry; Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate), used as a laxative, bath additive, exfoliant, and magnesium supplement in plant nutrition; the numerous other sulfate compounds; and sulfa drugs.