Sulfur


 * Symbol:** S
 * Atomic number**: 16
 * Atomic weight**: 32.066.
 * NONMETAL**
 * Interatomic distance**: 207 pm
 * Melting point**: 115.21°C
 * Boiling point**: 444.60°C
 * Thermal conductivity/Wm-1K-1**: 0.269 (alpha form, 27°C)
 * Density/kgm-3**: 2070 (alpha, 20°C), 1957 (beta, 20°C), 393 (120°C)

__**Facts**__
-Elemental sulfur is a bright yellow crystalline solid when at room temperature. -Sulfur and Phosphorus is in matches and processed foods. -In nature, sulfur can be found as the pure element and as sulfide and sulfate minerals. -Sulfur is an essiential ingredient in making Black Gunpowder, which was used in early guns/cannons/explosives -Sulfur compounds serve as both fuels and respiratory materials for simple organisms. -Sulfur in organic form is present in the vitamins Biotin and Thiamine. -Sulfur has a very distinctive odor, somewhat like rotten eggs. -Used for amino acids

__**History**__
Derived from Sanskrit //sulvere// and Latin //sulphurium//. Sulfur has been known since prehistoric time. The element was known to Egyptians since sixteenth century BC and Homer refers to its use as fumigant. In the Bible, it is known as brimstone in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. It is commercially recovered in the caprock salt domes, produced by the action of bacterial reduction of sedimentary sulfate deposits. Heated water is forced into the wells to melt the sulfur, which is then brought up to the surface. The use of sulfur in black gunpowder was discovered by F.R. Bacon about 1241 though the Chinese and Arabs has produced incendiary mixtures somewhat earlier period of time. Sulfur is also used in the vulcanization of natural rubber, fungicide and fertilizers. It is also very important in sulfuric acid productions, one of the most important manufactured chemical.

The Greeks and Romans discovered that sulphur could be utilized to make fire and the pyrotechnical displays associated with the Roman circus. The Romans also experimented with using sulphur with tar, rosin, bitumen, and other combustibles. Their work resulted in the production of incendiary weapons, but this ability disappeared with the decline of the Roman Empire. Crusaders returning from the Holy Land in the early 1300s brought with them the knowledge of gunpowder, which had been developed by the Chinese during the time of Confucius (557?-479 B.C.) By mixing sulphur with other substances (Yellow Magic 1937; Mason 1938; Shelton1979). Armed with the knowledge of gunpowder, Europeans demanded increasing quantities of sulphur, beginning in the 12th century. The Greatest impetus in sulphur’s industrial use coincides with the birth of chemistry in the 1700s and the recognition of sulphuric acid as an important and versatile mineral acid.

__**Chemical Properties**__
Sulfur is a very reactive element. It reacts directly with almost all elements, except noble gases. However, sulfur only ignites in air at around 250°C and direct reaction with [|nitrogen] has not been observed. On heating, it combines with halogens except iodine. With many metals it form sulfides.

__**Test for sulfur**__
(1) If a sulfur compound is heated with sodium carbonate in the reducing flame on a charcoal block, it is reduced to sodium sulfide. When the latter is moistened and placed on a piece of silver gives a black stain of silver sulfide. (2) Oxidation of a sulfur compound with concentrated nitric acid gives sulfuric acid or a sulfate, which can be tested for with barium chloride solution. This test can be used to give quantitative estimate of sulfur.



__Sulfur in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables may hold the key to healing genetic diseases__
Thursday, February 16, 2012 by: Donna Earnest Pravel

(NaturalNews) Our mothers were right. Broccoli is good for us, but possibly in ways our mothers never knew. Health practitioners and fitness experts around the world have heralded the benefits of broccoli for decades. Scientists have long demonstrated the antioxidant properties of broccoli. Many people know that broccoli is rich in vitamins A, C, and E, the big free radical scavenger vitamins. However, a brand new clinical study was just released in January 2012 which is getting scientists excited about broccoli - and other cruciferous vegetables - again. Broccoli, and similar vegetables like Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and cauliflower may be able to manipulate human genes. The secret ingredient is sulfur. Learn more: [|http://www.naturalnews.com/034984_broccoli_sulfur_disease_prevention.html#ixzz1spRvOOqq]

__Applications__

Sulfuric acid
Elemental sulfur is mainly used as a precursor to other chemicals. Approximately 85% (1989) is converted to sulfuric acid (H 2 SO 4 ):

2 S + 3 O 2 + 2 H 2 O → 2 H 2 SO 4 36.1 million metric tons in 2007, the United States produces more sulfuric acid every year than any other inorganic industrial chemical. The principal use for the acid is the extraction of phosphate ores for the production of fertilizer manufacturing Used with oil refining, waste-water processing, and mineral extraction. Sulfur reacts directly with methane to give carbon disulfide, which is used to manufacture cellophane and rayon. One of the direct uses of sulfur is in vulcanization of rubber, where polysulfides crosslink organic polymers. Sulfites are heavily used to bleach paper and as preservatives in dried fruit. Many surfactants and detergents, are produced are sulfate derivatives. Calcium sulfate, gypsum, (CaSO 4 ·2H 2 O) is mined on the scale of 100 million tons each year for use in Portland cement and fertilizers. When silver-based photography was widespread, sodium and ammonium thiosulfate were widely used as "fixing agents." Sulfur is a component of gunpowder.

Many examples of where one could find sulfur would be in hot springs, meteorites, volcanoes, and galena.

Pure sulfuric acid has a [|specific gravity] of 1.830 at 25° C (77° F); it freezes at 10.37° C (50.7° F). When heated, the pure acid partially decomposes into water and sulfur trioxide; the latter escapes as a vapor until the concentration of the acid falls to 98.3 percent. This mixture of sulfuric acid and water boils at a constant temperature of 338° C (640° F) at one atmosphere pressure. Sulfuric acid is commonly supplied at concentrations of 78, 93, or 98 percent. Sulfuric acid is a very strong acid; in aqueous solutions it ionizes completely to form [|hydronium ions] (H 3 O + ) and [|hydrogen sulfate] ions (HSO 4 - ). In dilute solutions the hydrogen sulfate ions also dissociate, forming more hydronium ions and [|sulfate ions] (SO 4 2- ). In addition to being an [|oxidizing agent], reacting readily at high temperatures with many metals, carbon, sulfur, and other substances, concentrated sulfuric acid is also a strong dehydrating agent, combining violently with water; in this capacity, it chars many organic materials, such as wood, paper, or sugar, leaving a carbonaceous residue.

The color of Jupiter's moon Lo is due to a surface covered in sulfur and sulfur compounds -- the volcanoes of Io spew molten sulfur and SO 2 .
 * Interesting Fact About Sulfur:**

**Did You Know? **
Methylsulfonylmethane, MSM, is organic sulfur used by the body to grow bone, hair and nails. Many sulfur treatments are being sold on the market to promote cell growth.

Fertilizer
Sulfur is increasingly used as a component of fertilizers. The most important form of sulfur for fertilizer is the mineral calcium sulfate. Elemental sulfur is hydrophobic (that is, it is not soluble in water) and, therefore, cannot be directly utilized by plants. Over time, soil bacteria can convert it to soluble derivatives, which can then be utilized by plants. Sulfur improves the use efficiency of other essential plant nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. Biologically produced sulfur particles are naturally hydrophilic due to a biopolymer coating. This sulfur is, therefore, easier to disperse over the land (via spraying as a diluted slurry), and results in a faster release. Plant requirements for sulfur are equal to or exceed those for phosphorus. It is one of the major nutrients essential for plant growth, root nodule formation of legumes and plants protection mechanisms. Sulfur deficiency has become widespread in many countries in Europe. Because atmospheric inputs of sulfur will continue to decrease, the deficit in the sulfur input/output is likely to increase, unless sulfur fertilizers are used.