Sulfur (S)
Sulfur (S)
Sulfur is essential to life and a minor constituent of fats, body fluids, and skeletal minerals. It is an odorless, pale yellow and brittle solid, insoluble in water but soluble in carbon disulfide. It can be found in multiple forms: gas, liquid, or solid.
High-purity sulfur is commercially available in purities of 99.999+%. Eleven isotopes exist, and the four found in nature are radioactive.
Sulfur occurs naturally near volcanoes and hot springs. It is found as iron pyrites, galena, sphalerite, cinnabar, stibnite, gypsum, Epsom salts, celestite, barite, and other minerals. Sulfur is also found in meteorites and occurs in natural gas and crude petroleum.