ElementsWhat is sulfur?
Sulfur is a bright yellow, brittle solid found near volcanoes and hot springs. Many of its compounds smell strongly, like rotten eggs or a struck match.
What is sulfur used for?
Sulfuric acid, which is the most produced industrial chemical. Also hardening rubber for tyres, fertilisers, and fungicides.
Where the name comes from
From the Latin word sulfur. In old texts it is called brimstone.
Key facts
- Symbol
- S
- Atomic number
- 16
- Atomic mass
- 32.07 u
- Family
- Nonmetal
- Period
- 3
- Group
- 16
- Block
- p
- State at room temperature
- Solid
- Melting point
- 115.2 °C (388.36 K, 239 °F)
- Boiling point
- 444.6 °C (717.75 K, 832 °F)
- Density
- 2.07 g/cm³
- Electrons per shell
- 2, 8, 6
- Electron configuration
- [Ne]3s2 3p4
- Common oxidation states
- +6, +4, -2
- Electronegativity (Pauling)
- 2.58
- First ionisation energy
- 10.36 eV
- Electron affinity
- 2.077 eV
- Atomic radius (van der Waals)
- 180 pm
- Discovered
- Known since ancient times
Place in the periodic table
Sulfur is element number 16. It sits in period 3 (row 3) of the periodic table, in group 16 (column 16), and belongs to the p-block. Just before it comes phosphorus (15), and just after it comes chlorine (17). In the same column, oxygen is above it and selenium is below it. Elements in one column tend to behave alike.
Family: Nonmetals.
Physical properties
At room temperature sulfur is a solid. It melts at 115.2 °C and boils at 444.6 °C, so it stays liquid over a range of 329 degrees. Its density is 2.07 grams per cubic centimetre, so a one-litre block would weigh about 2.07 kilograms. By density it ranks 76th among the 96 elements with a measured value.
Inside the atom
An atom of sulfur has 16 protons in its nucleus and, when neutral, 16 electrons around it. The electrons are arranged in 3 shells: 2, 8, 6. The outermost shell holds 6 electrons. Written in full, the electron configuration is [Ne]3s2 3p4.
Its electronegativity on the Pauling scale is 2.58. This number shows how strongly an atom pulls shared electrons towards itself: fluorine, the strongest, is 3.98. Removing one electron from an atom takes 10.36 electronvolts (about 1000 kilojoules per mole). One mole of sulfur weighs 32.07 grams, so a single gram contains about 1.88 × 1022 atoms.
The ring picture is a simple model that only counts the electrons in each shell. Real atoms do not look like this.
Next steps
- Work out the weight of a compound that contains sulfur with the molar mass calculator.
- Compare it with every other element in the sortable list.
- Test yourself with the symbol quiz.
Figures on this page are from PubChem (U.S. National Library of Medicine), as downloaded on 11 November 2026. See About and data sources.