War, What is it Good For? TungstenA little history During World War I, tungsten was established as a strategic military metal. However, it was only years later that military requirements skyrocketed, spurred in part by Germany’s introduction of tungsten carbide armor-piercing shells. As Tungsten: The Story of an Indispensable Metal explains, having tungsten carbide at the core of projectiles allows them to pierce the walls of “armored tanks virtually as if they were paper, and having penetrated, scattered lethal pieces of most intense heat and destruction.” Indeed, all types of military tools — tanks, guns, shells and missiles — depend on tungsten. It was back then — and still is — a vital metal during times of war. Why tungsten? Tungsten is quite literally a heavy metal. Put simply, one square inch of tungsten is almost two times heavier than a lead cube of the same size. Tungsten is also almost three times heavier than iron. Another point in tungsten’s favor is its hardness. When added to other metals, like nickel, iron and cobalt, stronger alloys are created. Further, of all the metals, tungsten has the highest melting point, meaning that when it’s combined with other metals, their heat resistance can also increase. Given those characteristics, it’s hardly surprising that tungsten can be destructive if you package it into a projectile and send it barreling at high speed into another metal. Indeed, speaking to BBC News, military analyst Robert Kelley said that “tungsten makes very good bullets,” adding, “f you introduce tungsten into your bullets you’ve got to introduce tungsten into your armour” The BBC goes on to explain that since tungsten was first used in wartime applications, there have been some changes. One of those is the creation of “kinetic bombardment” weapons. These new projectiles are in essence missiles that work without explosives, which means using them involves “firing what are, in effect, spears of tungsten at incredible speed towards your target.” These projectiles can cause mass devastation in a very localized area. --- https://tungsteninvestingnews.com/5013-tungsten-supply-demand-price-war-wolf-asx-wlf.html