The term “strongest” can be interpreted in several ways as it pertains to elements, as it could refer to hardness, tensile strength, atomic bond strength, etc. Here are a few interpretations:
- Tensile Strength: In terms of tensile strength, the strongest elemental metal is Tungsten. Tungsten has the highest tensile strength of any natural metal, but it’s brittle and tends to break easily.
- Hardness: If we are referring to hardness, then the hardest natural element is Diamond, which is a crystalline form of Carbon. Diamond is the hardest known natural substance on the Mohs hardness scale, which ranks materials from 1 (talc) to 10 (diamond).
- Atomic Bond Strength: If you’re referring to the strength of atomic bonds, then the strongest element could be considered Helium. It’s a noble gas and doesn’t easily form compounds with other elements because its outer electron shell is full, making it very stable.
- Melting and Boiling Points: Tungsten has the highest melting point of all pure elemental metals, and Tantalum hafnium carbide (a compound) has one of the highest melting points of all compounds.
Please specify if you mean a different type of strength, as the answer may vary!