Tungsten Chemicals for Catalyst and Process Industries
Ammonium paratungstate, blue and yellow tungsten oxide and sodium tungstate — the tungsten chemistry supply chain, with full composition tables for REACH and incoming qualification.
Discuss your requirementOverview
Chemical buyers of tungsten are solving a different problem from powder metallurgy buyers. Grain size and sintering behaviour are largely irrelevant; what matters is assay, the trace contaminant profile, and how the material behaves in solution or through a thermal cycle. The specifications that decide a purchase are therefore different ones.
Trace metals in particular tend to be the binding constraint. Catalyst applications can be poisoned by contaminants present at concentrations far below the tolerance implied by a bulk assay figure, which means a material comfortably meeting a 99% assay can still be unusable. This is why we ask chemical buyers for their contaminant limits before quoting rather than after.
We supply three product families to this market: ammonium paratungstate at WO₃ min. 88.5% with carbon max. 0.0010%; blue and yellow tungsten oxide at approximately 79% tungsten; and sodium tungstate dihydrate at assay min. 99% on an anhydrous basis. Each ships with a full composition table on the certificate of analysis.
Products for this market
Ammonium Paratungstate (APT)
The purified crystalline intermediate and the starting material for tungstates, tungstic acid and catalyst precursors. WO₃ min. 88.5%, carbon max. 0.0010%.
Full specificationsTungsten Oxides (BTO / YTO)
Yellow oxide is the usual specification for catalyst precursor work, for its defined stoichiometry and storage stability. Blue oxide serves reduction routes.
Full specificationsSodium Tungstate (Na₂WO₄·2H₂O)
The water-soluble entry point to tungsten chemistry, for impregnation, corrosion inhibition and wet-process synthesis. Assay min. 99%.
Full specificationsWhere it is used
Hydrotreating and oxidation catalysts
Tungsten appears in hydrodesulphurisation and selective oxidation catalysts, usually supported on alumina or titania and often promoted with nickel or cobalt. Sodium tungstate is the normal impregnation source; yellow oxide is used where a solid precursor suits the preparation route.
Corrosion inhibition
Tungstate inhibitors passivate steel in closed cooling systems and are specified increasingly where chromate and nitrite chemistries face toxicity or discharge restrictions. Bulk assay and chloride content are usually the controlling specifications.
Electrochromic and functional coatings
WO₃ films colour reversibly under applied voltage, the basis of switchable glazing and display technologies. These applications are demanding on purity and particle uniformity rather than on bulk quantity.
Pigments, phosphors and flame retardants
Tungstate compounds are used in specialty pigment and phosphor systems, and in halogen-free flame-retardant treatments for textiles and coatings. Colour consistency and bulk assay generally lead here.
How to specify
Send your trace metal limits up front
For catalyst work this is the specification that decides usability, and it sits well below bulk assay tolerance. We would rather confirm against your list before quoting than have a lot rejected on arrival.
State whether you need the hydrate or anhydrous basis
Sodium tungstate is supplied as the dihydrate, Na₂WO₄·2H₂O, with assay quoted on an anhydrous basis as is conventional. Confirm which basis your specification is written against.
Choose the oxide by role, not by preference
Yellow oxide for stability and defined stoichiometry where the oxide is the product; blue oxide where you are reducing it onward to metal and want a shorter cycle.
Ask for the composition table, not just the assay
A single assay number tells you little about a chemical product's suitability. The full composition table on our certificate of analysis is what supports REACH SDS obligations and your incoming-material qualification.
Chemicals and catalysts — frequently asked questions
Which tungsten chemicals do you supply?
Ammonium paratungstate (WO₃ min. 88.5%, carbon max. 0.0010%), blue and yellow tungsten oxide at approximately 79% tungsten, and sodium tungstate dihydrate at assay min. 99% on an anhydrous basis.
Can you meet specific trace metal limits for catalyst applications?
Often, yes — but send the limits before ordering. Catalyst poisons act at concentrations far below what a bulk assay figure implies, so a material that comfortably meets 99% assay can still fail your process. We will confirm against your list before quoting.
Do you provide composition data for REACH compliance?
Yes. A full composition table accompanies every shipment on the certificate of analysis, which supports safety data sheet obligations and incoming-material qualification for chemical imports into the EU and UK.
Should I use sodium tungstate or tungsten oxide as a catalyst precursor?
Sodium tungstate where the preparation route is impregnation from solution, since that is what its water solubility is for. Yellow oxide where a solid precursor with defined stoichiometry suits the route better.