This white, water-soluble solid is the sodium salt of tungstic acid.

In organic chemistry, sodium tungstate is used as catalyst for epoxidation of alkenes and oxidation of alcohols into aldehydes or ketones.

Such solutions are less toxic than bromoform and methylene iodide, but still have densities that fall between a number of naturally coupled minerals.

As such, one niche use of sodium tungstate is in experimental biology—where it has been found that adding sodium tungstate to the drinking water of mice inhibits the growth of Enterobacteriaceae (a family of endogenous opportunistic pathogens) in the gut.

[6] Sodium tungstate has been researched as a potential treatment for infertility under the code OXO-001.