tantale

(1802) From the name of the mythological character Tantalus, who was subjected to the torment of being unable to eat or drink, as the branches of fruit trees would move away and the water would recede each time he tried to eat or quench his thirst. This name was given by Anders Ekelberg in 1802, and it comes from a property of the metal tantalum: acidic solutions recede in its presence (in the form of ditantalum pentaoxide), preventing the formation of crystals, just as water receded before Tantalus.