About

Rhenium is a silvery-white, heavy, and extremely rare transition metal. It has one of the highest melting points of any element, exceeded only by tungsten and carbon. Its primary use is in high-temperature superalloys, particularly with nickel, for making turbine blades and exhaust nozzles in jet engines where extreme heat and stress resistance are required.

Atomic Properties

Atomic Number75

Atomic Weight186.207 u

Neutrons (common)112

Electron Configuration[Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d⁵ 6s²

Full Configuration1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d¹⁰ 4s² 4p⁶ 4d¹⁰ 4f¹⁴ 5s² 5p⁶ 5d⁵ 6s²

Electrons per Shell2, 8, 18, 32, 13, 2

Electronegativity1.9

Electron Affinity14.5 kJ/mol

Oxidation States+7, +6, +4, +2, -1

Covalent Radius137 pm

Ionic Radius53 pm

Periodic Table Position

Group7

Period6

BlockD

Chemical SeriesTransition metals

Physical Properties

State at STPsolid

AppearanceSilvery-gray, lustrous, dense metal

Crystal Structurehcp

Magnetic Orderingparamagnetic

Speed of Sound4,700 m/s

Poisson Ratio0.3

Thermal Properties

Melting Point3,459 K

Boiling Point5,869 K

Thermal Expansion0 1/K

Thermal Conductivity48 W/(m·K)

Specific Heat0.137 J/(g·K)

Molar Heat25.48 J/(mol·K)

Heat of Fusion33.2 kJ/mol

Heat of Vaporization704 kJ/mol

Abundance

In Earth's Crust0.001 ppm

In Ocean0 ppm

In Solar System0 ppm

In Universe0 ppm

Discovery

Discovered byWalter Noddack, Ida Tacke, Otto Berg

Discovery Year1,925

Occurrenceprimordial

CAS Number7440-15-5

Electron Configuration

Energy

↿⇂

↿

Isotopes of Rhenium

Symbol ▲	Mass (u) ▲	Abundance ▲	Half-life ▲	Decay Mode ▲
¹⁸³Re	182.953096	—	70.0 d	Electron Capture
¹⁸⁵Re	184.952950	37.4%	Stable	Stable
¹⁸⁷Re	186.955750	62.6%	41.6 Gy	Beta Minus Decay

Interactive Visualization

Explore the 3D Bohr model of Rhenium in our interactive viewer.

View 3D Model of Rhenium