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Rhenium is a silvery metal that possesses superb corrosion resistance and an exceptionally high tolerance for heat. Only carbon and tungsten have higher melting points than rhenium.
There are limited applications of rhenium due to its shortage and the high cost of production. It is commonly extracted as a grey-powdered by-product from molybdenum smelter dust although traces of this element also exist in minerals.
Rhenium has been used to modify electric oven filaments for better heat resistance, in the production of thermocouples, and as catalysts in the chemical industry.