Rhenium - has a number of claims to chemical fame

Named after the Rhine river, rhenium is a metal with very high boiling and melting points, and it was the last naturally occuring, non-radioactive element to be discovered, says Prof Allan Blackman in ep 70 of Elemental.

The chemical element rhenium is named after the Rhine River.

It is one of the rarest elements in the earth's crust and the last of the naturally-occurring non-radioactive elements to be discovered.

Rhenium has a number of claims to chemical fame: the metal has the highest boiling point (5596 degrees Celsius), third highest melting point and is the fourth most dense of all the elements.

It finds use in alloys and catalysts, says Professor Allan Blackman from AUT, in episode 70 of Elemental.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details