Department of Natural Resources and Mines
Geological Survey of Queensland
Rhenium opportunities in Queensland
September 2014
What is rhenium?
Rhenium (Re) is one of several strategic elements that have
not been exploited in significant quantities, but which are
now attracting interest because of likely new sources and
their potential use in new technologies.
• Rhenium is a silver-white very dense metal with the atomic
number of 75.
• Rhenium was the last stable element in nature to be
discovered; it was found in 1925 by a team of German
scientists.
• With an estimated average crustal concentration of 1 part
per billion (1ppb), rhenium is one of the rarest elements in
the earth’s crust.
• Rhenium has a melting point of 3186°C, the third highest
melting point of all elements apart from carbon and
tungsten. It has the highest boiling point of any element at
5596°C.
• At 21.0 g/cm3, rhenium is one of the densest of all
elements—a 1 m3 block weighs 21 tonnes).
• Rhenium is rigid under stress and remains ductile from
0° Kelvin to its melting point without fracturing, making for
easy machining.
• Rhenium is one of a group of refractory metals, including
niobium, molybdenum, tantalum and wolfram that have
very high resistance to heat and wear.
• Rhenium is probably not found free in nature, but only in
the mineral molybdenite which is the major commercial ore.
How do we use rhenium?
Rhenium’s low production levels have restricted its
usefulness, but possible future increased production will
lead to more research and wider use.
Regular supply, such as that predicted to come from
Queensland (see ‘Where is rhenium found in Queensland?’),
will see rhenium use increase and become more common.
Currently, rhenium is used in:
• Jet engines. Super alloys of rhenium and nickel are used in
high temperature turbine engine components by jet engine
manufacturers such as General Electric, Rolls-Royce and
Pratt & Whitney. Compared to standard engines, rhenium
turbines operate at much higher temperatures, produce
more power and thrust, are more fuel efficient and have
lower emissions. The use of rhenium alloys in all new
turbines will raise the strategic importance of the metal.
• Catalysts in fuels. Platinum–rhenium catalysts are used in
making lead-free high octane petrol.
• Thermometers. Tungsten–rhenium alloys, which are ductile
and easier to machine are used as thermocouples to
measure temperatures up to 2200°C.
• X-ray sources. Tungsten–rhenium alloys are also used as
X-ray sources. The high melting points of both compounds,
and high atomic mass, make them stable under prolonged
electron impact.
• Lighting. Rhenium is widely used in filaments in mass
spectrographs and also as an electrical contact material.
Where is rhenium found in Queensland?
Chile has the world’s largest rhenium reserves in molybdenite
as a minor constituent of its porphyry copper deposits, and
was the leading global producer in 2005.
However, the Merlin deposit is the world’s highest grade
molybdenum and rhenium deposit and is hosted by the
metasedimentary rocks of the Kuridala Group in the Mount
Isa Eastern Succession. Very high-grade molybdenum
mineralisation close to the surface also occurs at its southern
end in the subsidiary Little Wizard deposit. The origin of
the mineralisation is unclear, but there are closely related
copper–gold deposits in the region, which are classified as
iron-oxide–copper–gold (IOCG) and are probably related
to Proterozoic granitoids. The molybdenum–rhenium
mineralisation is overlain by discrete copper and zinc-rich
polymetallic sulphide zones of the Mount Dore ore body
(Australian Mines Atlas, 2014). Published Probable Reserves
at Merlin are 7.1 million tonnes (Mt) at 1.1% molybdenum
and 18.1 grams per tonne (g/t) rhenium for a contained 78
thousand tonnes (kt) molybdenum and 129 tonnes rhenium.
Inova (formerly Ivanhoe Australia and now Chinova Resources
following a takeover by Shanxi Doughui Coal Coking&
Chemicals Group Co. Limited) commenced construction of a
decline at Merlin in late 2010 and reported that phase 1 was
completed in early 2012. Phase 2 of the decline development
is awaiting project approval (Australian Mines Atlas, 2014).
Rhenium is also present at the Kalman copper–gold–
molybdenum deposit 62 km southeast of Mount Isa. This
molybdenum also contains high concentrations of rhenium.
The deposit is still being explored. The deposit has Inferred
Resources of 60.8 Mt at 0.05% molybdenum, 1.19 g/t
rhenium, 0.32% copper and 0.15g/t gold, with a contained
30.4 kt of molybdenum (Australian Mines Atlas, 2014).
The distribution of rhenium in Queensland was tested
during a recent regional national geochemical survey. The
survey showed several drainage systems in Queensland
with anomalous rhenium concentrations in the sediments.
Currently there has been no testing to determine their source.
Further reading
Further information
http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/
rhenium/index.html#mcs
GSQ hotline
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: +61 7 3006 4666
Geological Survey of Queensland
Level 12, 61 Mary St Brisbane Qld 4000
www.dnrm.qld.gov.au
140°
145°
150°
Queensland Molybdenum
and Rhenium
10°
Molybdenum & Rhenium occurrence
Very Small
Small
"
Medium
Weipa
Large
Giant
"
Town
Railway
Road
Permian-Triassic Granitoids
"
15°
Kennedy Igneous Association
Cooktown
Mesozoic basins
Permian Triassic basins
"
VICTORIA
MUNGANA
RED DOME
Karumba
"
Devonian-Carboniferous basins
Cairns
New England Orogen
WOLFRAM CAMP TUNGSTEN PROSPECT
Mossman Orogen
Thomson Orogen
MAUREEN
Georgina Basin
North Australian Craton
COCKIE CREEK COPPER PROSPECT
"
BEN LOMOND
LINFIELD
ERNEST HENRY
"
N o r th er n Te r r i t o r y
Mount Isa
"
MILO
KALMAN
Cloncurry
Townsville
20°
JULIA CREEK VANADIUM-MOLYBDENUM PROSPECT - ALISONA-RICHMOND
LILYVALE
JULIVON CREEK PROSPECT
JULIA CREEK VANADIUM-MOLYBDENUM PROSPECT - ST ELMO-BURWOOD
"
Hughenden
"
0
50 100
200
Kilometres
Mackay
MERLIN/MOUNT DORE
"
ANTHONY
Winton
"
"
Longreach
Clermont
"
"
Emerald
Marlborough
"
Rockhampton
"
Gladstone
KAUFFMANS PROSPECT
WHITEWASH
"
Bundaberg
25°
CHINAMAN CREEK PROSPECT
Produced by Publication Graphics SGS, Geological Survey of Queensland September 2014.
© State of Queensland (Department of Natural Resources and Mines) 2014.
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en
Produced by Spatial and Graphic Services, Geological Survey of Queensland
© The State of Queensland (Department of Natural Resources and Mines) 2014
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en
Charleville
"
Roma
Gympie
"
Chinchilla
Dalby
"
ANDURAMBA PROSPECT
Toowoomba
"
N e w S o u th Wa l e s
" Brisbane
Ipswich
"
15B\Factsheets\critical_elements
GSQ\14B\MG\CE\CrititcalElementWeb.mxd
So u t h A u s tr a l i a
MOUNT BIGGENDEN
"
"
Maryborough
"
COALSTOUN LAKES PORPHYRY COPPER PROSPECT