Bauxite Mining and Alumina Refining
The bauxite ore contains aluminum trihydrate (Al (OH) 3 ). Alumina refining produces alumina (Al 2 O 3) from the bauxite ore, by exploiting the reversible reaction of the Bayer process 1–3 : The reaction is firstly driven in the sodium aluminate (NaAlO 2) direction by the addition of caustic soda (NaOH) to bauxite.