Bauxite is the main ore of aluminium. It is mostly aluminium oxide.
Bauxite is the most important aluminium ore. It is largely made up of the minerals Gibbsite Al(OH)3, Boehmite γ-AlO(OH), and Diaspore α-AlO(OH), together with the iron oxides Goethite and Hematite, the clay mineral Kaolinite and small amounts of Anatase TiO2. It was named after the village Les Baux-de-Provence in southern France, where it was first discovered in 1821 by geologist Pierre Berthier. Today the four biggest producers are Australia, Brazil, China and India.