Final answer:
Bauxite is the principal industrial source of aluminum metal. It undergoes a series of chemical reactions to produce aluminum, including the reaction with hot sodium hydroxide to form soluble sodium aluminate, and the thermal decomposition of aluminum hydroxide to produce aluminum oxide. The aluminum oxide is then electrolyzed to produce aluminum metal.
Step-by-step explanation:
Bauxite, which is mostly Al2O3, is the principal industrial source of aluminum metal. Aluminum can be produced from bauxite through a series of chemical reactions. The first step is the reaction of bauxite with hot sodium hydroxide, which forms soluble sodium aluminate:
AlO(OH)(s) + NaOH(aq) + H2O(l) → Na[Al(OH)4](aq)
Then, the sodium aluminate solution is cooled and seeded with previously produced aluminum hydroxide, causing aluminum hydroxide to precipitate out:
NaAl(OH)4(aq) → Al(OH)3(s) + NaOH(aq)
The precipitated aluminum hydroxide is then heated to produce pure aluminum oxide:
2Al(OH)3(s) → Al2O3(s) + 3H2O(g)
Finally, pure aluminum oxide is electrolyzed in molten cryolite to produce aluminum metal:
Al2O3(s) → 2Al(l) + 3O2(g)