noun
- a white or colorless mineral consisting of sodium aluminum fluoride, used in the production of aluminum and as a flux in metalworking
Usage: Also spelled cryolite; technical/industrial term; mineral name
Examples
- Kryolith is essential in the Hall-Héroult process for extracting aluminum from bauxite ore.
- The mineral kryolith was historically mined in Greenland and is now synthesized industrially.
- Aluminum smelters rely on kryolith as a flux to lower the melting point of alumina.
- The chemical composition of kryolith makes it valuable in metallurgical applications.