Iron(III) oxide or ferric oxide is the inorganic compound with the formula Fe2O3. It is one of the three main oxides of iron, the other two being iron(II) oxide (FeO), which is rare; and iron(II,III) oxide (Fe3O4), which also occurs naturally as the mineral magnetite. As the mineral known as hematite, Fe2O3 is the main source of iron for the steel industry. Fe2O3 is readily attacked by acids. Iron(III) oxide is often called rust, since rust shares several properties and has a similar composition; however, in chemistry, rust is considered an ill-defined material, described as hydrous ferric oxide.
Iron(III) oxide
Iron(III) oxide in a vial
Image: Iron oxide red y
Image: Iron oxide yellow
Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust, being mainly deposited by meteorites in its metallic state.
Iron
A polished and chemically etched piece of an iron meteorite, believed to be similar in composition to the Earth's metallic core, showing individual crystals of the iron-nickel alloy (Widmanstatten pattern)
Ochre path in Roussillon
Banded iron formation in McKinley Park, Minnesota