Iron Oxide - Fine Powdered Ferric Oxide, Reddish Brown, Superior Polish For Jewellers And Optics

These Iron Oxide or ferric oxide is the inorganic compound with the formula Fe2O3. It is of 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 the iron for the steel industry. Fe2O3 is paramagnetic, reddish brown, and readily attacked by acids. Rust is often called iron(III) oxide, and to some extent, this label is useful, because rust shares several properties and has a similar composition. To a chemist, rust is considered an ill-defined material, described as hydrated ferric oxide.The overwhelming application of Iron(III) oxide is as the feedstock of the steel and iron industries, e.g. the production of pure iron, steel, and many alloys.[4]

Polishing A very fine powder of ferric oxide is known as jeweller's rouge, red rouge, or simply rouge. It is used to put the final polish on metallic jewellery and lenses, and historically as a cosmetic.

Rouge cuts more slowly than some modern polishes, such as cerium(IV) oxide, but is still used in optics fabrication and by jewellers for the superior finish it can produce. When polishing gold, the rouge slightly stains the gold, which contributes to the appearance of the finished piece. Rouge is sold as a powder, paste, laced on polishing cloths, or solid bar (with a wax or grease binder).