text: Aluminium chloride, also known as aluminium trichloride, is an inorganic compound with the formula . It forms a hexahydrate  with the formula , containing six water molecules of hydration. Both the anhydrous form and the hexahydrate are colourless crystals, but samples are often contaminated with iron(III) chloride, giving them a yellow colour.
  The anhydrous form is important commercially. It has a low melting and boiling point. It is mainly produced and consumed in the production of aluminium, but large amounts are also used in other areas of the chemical industry. The compound is often cited as a Lewis acid. It is an example of an inorganic compound that reversibly changes from a polymer to a monomer at mild temperature.