Talc: stone with unique properties

Among the minerals are often found such properties, which are widely in demand not only in industry, but also in medicine and cosmetics. Talc is one of them. This stone is not known as a mineral, but as a powder for children.

Strangely enough, but in nature it is almost the second most common after quartz rocks. It should be noted that talc is a stone only in its coarse-grained variety, which is more often called steatite.

Its color varies from green to pure white, and irrespective of the shade, it is notable for its pearl shine. It is very soft, and feels like an oil to the touch. On the Mohs scale, its hardness is estimated as "1" (the minimum level).

In the usual form, it is an oily coarse-grained powder, which is called "talc". This stone is widely spread because the conditions of its formation for geology are quite standard.

Speaking scientifically, its chemical name is the acid metasilicate of magnesium H2Mg3 (SiO3) 4. Its crystallization occurs in a rhombic or monoclinic type. In nature it occurs in the form of leaf-shaped or granular formations.

From a geological point of view, talc is a secondary mineral, as it is formed after the chemical transformation of non-aluminum magnesium silicates. Often amphibole or pyroxene undergoes such metamorphosis.

Very often, in appearance, it can be confused with the "parent", since it completely preserves its crystal structure, differing only in chemical composition.

Talcum itself, the photo of which is in the article, is valued because of its color: the whiter it is, the more demanded the material. It should be noted that in the industry only the smallest talc is used, very high-quality ground.

It is not necessary to think that this material in nature occurs only in one form. There are several of its varieties, which differ significantly both in their chemical composition and in their physical properties:

• Minnesotaite (it contains up to 50% of iron).
• Willemsite (includes nickel).
• Steatite (which is often called a wen) is very dense and massive.
• Agalit. Unlike its predecessor, it is very fine-grained.
• Noble talc: the best variety, distinguished by a noble white color.

The most talc is produced in the USA. In large volumes, this breed is being developed in Brazil, South Korea, Japan and Russia.

So how is talc used? This stone was used as a powder, "pads" between rubber things, as a filler, and also widely used by perfumers when creating new varieties of powder.

Only it is most suitable for creating the best examples of cosmetics of this kind. By the way, professional tailors use only "chalk", which is based on the same talc. In industry, its fine-grained varieties are used in the manufacture of electrical insulators.

By the way, how much does talc cost? To date, its price is about 1000 rubies per kilogram of quality milled material.