This description provides an overview of Australia's role as the world's largest producer of gypsum. It highlights the country's importance in the global gypsum industry, discussing the various ways in which it is used and the benefits it provides. It also looks at the environmental and economic impacts
Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO4·2H2O. It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk chalk. Gypsum also crystallizes as translucent crystals of selenite. It forms as an evaporite mineral and as a hydration product of anhydrite. The Mohs scale of mineral hardness defines gypsum as hardness value 2 based on scratch hardness comparison.