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Physical Properties of Gypsum Powder

Gypsum powder is formed by heating gypsum stone. When the stone is heated, the water is released, and the fine, white powder is left. This powder can be used for cooking, fertilizer, drywall, cement, plaster and paint. The mineral gypsum is used the most in its powdered form because it can strengthen material or increase viscosity, but the mineral itself is very low on the Mohr's Hardness Scale, placing at a two or three.

  1. Texture

    • The texture of gypsum powder is just as any powder, fine and smooth. It can easily be sifted. If you are planning to use the gypsum powder for drywall or some other purpose where you need it to dry, it will get quite coarse and rough.

    Color

    • The color of gypsum powder is white, but that does not mean the gypsum mineral is always white. Gypsum minerals can be a variety of different colors, common colors are clear, colorless, white, gray, yellow, red and brown.

    Odor

    • The gypsum powder is typically known to have a milky or chalky odor to it. This odor is not known to be overwhelming and is barely noticeable. Typically pure gypsum mineral has the same odor to it, but if the gypsum mineral is not pure, then it can have a very overpowering, unpleasant and sulfurlike odor.

    Solubility

    • Solubility is defined as the maximum weight of a solvent that can be dissolved in a certain amount of solute at a constant temperature. The solubility of gypsum powder is 2.1 g/L at 20 degrees Celsius.

    Specific Gravity

    • Gypsum powder has a specific gravity of 2.31 grams per cubic centimeter. Specific gravity is dimensionless because it is a ratio. The ratio is the density of the material against the density of water, but the densities must be calculated at the same temperature. The dimension grams per cubic centimeter are the dimensions of both densities being compared.

    Molecular Weight

    • The molecular weight of gypsum powder is 172.2 grams. This is based on its molecular formula for hydrous calcium sulfate.

    Density

    • Density refers to how closely packed the powder is, in other words how much does it weight within a constant volume. The density of gypsum powder is 2.8 to 3 grams per cubic centimeter. The bulk density of gypsum powder is around 881 kilograms per cubic meter, or 55 pounds per cubic foot.

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