Talc is the world's softest mineral. Although all talc ores are soft, platy, water repellent and chemically inert, no two talc ores are quite the same. Talc is a vital part of everyday life. The magazines we read, the polymers in our cars and houses, the paints we use and the tiles we walk on are just some of the products that talc enhances.

 

Talc is a hydrated magnesium sheet silicate. The elementary sheet is composed of a layer of magnesium-oxygen/hydroxyl octahedra, sandwiched between two layers of silicon oxygen tetrahedra. The main or basal surfaces of this elementary sheet do not contain hydroxyl groups or active ions, which explains talc's hydrophobicity and inertness.