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Plaster, made by grinding stone into a powder and mixing with water, has various uses in construction, art, and medicine. It can be used for drywall, decorative finishes, and as a cladding. It is also used by artists and in the medical industry for casts and radiation protection.
There are a variety of different uses for plaster. This material is created by grinding one of a few different types of stone, such as chalk, into a powder. Once ground, the stone can be mixed with water to form a paste which hardens if left exposed to air. Applications for this use of this material can be found in a number of different industries, including construction, medicine and art.
In construction, one of the most common uses of plaster is as drywall, composed primarily of gypsum plaster. Plaster can be used inside homes and other buildings to create an interior wall surface. While it forms a hard surface suitable for interior walls, this type of plaster is easily damaged and doesn’t hold up well when exposed to the outdoor elements.
Another common use of plaster in construction is for decorative finishes. When dry, this material is relatively hard, which allows it to stand the test of time, while it is soft enough to be shaped or carved with the use of tools. As a cladding, a variety of different shapes or designs can be carved into the plaster which can enhance the aesthetic quality of a building. Stucco that is sprayed onto a building’s exterior to give it texture can also be made from plaster, some types of which can also release small amounts of water when heated, helping to slow the spread of fire.
Artists also commonly use chalk. A statue or relief can be carved from a block of this semi-hard material, or it can be poured into molds and allowed to harden into a shape chosen by the artist. In some cases, artists use this relatively inexpensive material as part of the process of creating a mold that will then be used to cast metals, such as bronze.
Gypsum is also frequently used in the medical industry. Casts that protect broken bones while they are healing have been made from plaster for hundreds of years. Although fiberglass casts are more commonly seen today, plaster is still used. A special form of plaster made with barium can also be used to help protect people from the radiation emitted by X-ray machines.
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