Pink Halite from California, USA

Halite, also called rock salt, is a mineral, a halide. It consists of pure sodium chloride, which, like table salt, has the chemical composition NaCl. It has a cubic face-centred halite or rock salt structure with an edge of 564.02 pm. The space group is Fm3m. Halite is an important source for the extraction of sodium, often in the form of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and of chlorine. This process is the basis for an extensive branch of the chemical industry. In desert conditions, evaporation can form NaCl, a highly soluble salt. There are also salt deposits in the east of the Netherlands. The company AkzoNobel partly owes its existence to this.