The term “fluorspar” refers to crude or beneficiated material that is mined and/or milled for the mineral fluorite (calcium fluoride). Fluorite is a non-metallic mineral, containing 51.1 percent calcium and 48.9 percent fluorine. Fluorspar is a halide mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CaF2. There are three principal types of industrial use for fluorspar, corresponding to different grades of purity. Industry practice has established three grades of fluorspar: Acid grade, Ceramic grade and Metallurgical grade.

The highest grade, acid grade fluorspar, is used to make hydrofluoric acid by decomposing the fluorspar with sulfuric acid. Hydrofluoric acid is the primary feedstock for the manufacture of virtually all organic and inorganic fluorine-containing compounds, including fluoropolymers and perfluorocarbons, and is also used to etch glass.

Ceramic (intermediate) grade fluorspar is used in the manufacture of opalescent glass, enamels and cooking utensils. Fluorspar may be drilled into beads and used in jewellery, although due to its relative softness it is not widely used as a semiprecious stone

Metallurgical grade fluorspar, the lowest of the three grades, has traditionally been used as a flux to lower the melting point of raw materials in steel production to aid the removal of impurities, and later in the production of aluminium.