#diamonds require a *lot* of heat and pressure to form because carbon really does not want to be in that state

[aro-culture-is]

aro culture is the song “diamonds are forever”

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[realillusiondiamonds]

How Are Synthetic Diamonds Really Made?

Nobody really considers buying man made diamonds because to them, any diamond that is not taken out from under the earth’s surface is not real. However, we beg to differ. The synthetic diamonds that we talk about here are those diamonds that are almost close to the real diamonds. How? Because they are made by putting in the same temperature and pressure conditions under which the real diamond is formed. The diamond seed is first taken out and then placed at the bottom of a press. This seed is very thin and is usually taken out from real diamond, though the part is too small and of negligible size. Then, it is put under extreme heat and temperature that gives rise to the carbon compounds and makes the diamond what it is. In this kind of intense environment that is found in the earth, a lot of impurities such as boron and nitrogen make their way into the diamond formation along with some other gases too. However, when it comes to synthetic diamonds creation the process is a properly controlled one and does not allow any kind of impurities to make their way into the diamond. The particles of diamond start to slowly disintegrate and start to form layers on the diamond seed, and they begin to grow like a real diamond. The end result that we get is that of the CVD diamond (Carbon Vapour Deposition) which is almost like the original or the real diamond, but purer, cleaner and whiter. The diamonds are then cut and shaped to give it the shape that is required for the jewellery making. Another reason why these man made diamonds are becoming so popular is because you do not have to worry about being sure about the purity of the diamonds. It will be taken care of by the process.

[coppolafrancis]

Why Cultured Diamonds Are Real Diamonds

It’s all about time. Yep, time is the obvious factor that separates laboratory-grown, or cultured diamonds from mined ones. Mined diamonds take a few thousand years to grow, while cultured diamonds are produced within a matter of weeks. But there are, of course, additional aspects which separate them: for example, laboratory-grown diamonds are increasingly becoming known for being sustainably and ethically superior to mined diamonds. But it’s not the differences between these two types of stones that’s really shaking up the diamond industry – what they have in common is. The fact is that cultured diamonds are, essentially, real diamonds. And here’s why.

A bit of background

If you’re a conscious consumer and a diamond lover, you’ve most likely heard of the Kimberly Process. It’s a certification process which seeks to trade only conflict-free diamonds amongst its members, but unfortunately, it’s not a perfect system. The Kimberly Process leaves plenty of room for a great deal of human rights violations and environmental damage.

Moreover, mining diamonds involves moving huge quantities of earth, harming ecosystems and animal habitats in the process. Some may argue that lab-grown diamonds take up a lot of energy and thus produce a lot of CO2 emissions, but according to Laura Chavez, creator of luxury jewellery brand Lark & Berry, “lab-grown/cultured diamonds produce 99% less carbon emissions and waste 99% less minerals than mined diamonds do. The process of growing diamonds in a lab also means 85% less water is being used as well as 53% less energy.”

“For example”, explains Chavez, “if we were to put the CO2 emissions into perspective, a 1 carat mined diamond produces the same amount of CO2 as a Mini Countryman 1.5l driving from London to Prague, approximately 57,000 grams. A cultured diamond of the same carat weight produces a mere 0.028 grams. Which means the Mini wouldn’t even get off the driveway. A human personally expels more CO2 in a day than is produced by a single carat cultured diamond.”

Perhaps most importantly for the majority of consumers, though is the fact that with cultured diamonds you can also be assured that they are conflict free, says Laura. There is zero child labour involved in the process of growing them and zero bonded labour.

Can you tell the difference?

Of course, then there’s the question of quality. The value of a polished diamond is measured by what those in the industry call the “Four C’s”: colour, clarity, cut and carat. The colour of each individual diamond is influenced by its chemical composition, and therefore varies. The clarity of a diamond can be affected by the intense heat and pressure that creates them, sometimes resulting in minor imperfections.

The cut is the process that diamonds go through for the sake of presentation. This is when raw diamonds are cut to fit a specific design. A popular cut is the “brilliant” cut, a circular design with a pointed top, formed to reflect light in an attractive manner.

The carat describes the weight of the diamond, which some jewellers may also describe in points, which add up to each carat.

These “Four C’s” are what diamonds are graded by, whether they are natural or man-made. Not only do lab-grown diamonds achieve the grades of natural diamonds in these areas, they are more likely to exceed them.

In the diamond industry there is a term for the purest form of diamond. They are called type IIa, and only 2% of mined diamonds meet the qualifications for this rating. No wonder they’re so highly valued. And guess what? Lab-grown diamond producers are now able to consistently grow diamonds to this standard. Chavez confirms this, stating, “whatever qualities a mined diamond has, a cultured one does as well. In fact, cultured is even better in terms of purity, as you can control the environment in which they grow.”

Because cultured diamonds are made up of the same properties as natural diamonds, their colour, clarity, cut and carat occurs the same way. The colour and presentation of both mined and cultured diamonds can be treated to change their appearance. According to a study published by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), lab-grown diamonds can be over 10 carats and are making progress in the large diamond market.

“Natural diamonds and laboratory grown diamonds have essentially the same physical, optical and chemical properties”, states Dr. James Shigley, a distinguished research fellow of GIA. “Differentiating laboratory grown diamonds from natural diamonds requires specialized equipment; it is not possible using a loupe or gemological microscope.”

Both natural and cultured diamonds are made up of carbon atoms. Lab-grown diamonds are made by recreating the way that mined diamonds are formed. There are two ways in which this is done.

A diamond is born

The first, High Pressure, High Temperature (HPHT) method, is carried out under “temperatures and pressures designed to approximate the conditions of mined diamond growth.” Explains Dr. Shigley.

Basically, a carbon source is placed in a holding chamber along with a diamond seed. The chamber also holds molten metal. A higher temperature is created for the carbon source than the diamond seed, resulting in the carbon dissolving into the molten metal and moving toward the, cooler, diamond seed. From there, a diamond crystal is formed.

Dr. Shigley describes the second method, Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD), as one which “involves growing synthetic diamond as thin-film layers at moderate temperatures and low (i.e., below atmospheric) pressures.”

It’s a method where a gas rich in carbon is placed in a vacuum chamber and broken down into hydrogen and carbon atoms. The diamond seed is then covered by these carbon atoms. Following this, diamond crystals begin to form.

“Cultured diamonds grow in the same way mined diamonds grow, therefore they are 100% diamonds”, approves Chavez.

The bottom line

Because these man-made, or cultured, diamonds hold the same optical, chemical and physical properties as mined diamonds, they look no different. According to GIA, even trained gemologists cannot tell the difference between lab-grown and mined diamonds. The diamonds are so identical machines have been designed to tell the difference between them, by looking at the different circumstances in which they were formed.

It’s the time and ethics that make the difference. Cultured diamonds can be produced in an extremely short space of time. They are also an environmentally friendly option which can be guaranteed as being 100% conflict free.

In terms of quality, cultured diamonds are held to the same standards and grading process as mined diamonds. The man-made process by which they are created doesn’t de-value them – it just means that the final result of the diamond can be more easily controlled.

So yes, cultured diamonds are real diamonds. They are grown the same way, hold the same properties and are graded the same way. Of course, the exciting part is that they’re a highly ethical and eco friendly alternative to mined stones.

[aanchallall]

What Are Lab Grown Diamonds And How Are They Affecting The Diamond Jewellery Industry?

Our young audience is definitely not showing mined diamonds as much love in light of their high environmental and humanitarian expenses. Does their other option in the form of Lab Grown Diamonds have what it takes? Millennials and now Generation Z – who together are the fundamental buyers of diamonds for wedding bands – are distancing themselves from conventional mined diamonds, with almost 70% of Millennials considering purchasing a lab-developed diamond. All through the mined-diamonds supply chain, deals are falling, with rough diamond sales expected to decrease by 25% and polished diamond sales to be off 10% before the year’s ends. Regardless of how capably the business works, the process of mining diamonds is damaging. Be that as it may, the mined diamonds industry faces significantly greater danger from an extremely maintainable, ecologically capable alternative: lab-developed precious stones. The lab-grown diamonds market’s growth is estimated between 15% to 20% in 2019 and it is going to increase in the coming years as traditional jewellers have just begun to sell lab-grown diamond jewellery.

What are Lab-grown diamonds? How Are They Created?

A lab-developed diamond is a jewel: chemically, physically and optically indistinguishable from a mined diamond. Naturally, materializing diamonds are fashioned in the crushing pressure and immensely high temperatures of the Earth’s mantle around 100 miles underground. Most were created somewhere in the range of 1bn and 3bn years ago when our planet was even more sweltering than it is today. Lab-developed diamonds are additionally made utilizing extreme pressure and high temperatures, however inside a machine as opposed to the entrails of the Earth. There are two different ways to grow a diamond. Both include beginning with the “seed” (a leveled slighter) of another diamond. The first lab diamond was made utilizing a High-Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) framework, where the seed is then positioned in the midst of some unadulterated graphite carbon and presented to temperatures of about 1,500C and pressurized to roughly 1.5 million pounds for each square inch in a chamber. Recently, another approach to growing a diamond was found, called Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD). The diamonds made by using the CVD method are known as CVD Diamonds. This includes placing the seed in a sealed chamber loaded up with carbon-rich gas and heating to around 800C. Under these conditions the gases start to “stick” to the seed, growing a diamond carbon atom by atom.

How Are Lab-Created Diamonds Affecting the Diamond Industry?

Believe it or not, Millenials are changing the diamond industry. Be that as it may, they have gained notoriety for “slaughtering” the industry, it would be a mistake to accept that the diamond business as a whole is biting the dust in light of the fact that the client base is evolving. Millennials are settling on more monetarily cognizant choices with respect to diamond purchases. Numerous Millennials view diamond purchases as a venture into the future similarly as they take a look at it as an investment in the relationship. All things considered, millennials are searching for the savviest choices that fit inside their spending budget, and lab-developed diamonds satisfy the entirety of their needs. Thus, while the diamond business is changing, it’s not dead. Actually, it may encounter its most noteworthy growth ever in the coming years.

Why are Lab-Grown Diamonds Better Than Mined Diamonds?

In an extremely brief timeframe, the lab-made diamonds have accomplished the gem-quality standard, and with it, they have ended up becoming a solid contender for the future of the diamonds market. It has built itself as a sustainable and reliable source with the progression of technology to supply great quality gems in any event, for the luxury industry. What’s more, with the positive reaction from the market, it appears lab-made diamonds are in all probability here to stay for the long haul.

Lower Environmental Impact: Lab diamonds have an essentially lower sway on the earth than mined jewels. The research proposes that the total environmental footprint of mined diamonds is a lot higher than lab diamonds. The energy utilized in mining is commonly filthy diesel versus sustainable energy. An estimated 250 tons of the earth is moved for every carat of diamonds. For context, 148 million carats were mined in 2018. For sure, a few mines are presently so enormous they can be seen from space utilizing NASA’s Terra satellite. Mined diamonds require twice as much energy per carat than those developed in a lab. It assessed that 57kg of carbon is discharged into the air for per carat mined. Lab-developed jewels discharge scarcely in excess of a couple of grams.

Lower Ecological and Humanitarian Impact: Be that as it may, the environmental harm from diamond mining goes further than its carbon emissions. Diamond mining has been connected to contamination of water sources utilized by nearby individuals because of corrosive mine waste. This happens when minerals from the mined rocks saturate the water supply. In reality, the ecological and humanitarian damages from diamond mining are firmly interwoven. Some diamond mines utilize miners on low wages in hazardous conditions.

Low in Cost: Because of the way lab-developed diamonds are created, the expense can be 20 to 40 per cent less than a mined diamond. In many examples, you can redesign your clarity, colour or possibly the size of your diamonds when you select a lab-developed diamond over a mined one.

You Can Know Exactly Where Your Diamond Comes from: It is difficult to know the specific inception of each and every mined diamond in a piece of diamond jewellery, as more than 6 billion carats of precious stones have been extricated out of the Earth throughout the recent centuries, and by far most were mined in the century prior to the Kimberley Process which was set up in 2003. There have been credible reports of diamond smuggling out of contention zones, huge inconsistencies in international diamond transactions, and archived occasions of massacres at diamond mines. With lab grown diamonds the consumer can be absolutely certain of the ethical and safe origin of the diamonds.

Use Sustainable Power: Developing diamond is getting increasingly sustainable. Numerous diamond growing producers are now utilizing sustainable power sources to develop diamonds and various diamond developing facilities are under development in zones where renewable energy is promptly accessible.

When it comes to jewellery, the real value of diamonds is not really about price or rarity. It is more about the emotional value. When you know that your diamond is ethically sourced, environment friendly, its production does not employ child miners or underpaid laborers the emotional value of the diamond increases exponentially. By and large, lab-developed diamonds have expanded in popularity, however, they are possibly very nearly changing the industry. As a more affordable alternative that is comparable to even the costliest diamonds, lab-developed diamonds offer the eco-friendliness and affordability that most shoppers are searching for. Regardless of whether you’re an industry spectator or a savvy purchaser, it’s imperative to focus on the patterns in the diamond industry. Following these patterns can assist you with preparing for anything from stock drops and saving a lot of money on your next diamonds purchase. As the buying segment changes, so will the business. Millennials are coming out in a big way and stirring up the industry. The requirement for lab-developed diamonds and other diamond choices are generally big things to pay special attention to in the diamond industry in 2020.