Posted on Leave a comment

Diamond encrusted rock discovered in Russian mine contains an estimated 30,000 diamonds!

3 image thumb16

Merry Christmas!

Miners in Russia’s Udachnaya diamond mine received a nice little Christmas surprise when they pulled a highly unusual and very rare diamond encrusted rock from the ground a few weeks back. The rock is about the size of a ping-pong ball and contains an estimated (hold on to your seat!) – 30,000 diamonds! Unfortunately, the diamonds’ small size makes them only useful for mouse jewelry, so the miners graciously donated the rock to science.

Editor note: Geek Slop said to tell the lab rats to stop groaning and get back in their cages.

Although the miners were sad that the diamonds were not bigger and the lab rats were sad because they will have no opportunity to sparkle, the scientists are very happy because, well, the concentration of diamonds in the rock is about 1 million times greater than found in typical diamond ore – and they’re not really sure how the highly-unusual rock formed. According to Live Science:

“Scientists think diamonds are born deep below Earth’s surface, in the layer between the crust and core called the mantle. Explosive volcanic eruptions then carry hunks of diamond-rich mantle to the surface. However, most mantle rocks disintegrate during the trip, leaving only loose crystals at the surface. The Udachnaya rock is one of the rare nuggets that survived the rocketing ride.”

Diamonds have been popular with people for hundreds of years and scientists know enough about them to make “artificial” diamonds in a lab. Regardless, they are still unsure how they are formed in the Earth’s deepest depths.

How artificial diamonds are created

Artificial diamonds, also known as lab-grown or cultured diamonds, are created using sophisticated technological processes that mimic the natural formation of diamonds. These processes are designed to achieve the same result as the geological processes that occur deep within the earth’s mantle.

There are two primary methods used to grow diamonds in a lab, high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD).

High-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) method

In this method, a small diamond seed is placed in a pressure chamber and exposed to high pressure and high temperature. A carbon source, typically graphite, is also placed in the chamber. The pressure and temperature cause the carbon atoms to bond to the diamond seed, gradually building up a diamond crystal around it.

This method reproduces the conditions under which diamonds form in nature, with the added benefit of being able to control the process more precisely. The result is a diamond that is physically and chemically identical to a natural diamond.

Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method

In this method, a diamond seed is placed in a vacuum chamber and exposed to a mixture of gases, typically hydrogen and methane. The gases are ionized using a plasma torch, breaking them down into their constituent atoms. The carbon atoms then bond to the diamond seed, forming a diamond crystal.

This method involves a chemical reaction that allows the diamond to grow layer by layer. The process is slower than HPHT, but it can produce larger and higher quality diamonds.

Both methods result in diamonds that are physically and chemically identical to natural diamonds. However, lab-grown diamonds are generally less expensive and more environmentally friendly than natural diamonds, which must be mined from the earth.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *