Types of artificial gemstones and their properties

Previously, the situation with precious stones was simple and understandable: wealthy people wore jewelry, and ordinary people were content with ordinary jewelry with more affordable gems. Now the situation has changed radically, because modern man has learned to create a large number of precious stones by artificial means. What are such products, what is their feature and what properties do they have?

Synthetic gemstones are a complete analogue of natural gemstones. The difference lies only in the nuances of creation - artificial jewelry is created in laboratories or special factories, where a large number of specialists help the stone to be “born”, observing all the subtleties of the technological process. In terms of chemical and physical characteristics, artificial stone is fully consistent with its natural counterpart, therefore, it cannot be considered a glass imitation and a fake. This is a high-quality full-fledged analogue.

Precious gems, which are created in artificial conditions, have another name - grown gemstone. It fully reflects their essence. The technologies for creating artificial jewelry are completely identical to the conditions that nature creates for them.

But technology has significantly reduced the time it takes to create stones. If a natural gem can be created over hundreds of years, then for an artificial analogue it will take several hours, in rare cases - several months. Initially, the equipment and technologies for creating artificial stones were very expensive. Therefore, stones could not be too cheap.But this process is constantly being improved, due to which the cost of such jewelry is reduced.

Scientists have spent a lot of time, effort and money developing synthetic stones. And their discoveries are of great importance, which consists of the following factors:

• a decrease in the cost of jewelry, which became more affordable with artificial gems;
• creating an ideal stone without unnecessary inclusions and other shortcomings, because nature does not always manage to create an ideal gem;
• replacement of precious stones, the reserves of which are not unlimited in the bowels of the earth;
• expanding opportunities for the use of precious stones in industrial areas.

Since the production of the first artificial gemstone, scientists have managed to significantly expand the list of gems that can be born in the laboratory. Synthetic gems are presented in a large assortment, among which the following options are the most significant and interesting.

Diamonds are actively produced in an artificial way, moreover, this stone was one of the first to be synthesized. Now scientists will have no difficulty in creating a 15-carat diamond. Many jewelers use these stones in their jewelry, passing them off as real ones. It is becoming more and more difficult to distinguish a real nugget from an artificial one, because scientists are constantly improving their skills. A real stone has inclusions of a mineral type, and artificial diamonds have metal inclusions in their composition.

They are also actively created in artificial conditions. To obtain them, titanium oxide is added to the starting material. After passing the cutting process, the synthesized stone acquires a star-shaped effect, which is inherent in natural ruby ​​and sapphire. These stones are characterized by a number of properties and features:

• porosity at the level of the zero mark;
• strength that does not change even when exposed to aggressive factors;
• high levels of transparency;
• immunity to substances related to common acids and most alkaline substances;
• the density is in the range of 3.98 - 3.99;
• the hardness index is 9;
• the stone quickly becomes warm if you hold it in your hand, unlike its natural counterpart.

Two methods are used to produce synthetic emeralds: flux and hydrothermal. To grow crystals, a beryl seed is used. During the day, such an emerald grows by 0.8 mm. The process of making such gems is costly, so the cost of artificial and natural stone is not particularly different. Fake emerald in most cases has a pronounced color zoning, which highlights its origin. Also, such gems can contain tubular inclusions and brown blotches of iron oxides.

Artificially obtained is very common. An important variety of this gem is the hydrothermal amethyst. This stone can often be found in jewelry, because it is very similar to its counterpart. It can be very difficult to distinguish an artificial stone from a natural one; only complex diagnostics can help. Another type of quartz is ametrine, it is also produced by the hydrothermal method. Ametrine is distinguished by its color zoning and twinning structure.

It is one of the few artificial stones that does not have a natural analogue.The people call cubic zirconia an artificial diamond for the similarity to this gem. In fact, cubic zirconia has nothing to do with diamond.

It is an artificial analogue of topaz. All its properties are as close as possible to topaz. Sitall is characterized by crystal transparency and a wide range of shades. Jewelers love this stone, because even in large pieces sitall is flawless in all respects.

It is created from yttrium-aluminum oxide, which is characterized by a garnet structure. This stone in its pure form has no color, it is characterized by a density of 4.54 and a hardness of 8 (Mohs scale). To obtain granatite, special devices are used and special conditions are created (high temperature and vacuum). Crystals are drawn from the melt.

We also learned to grow in an artificial environment. For this, shellfish are used, which are kept in special conditions. Cultured pearls may differ from natural pearls in their ideal shape, but in general they look the same, they have the same shine and sparkle that natural pearls have. The duration of the creation of a pearl can last 7 years. When growing pearls, you can give them the desired shape and achieve the required size.

This is monocrystalline aluminum. This material is ideal for making watches. The structure of the sapphire crystal is very similar to that of synthetic sapphires. The differences lie in a high degree of transparency and wear resistance, therefore the glass in the products retains its properties for a long time and increases the service life of the entire mechanism.

These jewels are unique and have a number of features that make them stand out and make them attractive in the eyes of artisans and connoisseurs of beauty. The advantages include the following characteristics:

• perfect cut, which is not always available for natural gems;
• brighter color and purer structure, which is not always found in natural stones;
• lack of reaction to a greasy environment (while natural ones can fade even from prolonged contact with human skin);
• maximum refractive index;
• more affordable cost;
• durability and easy maintenance.

Minuses can be considered only a few points - this is the realization that natural stone gives its owner some weight in his own eyes, a feeling of self-confidence... But this is only a psychological attitude of a person.

For information on how to distinguish artificial stones from natural ones, see the next video.