Quality of Diamonds

Diamond is an allotrope of carbon. High temperature and extreme pressure on carbon atoms cause them to crystallize over a long-time and they are formed beneath the earth surface. The stone, thus formed are pushed through to the earth surface by means of volcanic eruption through pipes known as kimberlitic. They can also be found at the bottom of rivers. Diamonds are found in various colors like white, green, blue, pink, red, black and so on. The diamond has very good mechanical and optical properties.


Types of naturally formed diamonds
There are four types of naturally formed diamonds. Type 1a is the most common type among them and make up the bulk portion of the stones formed. They are mostly found in brown or yellow color. Type 1b is the second type, which is rare and is formed in colors of green and yellow. Type 2a is a higher grade of diamond and pure form of diamonds are found in this type. Finally, type 2b is found rare and comes in blue color.

Diamond Quality Assessment
It is the process by which the surfaces and internal structures of diamonds are examined by optical instruments. Hence, the defects and quality of a particular diamond is found out. Assorting makes sure that the works on the diamonds are accurate. Based on the quality assessment, the pricing of the diamond is carried out. Low quality diamonds are rated low in the price scale, whereas rare and good quality diamonds will top the chart. Thus, the quality of diamonds is known.

Diamond grading
It is carried out based on carat weight, clarity, cut and color. They are known as the 4 C’s. Carat weight is the unit for measuring the size of a diamond. Larger the carat weight, larger the diamond, and greater is its price value. Diamonds are then based on the clarity, which refers to defects inside the stone. The high pressure during the formation of a diamond leads to defects that are natural inside it. For a high clarity, the defects inside it must be zero or minimum. The cleaner the cut the diamond has, greater will be its shining. So, the cut must be nice and precise and as the quality of the cut decreases, the price will decrease likewise. Color in a diamond refers to the composition of a diamond. The more the light passes through the diamond, more is the shining.

So, as the diamond gains color it loses its ability to sparkle and hence, colorless diamonds are more expensive. A certificate is another factor, which determines the grade of a diamond. It shows the diamonds worth and other details regarding the carat weight, clarity, cut and color of the diamond. It accurately gives an evaluation in detail about the main properties of the diamond. It is also a record of its true worth. 

The efficient uses of a Diamond
Diamond being both, a beautiful and a hard material with good mechanical properties has a lot of uses. Diamonds that are beautiful and sparkly are used in jewelry. Based on the grading of diamonds, the cost for the jewelry also increases. Since diamond is the hardest material, it has industrial applications in drill bits and as bearings in machines as it reduces wear and resists temperature changes. Thermal conductivity of diamonds is high, making it suitable for removing the heat from minute parts. Quality cutting and polishing of other materials including gems can be done using diamond. Cutting using a diamond is much faster and thin wires of metals can be formed.

Authors Note
Sam, who has been in the diamond industry for a long-time, holds a diamond shop. According to him all the diamonds have to be thoroughly checked for any impurities. People flock to the jewelry shop to buy them for their special moments and are mostly successful in buying quality stones to their liking.