Diamonds animations
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The first scientific breakthrough in man-made diamonds came in 1954 when General Electric developed a process that successfully replicated the conditions for natural diamond formation. In April 2018, the National Geographic even reported that some of these diamond-bearing meteorites could be leftover space rocks from remnants of early planets that never formed. Researchers from NASA have detected large volumes of nanodiamonds in meteorites that originated from deep space. Diamonds Deposited by Meteorite Fallīesides creating a spectacular sight in the night sky, meteorites also deposit their contents onto the ground when they hit the Earth’s surface. And the immense pressure and temperature generated by the impact turned the surrounding metamorphic rocks and graphite into diamonds ( less than 2mm in size). The Popigai crater in Russia is a spot which was struck by a large asteroid millions of years ago. Carbon based deposits in the impact crater can get turned into tiny diamonds in an instant. When an asteroid strikes the Earth’s surface, the epic collision creates a massive explosion of heat and pressure on the ground. Some of them make it back to the surface due to plate movements while others may lie in place for millions of years before being brought to the surface via volcanic eruptions. Interestingly, diamonds formed by this process are generally small in size (between 1–80μm) and not viable for commercial use. If one of these plates carry rocks and materials rich in carbon content, they melt under high temperature and pressure to create diamonds. When tectonic plates collide, one massive land mass is forced underneath the other into an area known as the subduction zone. These provide stable environments that allow diamond crystals to grow over millions of years before they make their way to the surface via Kimberlite pipes.Īnd it’s no coincidence that cratons are found in continents like Africa and Australia which also happen to be the biggest producers of gem-quality diamonds in the world.Īmong the natural processes, this is the only method that produces diamonds large enough for jewelry as there is sufficient time for large, single-crystal stones of superior clarity and purity to develop. In fact, most diamonds form inside the Earth’s mantle under parts of the continental crust called cratons. In nature, there are only certain places that provide conditions like these and that’s deep within the Earth. It is believed that the right conditions for diamonds to be created are at elevated temperatures of 900☌ to 1300☌ in combination with an extremely high pressure of 650,000 psi to 850,000 psi. Diamonds Are Formed in the Earth’s MantleĪfter years of research, geologists and scientists have a better understanding of how diamonds form in nature. You see, when diamonds are formed under extreme temperature and pressure, atoms in their crystalline structure become tetrahedrally bonded (each carbon atom links to 3 other carbon atoms) to create a strong and stable lattice. What gives diamond their unique properties is the covalent bonding between its atoms. How Are Diamonds Formed Naturally on Earth?ĭid you know that diamonds are made of carbon and it is fundamentally the same material as pencil lead (graphite)? Yet, they are the hardest substance ever known to mankind and have completely different properties as graphite. We’ve also created a fully animated infographic to help you visualize what happens during the various processes. In this writeup, we look at the different ways that diamonds are formed in nature and how diamonds are made using modern technology. While this can be credited to De Beers’s ingenuous marketing campaigns and famous slogan “ A Diamond is Forever“, have you ever wondered where do diamonds come from?ĭespite the significance they have in our culture, most people actually don’t know much about the precious stones that adorn the jewelry we wear. Ever since diamonds were first discovered in South Africa, they have found their way into our culture as symbols of love, status and wealth.