{"id":10618,"date":"2017-12-19T13:01:02","date_gmt":"2017-12-19T13:01:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/mining\/?p=10618"},"modified":"2017-12-19T13:25:50","modified_gmt":"2017-12-19T13:25:50","slug":"golf-ball-sized-diamond-needs-a-pros-evaluation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/mining\/golf-ball-sized-diamond-needs-a-pros-evaluation\/","title":{"rendered":"Golf-Ball Sized Diamond Needs a Pro’s Evaluation"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"diamondWell, it wasn’t as big as the 1,100+ carat tennis ball-sized diamond<\/a> we reported on in October, but the latest gem find announced by Sierra Leone’s Minerals Agency is a 476-carat diamond that is bigger than a golf ball. The diamond was discovered in an area spanning from the Kamara Gbense to the Tankoro chiefdoms in Sierra Leone (Kono District). <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

According to a press release by Trustco Group Holdings, “an initial assessment indicates that this find is the 29th largest diamond ever discovered. Any value indication of the diamond is pure speculation at this stage as the diamond has not yet been examined and assessed by the necessary experts. It is Meya’s intention to sell the diamond through an international auction. Images of this unique diamond can be viewed on Trustco’s website<\/a> and more information is provided on www.informante.web.na.”  Meya Mining is the Trustco subsidiary that unearthed the special rock.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The genuineness<\/span> of a diamond the size of a golf ball will of course be put into question. Diamonds are unique among gemstones because they are composed of a single element (carbon), while virtually all other gems contain multiple elements including significant amounts of oxides  There are technologies that can help confirm or deny the authenticity.  As we mentioned in a previous article,<\/a> although portable X-Ray Fluorescence<\/a> cannot measure carbon, the technology can be deployed to measure Zr, and thus, to distinguish between the diamond look-alike, cubic zirconia, and real diamonds.<\/p>\n

Before the diamond is valued, it will be analyzed and scrutinized by authorities in the diamond industry. Real diamonds are formed in the earth over the course of thousands of years, under crushing pressures and intense heat.  Synthetic stones, however, include high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) diamonds and laboratory-grown diamonds formed by Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD), techniques which produce products nearly indistinguishable from natural diamonds.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Fourier Transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy<\/a> can be used to analyze the impurities in diamonds to help confirm if the diamond is synthetic or if it has been treated. It <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>can be a useful tool to determine whether diamonds are natural. FT-IR spectroscopy produces an infrared absorption spectrum that represents a \ufb01ngerprint of the sample with absorption peaks which correspond to the frequencies of vibrations between the bonds of the atoms making up the material. Because each element is a unique combination of atoms, no two compounds produce the exact same infrared spectrum. (Read more about synthetics diamonds here<\/a>.) <\/p>\n

After the genuineness is confirmed, I imagine the 4 C’s of diamond quality will be applied, if they haven’t already.<\/p>\n