A diamond is a form of condensed carbon, often used in jewelry. Its unique qualities, such as a high luster and high abrasiveness, allow it to be a very successful and popular choice of jewelry. Because of its luster and abrasiveness, it is very hard to scratch, keeping its shine forever. Diamonds are primarily found in volcanoes and loose material and dirt deposited on land by running water. After being mined out of the ground, these diamond fragments are crushed and concentrated until they are fully condensed. They are then placed in a stream of water over greased tables. Since diamonds are water repellent, they stick to the grease while unwanted materials flow away with the water. These finished diamonds are then cleaned and graded for sale.

What are some properties of diamonds?
Diamonds have multiple properties that define their uniqueness. These include hardness, structure, color, stability and toughness.

• Hardness: A diamond is the hardest material known to man. Because of this, diamonds are very abrasive and only able to be scratched by other diamonds. Because of a diamond’s hardness, they are perfect for industrial use. Because diamonds are the hardest material known to man, they can be used on drill bits and saws to cut through other materials.

• Structure: Diamonds are crystals formed by the tetrahedral formation of carbons. This tetrahedral formation is the cause of many of a diamond’s properties.

• Color: Diamonds are primarily clear or translucent hues. Other diamonds that have strong color are known as colored diamonds. Colored diamonds are beautiful, but are formed by an imperfection or structural defect.

• Stability: Diamonds are extremely stable and it takes over 800 degrees Celsius of heat to even begin to melt them. It would take longer than the time of the universe’s existence for a diamond to decay into graphite.

• Toughness: Diamonds are not very tough. Instead they are relatively fragile. In other words, if a forceful impact was to come down onto a diamond, the diamond would shatter.

What are the four C’s that define diamonds?
The four C’s are used to determine the value of a diamond. These are defined as carat, cut, clarity, and color.

• Carat: A carat refers to the mass of a diamond. As the carat weight goes up, the price of the diamond goes up.

• Cut: The cut of a diamond refers to how the diamond was condensed and formed. A cut describes the quality of workmanship and the angles of which a diamond is cut. The more advanced a cut technique, the higher the price of the diamond. Some popular cuts include princess, heart, and baguette.

• Clarity: Clarity is referred to as the amount of defects, or inclusions in a diamond. An inclusion can be anything from an air pocket in a diamond to a fragment of another mineral. Because of the rareness of high clarity diamonds, only 20% of all diamonds have a high enough clarity to be used in jewelry. The other 80% are used in industrial situations.

• Color: A pure and perfectly structured diamond is clear with no hue. Yet, clear diamonds are almost impossible to find, so many diamonds have a slight hue. Because of this rarity, the more clear a diamond is, the more expensive it is.