What is hydrothermal emerald and where is it used?

Natural gem-quality emerald is very rare in nature, so a unique technology for producing the stone in laboratory conditions was developed.
Human-grown hydrothermal stones should not be confused with artificial ones, since their physical and chemical properties are identical to natural minerals. Due to its affordable cost, hydrothermal emerald is widely used in the jewelry industry. They are inlaid with a variety of gold and silver jewelry: rings, pendants, bracelets, earrings, men's signets, cufflinks. Esotericists and astrologers believe that nanoemerald, despite being grown in specially created conditions, is endowed with healing powers.

Production technology

Nano sapphires and emeralds are jewelry stones, the high quality of which is explained by a special production technology. The purpose of artificial cultivation is to reduce the cost of obtaining high-quality minerals.

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The first gem identical to natural was obtained in 1888 by scientists Perret and Otfel. The proven hydrothermal technology was improved in 1911 by German jewelers. The method of obtaining analogues of natural emeralds was kept secret until 1960.

Features of the technology for growing hydrothermal stones:

1. Autoclaves are used - special ovens divided into cold and hot exposure zones.
2. The seed for obtaining an analogue of natural minerals is a mass of beryl crushed or turned into dust. The raw material is usually left over after processing high quality crystals.
3. Craftsmen add vanadium and chromium to the base raw materials. These chemical elements give the crystals their characteristic emerald color.
4. A mixture of beryl, vanadium and chromium is placed in the hot zone of the autoclave. Here the workpiece dissociates in water. This process takes several days. High temperature is necessary for crystallization.
5. Afterwards, the future gem is introduced into a cold environment using a seed substrate.

In the process of growing hydrothermal emerald, it is possible to regulate the shape, shade, uniformity of color and crystal size. This allows you to obtain gems of reference quality, which are extremely rare in nature and take centuries to form.

Differences between hydrothermal stones and natural ones

An experienced gemologist will find visual differences between minerals. If the specimen is grown in a laboratory, tubular inclusions and microscopic air bubbles will be visualized in its structure. The nanostone may contain a small amount of iron oxide, which cannot be said about a natural crystal.

Interesting! Gems obtained from nature have chips, cracks, and opaque areas, and this is considered normal. Hydrothermal emerald is ideal, since the process of obtaining it is completely controlled by man.

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Hydrothermal emerald, how is it? Synthetic stone is often confused with fake stone made of glass and plastic. But this is fundamentally incorrect: hydrothermal stone is a real analogue. Grown in the laboratory, it demonstrates all the properties of natural stone: color, shine, structure, hardness, transparency. And, if an artificial stone is only an imitation of a precious stone, then a synthesized analogue is a complete repetition, albeit less valuable and cheaper. The basis for a hydrothermal mineral is always natural raw materials. ✔quality ✔trust ✔traditions #kouzvologda #kouzvologda #gold #ring #hydrothermal emerald #jewelry #jewelry #Kostromajewelry factory

A post shared by Kostroma Jewelry Factory (@kouzvologda) on Oct 26, 2021 at 10:42pm PDT

External signs of an artificial gem: are there any differences?

The chemical composition and physical properties of the original and the imitation are identical in almost all respects. It is almost impossible to visually distinguish a synthesized emerald from a natural one. Only an experienced jeweler can handle this task and only carry out analysis in a laboratory if possible.

Hydrothermal gems revolutionized the jewelry world with their appearance and here’s why. Now everyone can afford to buy a magnificent stone that is no different from a real stone at an affordable price.

Artificially grown minerals have several features.

1. Firstly, they differ in the presence of tubular inclusions.
2. Secondly, the composition includes brown iron impurities.

It is impossible to identify a synthetic mineral by eye. They have an identical shape to the original, with minor defects indicating naturalness, including unevenness and barely noticeable cracks. Almost all synthesized gems are green with a hint of blue or dark. They are impeccably transparent and often have visible air bubbles inside them.

Physicochemical characteristics

Nanoemerald has the same physical and chemical properties as natural stone:

• hexagonal system;
• the shade varies from pale green to rich;
• characterized by a conchoidal fracture;
• the mineral is transparent, with a characteristic glassy luster;
• the hardness index on the Mohs scale reaches 8 points;
• the density does not exceed 2.78 g/cm3, therefore it is characterized by fragility;
• It is resistant to temperatures up to 650 degrees Celsius.

Minerals differ in their sensitivity to ultraviolet radiation: natural emerald loses its color saturation with prolonged exposure to rays, while nanostone retains its original appearance.

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How to recognize a fake

When buying jewelry with an emerald, you need to pay attention to how much it costs. After all, even 1-carat jewelry has a high price, so if the seller offers a low price, you should consider whether it is a fake. Before you decide to buy, you can take the crystal in your hand and hold it in your palm for a while. A stone that was grown in a laboratory will quickly gain the heat of your hand and heat up, while a natural crystal will retain its previous temperature.

Regardless of how many carats the stones have: 1 or 10, or maybe more, all of them, when placed in a glass container, will sparkle and spread their radiance everywhere. You can also take a closer look at the stone through a magnifying glass at home. When a light beam passes through a natural stone, it will sparkle with all the colors of the rainbow, which cannot be obtained from a synthetic crystal.

Another test done at home may indicate a fake. The artificial stone will glow orange under an ultraviolet lamp.

But in order to be completely sure of the naturalness of the stone, it is better to conduct a gemological examination. After all, today skilled craftsmen grow high-quality artificial emeralds of 1, 5 and more carats. Therefore, choosing and buying an emerald is not at all difficult, the main thing is that finances allow it.

Application

Hydrothermal emeralds are used in jewelry and industry.

Do you love the perfect shape of a hydrothermal emerald?

Not really

In the jewelry industry

The stone is a valuable raw material for the jewelry industry. Unlike crystal of natural origin, it has a more affordable price. Hydrothermal emerald is inlaid into silver and gold rings, earrings, men's rings, pendants, brooches, cufflinks, and watches. The mineral in products can be combined with cubic zirconia, crystal, sapphires and other gems.

The cost of jewelry with nanoemerald depends on the type of precious metal, the degree of complexity of the jeweler’s work, the presence of other precious stones, and brand recognition.

In industry

Due to its high hardness, it is used in the space industry, electrical engineering, and nuclear energy for the production of various microcircuits and parts of complex mechanisms.

Origin story

Ring with hydrothermal emerald
Hydrothermal emerald is the second precious mineral obtained artificially after ruby. Its first experimental samples were created at the end of the 19th century. Over the course of 50 years, the technology has been constantly improved, trying to reproduce as much as possible the beauty and quality characteristics of natural emerald. As a result, the first gem-quality hydrothermal emerald, called igmerald, was grown in 1930.

From the second half of the twentieth century to the present day, production of artificial emeralds has been opened in many countries around the world. The largest number of them is concentrated in Russia, Thailand, Germany and Italy.

Who is suitable for hydrothermal emeralds?

Stones grown in the laboratory contain natural raw materials. Therefore, hydrothermal crystals are endowed with living energy, used in esotericism and lithotherapy.

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So, friends, let's put everything in its place. First, a little about the synthetics presented earlier. This is the so-called synthetic Chatham emerald, which is a more high-tech imitation of natural emerald than the good old hydrothermal emerald. How does synthetic stone differ from ordinary glass? The fact that in all physical properties - refractive index, density, hardness, character of gloss, etc. - coincides with its natural analogue. The only exception is one column in the description: synthetic, not natural origin. Unlike the hydrothermal method, the cultivation of such emerald occurs in conditions that make it possible to add “naturalness” to the stone: various seemingly natural inclusions and irregularities in the structure. How to recognize such synthetics by eye? To be honest, it's quite difficult. However, there are several signs that should alert you: 1. Excessively “oily” shine, provided the structure is extremely clean and uncracked 2. Look for the “seed”! In stones of decent habit it should already be visible: an extremely uniform flat-shaped whitish formation along the entire length of the stone. This means that in stones over 12 carats it should definitely be visible; in stones of lesser weight its inclusion in the body of the stone can usually be avoided. 3. The nature of the inclusions: the smaller this synthetic stone, the more difficult it is to saturate it with characteristic imperfections - they appear only in a decent size. Therefore, beware of absolutely pure material of small fractions. 4. Listen to your feelings. Sometimes a stone is simply so good that there are two options: either it’s synthetic or very expensive. If it is very expensive, there is always the opportunity to hear the opinion of a specialist. 5. These stones are especially common in European brand jewelry. And finally, the story is akin to how you started looking for the missing line in the description of a stone - instead of first doubting its naturalness. This is called "can't see the forest for the trees." I will tell you how easy it is to build a fraud scheme on this. It happened about 4 years ago and took place in a very famous metropolitan store... (Continued in comments)

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Who is it suitable for?

When choosing jewelry with artificially produced emerald, you need to find out what the energy of the gem means for each zodiac sign. She favors Taurus, Cancer, Leo, Sagittarius, Libra and Pisces.

Interesting! Emerald will help representatives of these signs realize all their endeavors and gain self-confidence. Impulsive individuals will become calmer and more rational in their judgments and actions. It has a neutral effect on representatives of other signs.

Magic properties

Hydrothermal emerald helps maintain peace and prosperity in the family. This means that it is recommended to store products with it in a visible place in your home, because the stone neutralizes negative energy. If you wear jewelry with a gem to an important business meeting, you can achieve success in negotiations. Emerald is a stone of truth, therefore it helps its owner to protect himself from communication with deceivers and dishonest people. In case of anxious thoughts, it helps to cleanse the mind of negativity.

Esotericists use the gem in rituals aimed at healing. Thus, drinking water infused with green crystals helps cleanse the body of toxins, improve immunity and recharge with vigor.

Not suitable for individuals who are characterized by greed, unscrupulousness, and a penchant for scams. Emerald will harm such people, as it will bring only troubles into life.

Can it be used as talismans?

Crystals grown from natural raw materials in the laboratory can be used as talismans. They, like natural minerals, are endowed with healing energy. But there is an opinion that it is not as strong as that of a specimen formed in natural conditions.

When choosing a talisman mineral, you should listen to your feelings. If contact with a stone causes moral discomfort, deterioration of well-being and irritability, such a talisman should not be worn.

What are these stones for?

Technological progress is constantly evolving, opening up vast opportunities for people. Nowadays, reproducing the structure of a natural crystal of any substance is no longer something fantastic and unattainable. Any nanocrystal, at first glance, is indistinguishable from the original, and even the inquisitive eye of a seasoned specialist will not always be able to distinguish a creation of nature from a man-made substance. Of course, they differ from each other, but this can only be noticed with careful analysis - and even then not always.

Natural resources are not unlimited, and sooner or later any of them may run out. There is no such deposit that would forever delight humanity with priceless finds in the form of natural emeralds, rubies and other rare gems. Since many people like to wear expensive jewelry, emerald grown in a laboratory environment is a good and high-quality alternative to a stone of natural origin.

The recrystallized mineral is in good demand, including among experienced jewelry connoisseurs. It perfectly withstands the beveled processing method: from trusted manufacturers you can find excellent specimens in the form of beveled stones, the properties of which are no worse than those of natural minerals.

Hydrothermal emerald, cultivated in laboratories, costs much less than natural emerald. From year to year, the cost of stones found in the bowels of the earth only increases. The point is not only that they are “miraculous,” but also that the process of extracting emeralds itself is very labor-intensive. It may seem strange, but making an artificially grown emerald can take much less time and effort than finding one in the natural environment.

Main conclusions

1. Hydrothermal emerald is an analogue of natural stone, grown from a beryl composition in special equipment.
2. It has physical and chemical properties identical to natural minerals.
3. Only an experienced specialist can distinguish hydrothermal stone from natural stone. Differences can be detected by studying a specimen using a microscope.
4. Used in jewelry and industrial production. Gold and silver jewelry with nano-emerald are characterized by an affordable price and are offered in a wide variety.
5. Despite its laboratory origin, it has healing energy that has a positive effect on humans. Can be used as a talisman. Zodiacally, emerald favors Cancer, Sagittarius, Leo, Taurus, Libra, Pisces.

Share your impressions of this mineral and leave feedback in the comments.

Compatibility

The synthetic mineral is credited with magical powers. Many people use a talisman with this gem to improve their material well-being and improve their health. What exactly does an artificial stone give to representatives of different zodiac signs:

• Aries ensures success in business relationships;
• Gives Taurus energy;
• Protects Gemini from black power;
• Helps Cancers to establish peace of mind and overcome hypertension;
• Lviv will experience a surge of strength;
• For Libra and Virgo, the mineral will help improve their state of mind and get rid of thyroid pathologies;
• Scorpios will pacify their stormy temper;
• Protects Capricorns and Sagittarius from mental anxieties;
• Pisces and Aquarius will experience happiness and success in all endeavors.

Astrologers believe that talismans with this stone are simply necessary for Aries, Libra, Capricorn and Virgo.

Known species

Not all artificial gems are the same in composition and properties. Countries, companies, individual scientists constantly compete, try to use other people's technologies, and come up with something new. Common types of hydrothermal emeralds include:

Biron

It is distinguished by its bright color, close to natural minerals from Colombia. The color is obtained by adding vanadium and chromium. Such products look better in small cuts. In large ones, the play of color is noticeably inferior to natural stone. Now Biron is difficult to find on sale, since it is unprofitable to produce it on an industrial scale.

Chinese

These artificial minerals turn red when exposed to the Chelsea filter. For color, chrome is included.

Malossi

The first samples were obtained about twenty years ago. This invention belongs to the Russian-Thai company TAIRUS. The structure of the hydrothermal product is as close as possible to emerald. The quality of the game does not depend on the size of the decoration. "Malossi" is also rare today, as it has always been produced in small batches. They were sold mainly through the Italian dealer A. Malossi, who gave the stone its name.

Colombian color emerald

Another TAIRUS development. These gems dominate the market today in the expensive segment. They have the best beautiful color and perfect transparency. Most of the characteristics are the same as those of quality Colombian emeralds.

Russian emerald

The most popular among small crystals. Obtained in Novosibirsk, product TAIRUS. Other companies began producing Russian emerald using ready-made technologies. However, their products are usually inferior to TAIRUS products. Developers know the nuances of the methodology, so they are able to better establish the process and make additions.

Benefits of nanoemeralds

Although the characteristics of the synthetic material are the same as those of a natural gem, the price of the former is noticeably lower. In addition, there are a number of other advantages:

• resistance to ultraviolet radiation (natural emerald fades);
• the perfect crystal structure makes the nanomineral stronger and more impact-resistant;
• durability with preservation of color and integrity;
• high degree of transparency (no defects);
• uniform color (no voids).

An important parameter is size . Man can create larger gems than nature. This is due not so much to the duration of the natural process, but to fragility and defects, which is why the nuggets can self-destruct.

It is believed that hydrothermal emerald is inferior in terms of energy field and magical abilities. However, this point is controversial; chiropractors have not reached agreement on this issue.