What Are Diamonds Used For

About Diamond

Diamond is the hardest known natural material in existence. Formed from tremendous heat and pressure, diamonds have a rigid tetrahedral crystalline structure of pure carbon with many important properties that make them valuable for many different uses. Valuable diamond characteristics include:

• Hardness: As the hardest natural substance, diamond is prized for its ability to work with other materials without breaking, though the crystalline structure can be brittle under the right circumstances.
• Temperature Tolerance: Diamond’s melting point is an incredible 6,420 degrees Fahrenheit, which makes it suitable for use in very hot conditions that would destroy other materials.
• Optical Dispersion: Because diamond has a high optical dispersion index (its index of refraction is 2.33), it can reflect and refract light with great accuracy and precision. This makes it extremely valuable for delicate operations as well as enhances its beauty when properly cut.

So What are Diamonds Used For?

With such valuable properties, it is no surprise that diamond is used in a number of different ways.

Jewelry

The jewelry industry is the most familiar and obvious use of diamonds. Diamond is the most popular choice for engagement rings and wedding rings that use gemstones, and it is also used in a number of other types of jewelry, including stud earrings, tennis bracelets, pendants, necklaces, charms, and more. The stone’s crystalline structure allows it to be cut into a number of diamond shapes to match different style preferences, and the high optical dispersion makes it beautiful when used with any type of metal, including silver, gold, platinum, tungsten, titanium, and more.

Industry

Diamond drills are durable and strong.

Aside from jewelry, diamonds also have a wide variety of different industrial uses. In fact, only one in five diamonds mined is considered suitable for use in jewelry, and the remaining 80 percent of diamonds – called “bort” – are used for purposes such as:

• Abrasive slurries to cut and polish other materials, including other gemstones.
• Cutting and grinding tools such as drill bits and saws.
• Engraving tools with detailed precision for fine engraving work.
• Coatings for files.
• Semiconductor coatings and materials for microchips and computer processors.
• Laser components for precise and durable optical equipment.

Economics

The diamond industry is responsible for billions of dollars of economic trade annually, giving diamonds a very practical economic use. In addition to diamond miners, diamond buyers, jewelers, and jewelry designers, many other people base their livelihood on the health of the diamond industry. Many countries derive a significant portion of their trade from diamond mines, including Canada, Australia, and various African nations.

Some diamond economic uses are not commendable, however. Conflict diamonds and blood diamonds are illegally mined and traded diamonds that are often acquired through theft or coercion and are used to fund insurgent and terrorist activities. Many countries, however, have joined various coalitions and signed treaties to eradicate the trade of conflict stones and end this illegitimate use.

Future diamond uses?

Future Diamond Uses

There can be no discussion of the question “what are diamonds used for” without acknowledging that these precious stones are becoming increasingly valuable in the world economy and assorted industries. As companies such as Gemesis and Apollo Diamonds perfect ways to create artificial diamonds of ever increasing size, the uses for these valuable stones become more numerous. When the technology becomes more readily available, diamonds may one day be used for:

• Artificial joints and prosthetics, surgical tools, and other medical applications
• Refined acoustic materials
• Communication cables and equipment
• Additional computer components

What are diamonds used for? With the valuable properties of these incredible gemstones and the increasing technological capabilities of harnessing those properties, one day the question may be “what aren’t diamonds used for?”.