Synthetic Emerald

 

The (emerald) green variety is the only one which is manufactured synthetically on an industrial scale. Production has been attempted by a number of companies, some of which have subsequently abandoned the task as uneconomical.


Appearance It is usually quite a strong emerald green, with a bluish tinge, and, as with natural emeralds, the step or trap cut is normally used, mixed oval or pear-shaped cuts being rarer. Cut stones are generally quite limpid, although stones of this quality take longer to grow. All in all, their outward appearance is very similar, it not identical, to that of their natural counterparts.


Distinctive features It was mentioned in the discussion on physical properties that accurate measurement could reveal differences between the refractive indices, birefringence, and density of natural emeralds and the synthetic ones produced by the flux melt process. The stones are normally distinguished, however, by their inclusions.

In the case of hydrothermal synthetic emeralds, these are not very different from some inclusions in natural emeralds, but they are "oddly" arranged in relation to the growth lines and are also positioned like mirror images of one another on either side of a thin central plate constituting the seed onto which the synthetic product was grown. Emeralds produced by the flux melt process contain variable quantities of swirling, veillike inclusions consisting of whitish residues of flux material trapped in cracks that developed during their formation. But it is admittedly not easy to distinguish between synthetic and natural emeralds without a good microscope, a lens alone often proving inadequate.

Cost The cost of stones with few inclusions is quite high, equal to certain prized secondary gems, but much lower than that of natural emeralds. Stones with copious inclusions are worth somewhat less, but are still among the highest-priced synthetic stones.

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