Zircon is a kind of ore whose appearance is very similar to that of diamond. Even some gem-grade zircon is difficult to distinguish from diamonds, but the price of zircon is much cheaper than diamonds. Some unscrupulous merchants even use zircon as diamonds. What's the difference between zircon and diamond? How do ordinary people distinguish diamonds from zircon with the naked eye?
What's the difference between diamond and zircon?
Although diamonds and zircon are similar in appearance, there are still some differences in essence.
Zircon is anisotropic and has birefringence, while diamond is isotropic. The specific gravity of diamond is 3.52, while that of zircon is above 4.2. The hardness of diamond is 10, while the hardness of zircon is 8; Zircon has similar luster on all sides, and "fire color" is not as beautiful as diamond.
These essential differences have been tested by professionals or compared by professionals, but how can ordinary consumers distinguish zircon from diamond when purchasing? Let's teach you some ways to distinguish diamonds from zircon with the naked eye.
Distinguish diamonds from zircon with the naked eye
For example, observing the cross section, it is zircon with potholes and small holes; Observing dispersion and luster, zircon is dull and dazzling in dispersion; The water-holding method is that zircon is easy to disperse on the surface of gemstones; Breathing method, slow water vapor dissipation, zircon earrings and other methods. In addition to the above methods, there are also these methods to identify zircon and diamond with the naked eye:
1. Try to observe the point-to-point connection of kite surface or triangular star surface to see if it is pointed or round and asymmetrical. Because of the high hardness of diamond, the rhombic line is always sharp after polishing, while cubic zirconia (square zircon) has low hardness, so the rhombic water chestnut is usually round and blunt.
2. Looking at it with a magnifying glass, zircon has birefringence, and most of it will have faceted ghosts, while diamonds are single refraction without faceted ghosts.
3. Using the different refractive indices of the two gemstones, the diamond only reflects weak yellow and blue light when rotating. But if it is zircon, it will reflect more colored light when it rotates, which is obviously different.
The above is the method introduced by Xiao Ju to distinguish diamonds from zircon with naked eyes. In fact, the easiest way is to look at the certificate. At present, most diamonds have internationally recognized gia certificates, which can be obtained from merchants when purchasing. If you are in doubt about the certificate, you can go to gia official website for verification.