The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-10-13
Manufacture OF Diamonds.

The London Standard says that M.
Moissan's discovery of a method of
manufacturing diamonds has naturally
attracted the attention of chemists,
who are assiduously laboring to i'm
prove on the process; and though it is
admitted that much time and labor
viii have to be expended before mar
ketable sized jewels can be produced
their production seems to be somewhat
confidently anticipated. If so it will
be unfortunate for the possessors of
fortunes in these stones. But it has
long been believed that in time the
secret of nature-how to produce dia-
rnonds-wouid be solved. NJ. Mossan,
it seems, hit on the idea that if the
ordinary forms of carbon could be
converted into a liquid or gas, they
might then be made to solidify as dia-
naonds; but the point was, how to con-
vert the carbon? The inventor, it is
! explained. took advantage of the
property possessed by melted iron of
absorbing and diffusing carbon
throughout its mass. He saturated
the highly heated iron with carbon by
infusing into it a quantity of purified
sugar. BY suddenly cooling the melted
metal. he formed a solid crust over
the still liquid interior. As the mass
continued to cool, the interior grad
ually solidified; but it was prevented
from expanding by the rigid exterior.
The interior was thus compelled to
soli6ify under enormous pressure.
During the process of hardening the
carbon solicited in part as diamond"
Usually graphite is formed ty
cooling of melted iron, and it thus APP
nears that the transformation of
graphite into diamond depends en-
fireIy upon the infusion of the puri-
lied sugar. Having got so far, 1t
seems not unreasonable to believe
that nj. Moissan and his fellow labor
ers in the field of science-one which
alchenists have sought to explore for
centuries past-will go still farther.
In the New York World Edison,
telling how he had not been able to
make a diamond. though he had
turned out colorless rubies by the
pound. the same to be used for me-
chanical purposes, said:
s'It is only a short time since these
artificial rubies were being sold
throughout the jewelry trade of the
zrcrld as the natural stones. Nobody
suspected them until some one detec-
ted the fact that they contained
bubble that difIered in shape from
the bubble in the natural stone Then
an investigation followed, AID it was
found that. they were all turned out
by syndicate IN Paris, where the
manufacture Of ruoies had come to
be q regular trade. 1 understand
that Tiffany, in New York was de-
ceived by them and had sold large
quantities, FOR all of which the
money had TO be refunded. The deal
ers came back on the Paris manufac-
turers and made them disgorge some
of their profits
''Can you make diamonds and emer-
alds?'
Il believe it would be possible to
make the emerald as easily as the ruby
but not the diamond. Nobody knows
how q diamond is made. 1t is Snys-
terry. Diamonds. however, are of no
use except for their cutting qualities.
and the black diamond, which is not
used for ornament, but is ln6re val
liable than the white or clear diamond.
is harder than the latter. more val
liable and more costly. 1t wos1 be a
great thing to be able to make black
diamonds. See how they could be
used in rock drills, which would thel,
become cheapes and effect a great
economy in mining and engineering
works. There is no substance that IS
as hard as the black diamond When
they want to cut a white diamond
they get a black diamond to do il
with
Mr. Edison was asked If it wouId
not pay some clever chemical inventor
to devote his time, az did the ancient
alchen11sts, to trying to find a way to
make gold and precious stones. He
replied that there would be little
money N it.