Smoky quartz is found throughout the world! Commonly known locations include China, Greece, United States, Germany, Australia, Morocco, Namibia, Italy, Brazil, Malawi, Romania, Switzerland and the Ukraine. If you come across a large citrine plate or crystal that is relatively low in cost, it’s likely too good to be true. The heat treating will turn the amethyst or smoky quartz (dependent on location) a deep orange color, while natural citrine is orange-yellow in color. There are a lot of heat treated smoky quartz and amethyst crystals that are on the market. Natural smoky quartz is very common, while natural citrine is considered to be quite rare. Smoky quartz most commonly gains its color from irradiation or impurities, while citrine gains its color from the heat of its environment. While they can be identical in chemical composition, the process from which they gain their color is different. No, smoky quartz and citrine are not the same. False advertising of “smoky topaz” gems isn’t abnormal, even though there is no such thing as smoky topaz. Topaz is more rare and expensive than quartz which can be problematic in jewelry. Topaz is also a silicate mineral, though its common chemical formula is Al2(SiO4)(F,OH)2. Smoky quartz is a silicate with the chemical formula SiO2 and contains aluminum impurities with various free cations. No, smoky quartz and topaz are different minerals. Because artificially exposing quartz to radiation to create smoky quartz mimics natural processes there is no definitive way to know if the color is natural or artificial. Often, this smoky quartz will be devoid of transparency and translucency, appearing completely black and unnatural looking. It’s possible to give quartz a smoky appearance by exposing it to x-rays or radium. Synthetically irradiated smoky quartz will usually fade quicker than natural smoky quartz.Ĭan Smoky Quartz Be Synthetically Created? Occasional UV exposure shouldn’t have any noticeable effect on the average natural smoky quartz crystal. The UV rays from direct sunlight can cause fading following prolonged exposure, however, smoky quartz crystals have been found after laying in the sun for decades, still containing smoky coloration. The fading of color within a smoky quartz crystal can vary dependent on the crystals composition and the locality from which it came from. Will Smoky Quartz Fade If Exposed To Sunlight? The amount of radioactivity in would not be any health concern and would be less than the background radiation in a typical city. More often than not, the surrounding rock contains more radioactive elements than the smoky quartz itself. While radioactivity is often considered to be the driving force in smoky quartz coloration, the radioactive element content within the quartz is usually in very small amounts. These cations have typically been found to be Hydrogen (H+), Lithium (Li+) or Sodium (Na+), likely depending on whichever is present at the time of formation. To balance out the charge created by this replacement, free cations are naturally incorporated into the crystal lattice, forming what’s known as a “color center”. From a technical standpoint, aluminum atoms will replace silicon atoms to form - instead of SiO2. Amethyst forms in a similar fashion just the impurities are iron instead of aluminum. The more radiation the crystals are exposed to, the darker the smoky quartz. The natural radiation will activate “color centers” around the aluminum impurities. The dark color of smoky quartz is caused by a combination of irradiation (exposure to natural radiation inside the earth) and aluminum impurities within the crystals.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |