What is the melting and boiling point of diamond? Does the mineral exist in molten form in the natural environment? We will deal with the search for the answer to these and other questions in the material presented.
How did diamonds form in the bowels of the earth?
According to scientists, diamonds could appear during the formation of the planet's core as a result of exposure to molten magma of tremendous pressure. Gemstones advanced to the surface areas of the earth's crust due to the processes of gas formation in deep rocks. As a result, the so-called diamond tubes were formed, which are voids in stony soil with large deposits of mineral.
Material properties
Before figuring out what is the melting point of diamond, let's look at the properties of the mineral:
- Diamonds have the highest hardness among all existing minerals. For this reason, no material can destroy the structure of diamond or scratch its surface. He himself can damage any physical object.
- Diamond is a highly efficient insulator. It is resistant to acids and other aggressive chemical environments.
- Diamond has the highest thermal conductivity among all solid minerals. The gem can be held in the palm of your hand as much as you like. At the same time, its temperature will remain unchanged.
- Diamond has a unique luminescence. Light rays of any origin when passing through a mineral make it shine brightly and shimmer with all the colors of the rainbow.
Structure
In fact, a diamond is made up of carbon atoms. However, each of them is located in the central part of the tetrahedron - a polyhedron that is formed of four planes of a triangle. This ensures an extremely strong bond of atoms. This explains the highest hardness, as well as the impressive melting point of diamond.
Diamond Melting Conditions
In 2010, in the course of physics experiments, the laboratory of the University of California, located in Berkeley, determined the level of temperature influence on the diamond, which leads to its melting. Scientists have found that it is impossible to transform the material into liquid form under ordinary conditions, regardless of the level of heating. This goal can only be achieved by exposing the diamond to not only temperature, but also the highest pressure. It is necessary to increase the pressure so that the mineral does not turn into graphite. Thus, the transition of diamond into liquid form is an extremely difficult process.
What is the melting point and boiling point of diamond?
According to the data obtained during the study of the properties of the material, its melting in high-pressure airspace occurs when it is heated to 850-1000
. The diamond can be brought to boiling by influencing it with a temperature from 1800 to 2000
in vacuum. In both cases, when cooling, the mineral is converted to graphite.
Establishing what is the melting temperature of diamond, scientists conducted experiments using a small natural mineral, the mass of which was 1/10 of a carat. Boiling of material surfaces occurred under the influence of a shock wave created due to short-term laser pulses.
To establish what indicator equals the melting temperature of diamond (in degrees), the researchers succeeded only in creating a pressure that was 40 million times higher than the normal atmospheric pressure at sea level. With a decrease in pressure to 11 million atmospheres, solid particles began to form on the surface of the boiling mineral, which do not sink, but float like ice in water.
Where are diamonds found in the earth's crust?
These minerals are extremely rare. However, today industrial deposits are being developed on almost all continents of the globe. The only exception is Antarctica.
Until the middle of the 19th century, it was believed that minerals formed in river sediments. Later, the first diamond-bearing cavities were discovered in rocky mountain soil at a depth of several hundred meters.
According to scientists, the age of some diamonds ranges from 100 million to 2.5 billion years. Researchers managed to get more “older” minerals of unearthly origin. The latter are brought to the planet along with meteorites that formed in outer space even before the formation of the solar system.
Do diamonds exist in molten form in vivo?
The melting point of diamond is so high that on Earth the mineral can no longer exist in boiling form. However, how are things with space objects? According to scientists, the melting point of diamond to this day is maintained in the bowels of such planets as Neptune and Uranus. It is noteworthy that the latter are 10% formed from carbon, which is the structural basis of this mineral.
According to many scientists, on the above planets there are whole oceans of diamonds in liquid, boiling form. Such a hypothesis explains why the magnetic field of these celestial bodies behaves so strangely. After all, Neptune and Uranus are the only planets in the solar system, in which the geographic poles do not have a clear position and are literally spaced in space. To confirm an interesting hypothesis, it remains only to simulate similar conditions on Earth experimentally. However, such a solution at the moment remains extremely expensive and time-consuming. Therefore, it is not yet possible to determine for sure whether or not nearby oceans have whole oceans of diamonds in molten form.