Diamond is one of the most popular and most-sought-after gemstones in the jewelry world. It is used to produce elegant engagement rings. It is one of the polymorphs of Carbon, and its atoms come in a crystal structure otherwise known as diamond cubic. Generally, it is the ultimate abrasive and serves as an excellent electrical insulator. Also, it is a transparent element, and it crystallizes in the isometric system.
In terms of hardness, using the Mohs scale of hardness, it is rated at 10. That means that it is one of the hardest gemstones that naturally exist in the earth’s core. Its hardness entirely depends on orientation, crystalline perfection, and purity.
Its hardness also contributes to its suitability as a gemstone. Also, it can maintain its polish for a prolonged period due to its scratch-resistant nature. That means that it would last as long as you need it to, even if worn daily.
Considering its hardness, you may question whether it is possible to crack a diamond. In this article, we will evaluate how much force you’d require to crush a diamond.
Is it possible to crack a diamond?
No. Diamonds do not crack. Diamonds are well renowned for their strength. Based on how hard they are, they barely crack. Inclusions in diamonds do not always lead to it chipping.
However, if the inclusion is too close to the corner of a princess cut diamond, square or emerald cut diamond, it can make that specific part of the diamond weaker.
Because of this, a diamond setter may accidentally chip off the edges of the loose diamond during the setting process.
Can a diamond crack if dropped?
Sometimes accidents may happen when you take off your engagement ring, especially if you aren’t so careful. You may knock it against a hard surface, or you may drop it on the floor unknowingly.
You may find yourself worrying too much when this happens because you’d think that your diamond ring is gone forever. However, you shouldn’t worry too much because it is unlikely that a diamond would break or crack when you drop it.
Under the most severe circumstances, the diamond on your ring may chip after a hard fall or blow. By hard blow, we mean hitting your diamond at an angle purposefully with a lot of force or dropping it on a concrete surface. If you dropped it on an ordinary floor, it should be fine.
However, when you pick it up, you may see a horizontal line on the diamond. It isn’t a crack. This line occurs due to a phenomenon known as girdle refection, which is caused by pavilion facets. It often looks like a feather inclusion or cracks.
Funny thing, it is always there, but the first time you will notice it is when you first drop your ring.
Can you break a diamond with a hammer?
Yes. A diamond, in fact, can be broken easily using a hammer. The toughness of a diamond is about 2.0 MPa. This level of toughness is pretty decent compared to another gemstone. However, it isn’t the best if compared to other engineering materials. So, if you take a hammer and hit it hard over a diamond, the diamond will certainly break. Now that you know this, you may question the difference between the hardness and the toughness of diamonds.
Hardness refers to diamonds’ vulnerability to scratching, while toughness refers to its susceptibility to breaking. Based on this explanation, we can deduce that diamonds can scratch a steel hammer, but a steel hammer can easily crush a diamond. The internal structure of the diamond is what determines how tough or rigid it is. Let me explain this further.
Diamond’s atomic structure is made from carbon atoms fused to form a diamond cubic lattice structure. The unique lattice structure is the foundation of the diamond’s hardness as it features the highest atoms and bonds.
The compact lattice structure does not allow the carbon atoms to move much. Just for this reason alone, a diamond is hard enough to resist any scratches. However, it cannot absorb impact easily because its atoms are closely packed.
As a result, it creates cleavage where bonds are weaker than others on different diamond parts. So, if your diamond took a hit, it would shatter across its cleavage planes.
Can you break a diamond with your teeth?
The Moh scale of mineral hardness is one of the ranking systems that sort minerals along a 10-point scale. Diamond ranks at level 10 on the scale, meaning it is the hardest mineral in the earth’s core.
For this reason, it can cut through glass and other metals in the Mohs scale.
That said, you cannot break a diamond using your teeth. Your tooth enamel would chip off if you tried to snap a diamond using your teeth.
Can you crush a diamond with pliers?
The answer to this question depends on whether the diamond is real or fake. If you can break a diamond with a pair of pliers, the odds are that it is a counterfeit.
If it doesn’t crack, then it is indeed a real diamond, or you probably have a weak grip. Sometimes, pliers are used to testing the toughness of a diamond.
Can you break a diamond with another diamond?
Generally, any gemstone will break, not just chip, if you hit it hard enough using a tough object.
Diamonds are the hardest metals in the Mohs scale, but they are susceptible to impact from another diamond.
This means that if two diamonds were stored in the same box, they would scratch each other, and if hit against each other, they would break.
Can a bullet break a diamond?
Diamond is harder than lead, which is a soft metal. However, it is not as dense as lead. When a lead bullet hits a target, it is soft enough to flatten on impact.
If someone shot you and hit any piece of diamond jewelry you have on, it might deflect the bullet. In as much so, it may not help you much.
It all depends on the angle that the diamond gets hit. As a result, it may either break or shatter completely.
How much force is required to break a diamond?
A diamond would shatter if hit with any ordinary object that is tough. As mentioned earlier, the toughness of a natural and authentic diamond is measured as 2.0 MPa m1/2, which is quite strong compared to other gemstones such as aquamarine.
However, this isn’t strong enough like most engineering materials.
If used in so-called diamond anvil experiments to generate high-pressure environments, they can withstand crushing pressures above 6 million atmospheres (600 gigapascals).
Overall, diamonds are the strongest mineral and can withstand almost anything. They can only get scratched by another diamond.
Conclusion
Diamonds are certainly one of the hardest gems, making them hard to cut and scratch.
However, they are slightly fragile. For this reason, they are easy to smash when you drop an anvil on it or when using a hammer.
In as much so, you shouldn’t be worried much when you accidentally drop your diamond ring when washing or when cleaning your home.
The chances are that your diamond ring would still be in good condition when you pick it up.
Want to read more diamond topics, please read here or here!
Tiger is a fashion&jewelry lover. He is also a fashion jewelry manufacturer that help thousands of small business to grow and also do business with some big fashion jewelry brands. He is a truly metal expert and he will share some information you are looking for.