According to Oddycentral, China has recently created a three-carat diamond from carbon elements derived from a flower. It is the red peony flower. This is considered the first diamond in the world to be made in this way. The diamond was made by Chinese scientists in the city of Luoyang, Henan Province (China). The diamond was donated to the Luoyang National Peony Garden by Luoyang Time Promise, a company specializing in artificial diamonds.
Late last month, Luoyang’s peony garden agreed to provide the peony flowers to the diamond company to create the unique diamond. Among them, there is a peony flower from a tree that is nearly 50 years old.
The three-carat diamond made from red peony flowers in China. Photo: Chinadaily
Wang Jing, CEO of Luoyang Time Promise, said: “The diamond is worth 300,000 NDT (equivalent to more than 1 billion VND). It is made from peonies using our carbon extraction technology of biogenetics, subject to high pressure, temperature and then cultivated“.
This is the first time in the world that a diamond has been created from red peony flowers. Photo: Chinadaily
In fact, the technology used to make carbon elements derived from peony flowers into diamonds is quite complex. But the company in Luoyang revealed that these carbon elements are from many different sources (including hair, bones and even flowers). They are extracted in a specially designed device to break the chemical bonds between the carbon atoms. Finally, these elements are recombined into a diamond structure and a truly special diamond is formed.
Why are diamonds expensive?
Diamond is not a “scarce” material but its price is very expensive. Photo: Thecollector
According to Allied Market Research, the global diamond market was valued at USD 100.4 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach USD 155.5 billion by 2032. Notably, this forecast also indicates an annual growth rate of 4.5% from 2023 – 2032.
In fact, Russia is considered the largest producer of rough diamonds in the world, with nearly 42 million carats mined in 2022. After Russia, Botswana and Canada rank second and third in the world, with 24.8 million carats and 16.2 carats respectively.
Diamonds are mined in the rough for tens of millions of tons/year, but their value remains very high. According to De Beers, the world’s largest diamond company, diamonds were used by South Africans as savings deposits in banks hundreds of years ago. The reason is that South Africa has the world’s leading diamond reserves.
However, uneven distribution or physical scarcity is not the main reason why diamonds are so expensive. Instead, according to experts, high mining costs, the influence of monopoly, and issues related to legitimacy are the reasons why diamonds are so expensive.
But in fact, not all diamonds are expensive. Because the value of a diamond is defined by the 4 Cs, including: weight (carat), clarity, color, and cut (the number and way in which the diamond is cut). This is also the reason why diamonds used in jewelry are more expensive than those used in other industries.
Specifically, it can take decades and the involvement of hundreds of people to find a diamond mine with enough reserves for industrial mining. Moreover, to extract one carat of diamond (equivalent to 0.2 grams), according to experts, the average amount of rock that must be dug and screened is up to 1.3 million tons.
Article references source: Oddycentral, De Beers, Allied Market Research
