For diamonds to form naturally, three things are required: carbon, heat, and pressure. Early attempts at creating synthetic diamonds tried to mimic these conditions in order to create diamonds, but recent advances in diamond synthesis have brought about new techniques that don’t require significant pressure or as much heat. Three main methods of diamond synthesis are in use today. They are: HPHT (high pressure, high temperature), CVD (chemical vapor deposition), and detonation of explosives. HPHT Modern HPHP diamonds are created with an apparatus called a BARS system. Invented in 1989, the BARS is filled with oil, which is then heated in order to pressurize a central cell that contains the material needed to create a diamond. The central cell is also heated by a coaxial graphite heater. Previous HPHT apparatuses included a belt press, cubic presses, and many manual processes that involved the heating and then rapid cooling of charcoal, though the latter has not been reproduced. CVD Chemical Vapor Deposition as a process of synthesizing diamonds has been the subject of much research worldwide. This method of diamond creation has a few very desirable traits, including: • The ability to grow diamond over large areas • The ability to grow diamond on a substrate • Control over the properties of the diamond produced CVD is the only way to make diamonds suitable for some applications, including lenses for high-powered lasers and heat sinks for electronics. Detonation of Explosives When carbon-containing explosives are detonated in a metal container and the container subsequently cooled, nanodiamonds may be produced. These nanodiamonds are used for industrial purposes such as high-grade polishes.
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