So I'd really like some explanation of this tidbit:
"According to the official news agency, ITAR-Tass, the diamonds at Popigai are "twice as hard" as the usual gemstones, making them ideal for industrial and scientific uses."
Oh really? I'm familiar with different crystal structure or impurities that can make some diamonds 10 - 25% harder than gemstone class diamonds but 100% harder? That is a new one for me.
And I agree with others a trillion carets of diamond where the largest crystal is .1 caret is not as big a deal where you get 1 - 10 caret diamonds in there as well.
"It is not a diamond. Hardness of this phase (lonsdaleite) 1.54 times higher than that of diamond,
and since we have here a nanosized crystallites of cubic diamond and lonsdaleite - it is very sticky matrix
that defines high performance Popigai impactites. Lonsdaleite share in some specimens can reach 70%, "- said the official.
"According to the official news agency, ITAR-Tass, the diamonds at Popigai are "twice as hard" as the usual gemstones, making them ideal for industrial and scientific uses."
Oh really? I'm familiar with different crystal structure or impurities that can make some diamonds 10 - 25% harder than gemstone class diamonds but 100% harder? That is a new one for me.
And I agree with others a trillion carets of diamond where the largest crystal is .1 caret is not as big a deal where you get 1 - 10 caret diamonds in there as well.