List of synthetic/artificial compounds

Here is a list of artificial compounds and synthetic minerals, I'm not discussing imitations which is another concern.

-plastic (and resins)
-glass (and ceramics)
-Cubic Zirconia (cubic zirconium dioxide made though Skull crucible method)
-strontium titanate (Verneuil flame fusion method)
-synthetic rutile (titanium oxide, made through Verneuil flame fusion method)
-moissanite (silicium carbide, made though fusions process, CVD or PVT method, or flux method)
-YAG (yttrium aluminium garnet, made through Czochralski pulling method)
-GGG (gadolinium gallium garnet, made through Czochralski pulling method)
-synthetic diamond (HTHP or CVD method)
-synthetic quartz, in many colors (hydrothermal or flux synthesis method)
-synthetic emerald and synthetic beryl in many colors (flux or hydrothermal synthesis method)
-synthetic spinel (Verneuil flame fusion method, Czochralski pulling method, and flux method)
-synthetic corundum (several existing processes: Verneuil flame fusion method, Czochralski pulling method, Kyropoulos method, Heat Exchanger method, Floating zone method, flux synthesis method, and hydrothermal synthesis method)
-synthetic chrysoberyl and alexandrite (Czochralski pulling method or flux method)
-synthetic forsterite (synth. magnesium silicate made through Czochralski pulling method, blue is used as an imitation of tanzanite).
-synthetic opal (colloidal synthesis sedimentation process, possibly different kind of fabrications)
-synthetic turquoise (ceramic type, sintered copper aluminium phosphate CuAl6[(OH)2|PO4]4.4H2O
-synthetic lapis (ceramic type, sintered sodium aluminium silicate with sulfur Na8(AlSiO4)6S2


Topaz (hydrothermal method), Zircon (Flux method, very small crystals) and Tourmaline (hydrothermal method, very small crystals) have been synthetized experimentally but these have not been commercialized.
Synthetic jadeite has been produced experimentally but was not commercialized, and to my knowledge nephrite has not been synthetised.
At the present time, tanzanite has not been synthesized.


there are many existing artificial compounds and many minerals have been synthesized, however all aren't to be found on the gem market. Here are a few curiosities:
baryum sulfate, baryum titanate, bismuth-germanium oxide, langasite, lithium fluoride, lithium niobate (linobate), lithium tantalate, strontium titanate, manganese fluoride, rubidium-manganese fluoride, silicium, YAGG, YIG, YALO (aka YAP), SGG, EGG, YGG, Yttralox, S3C2PF, synthetic apatite, synthetic zincite, synthetic fluorite, synthetic wurtzite, synthetic hematite, synthetic sodalite, synthetic sphalerite, synthetic stolzite, synthetic powellite, synthetic greenockite, synthetic scheelite, synthetic periclase, synthetic fresnoite, synthetic cassiterite, synthetic bromellite, synthetic eulytite, synthetic stibiotantalite, synthetic perovskite, synthetic gahnite, synthetic wulfenite, synthetic calcite, synthetic chalcanthite, synthetic cuprite, etc...

Here's a place with lots of weird artificial stuff:
[www.surfacenet.de]

PS: if one needs informations about treatments of a specific gemstone, which is a different matter, I would highly recommend reading the following book:
Gemstone enhancement, by Kurt Nassau, second edition (1994)



Edited 22 time(s). Last edit at 01/25/2013 06:54PM by el cascaillou.

sweet list..I will use this as a reference in the future for sure..please add or post anymore info as it comes along
Is this cascaillou from GO?

yes it's me
just wanted to share the information I already posted there with the mindat community, as I thought that could be useful to mineral collectors too.


Additional note about synthetics and how mineral collectors could be affected:
not all the synthetics occur as crystals, flux and hydrothermal grown synthetics do show crystalline facets, but synthetics grown by fusion processes (verneuil, czochralski..) occur as single rounded masses known as 'boules'.
However, it happened that such 'boule' would be cut in the shape of a natural looking crystal, which was then glued into a natural or reconstitued matrix, or rounded to look like alluvial.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 11/28/2011 04:39AM by el cascaillou.