Diamond is the most glamorous gemstone on Earth. Not only materialistic value but diamonds also holds an immense aesthetic value. A diamond is metaphorically symbolical of truth, purity, and charity. But with the onset of adulteration in every other sphere of life, fake gems have flooded the market. Since the top costliest diamond in the world are among the most expensive gemstones on the planet, it is pretty evident that you won’t prefer to buy something unworthy. Thus, it is vital to internalize how to check the purity of the diamond before investing in it.
How to Find Out Whether a Diamond is Real or Fake
Here are some of the most trustworthy tests you can perform to check whether a diamond is real or fake.
Breath Test, a.k.a Fog Test (Do Diamonds Fog when you breathe on them)
This is the most common and easy-to-perform test to check the purity of diamonds. It is a quick way of verifying diamond authenticity. You can perform this test both on mounted and loose diamonds. The process is simple. First, clean the diamond thoroughly. Now hold it at a distance of 1 cm from your mouth cavity. Now breathe out over the diamond, just like fogging glass or mirror. If the diamond is a real piece, it will not fog up. The reason is that diamonds are great heat conductors and do not hold the fog. If the diamond has the fog for at least a few seconds, chances are high that it is a fake one.
Floating Test, a.k.a Water Test (How to Test a Diamond with Water)
This is the quickest way to check the authenticity of loose diamonds. The test involves only one single step. You just have to place the diamond piece in a glass of water. Now observe the motion of the diamonds – whether it floats or sink. Natural diamond has a higher density; by the laws of physics, they should sink and settle at the bottom of the water-filled glass. However, if you observe that the diamond is floating on the water’s surface instead of sinking, it is a fake one. The floating tests are unreliable since some fake diamonds are carefully crafted to have a higher density and may sometimes sink to the bottom.
Ice and Fire Test
You must have heard that diamond is one of the most robust materials on the planet. Ice, fire, or any other normal mechanical force cannot cause any damage to a natural diamond. The ice and fire test puts the diamond’s mettle to the test. For this test, take a loose diamond and pick it up with the help of f tweezer. Now pass it through a candle flame. Hold the diamond intact in the flame for 30 seconds. Now immediately dip it in a bowl full of chilled ice. Passing a material through fire and ice creates an alternative wave of expansion and contraction. Since natural diamonds are incredibly robust, this physical stress will not cause any damage to them. But, if the diamond is fake, the fire and ice test will immediately cause cracks.
Test for Refractivity
Diamonds are one of the best refracting agents occurring naturally. It has an inherent property to bend rays of light firmly when they pass through it. A beam of light, when it passes through a genuine diamond piece, bends strongly or gets highly refracted. This refraction property is absent in fake diamonds. So, this test becomes ideal for checking a diamond wearing benefits and authenticity. There are usually two ways that you can perform it:
Dot Method
Take a white sheet of paper and draw a dot in the center of the paper with the help of a pen that bears very good-quality ink. Now place the diamond right over the dot. If the diamond is natural, you won’t be able to visualize the dot, but if it is fake, you will see a reflection of the dot through the diamond piece.
Newspaper Method (Newspaper Test Diamond)
Place the diamond in an upside-down position over a newspaper. Like the previous method, if you can see a reflection of the newspaper writing through the diamond, it is probably fake. You won’t be able to see any newspaper writing through the diamond piece if it is accurate. Both of these tests use the same principle of refraction.
Wrapping it Up
Diamonds are precious and cost high. With these tests, you can quickly discover whether it is accurate or fake and save yourself from buying the wrong ones with the help of diamond jewellery buying guide . The good news is that you do not always have to rush to the gemologist for these tests. When conducting these tests, it is always better to carry out more than one at a go to double-cross-check the purity of the diamond. It is not authentic if any diamond piece fails one or more of the above-mentioned tests.
