Surat lab-grown diamonds (LGDs) will add a sparkling glitter to the romantic story in America this Valentine’s Day. Jewelers in Surat are putting in extra hours to fulfil Valentine’s Day orders from the US, particularly for lab-grown heart-shaped solitaires, which are in high demand to convey feelings in hard financial times.
Although heart-shaped diamonds are the ultimate expression of love, experts claim that purchasing real rocks would cost between $8,000 and $10,000. (Rs. 6.5 lakh-8.25 lakh approx). The cost of a natural diamond is double by the waste created when trying to carve a flawless heart shape.
“The demand for LGD solitaires has doubled in a year. Due to price drop, LGD has become further affordable for customers even as profits have dropped for the manufacturers,” according to LGD Association President Babu Vaghani.
The US is the largest market for diamond jewellery, and as a result, natural diamond consumers there are switching to LGD choices due to inflation.
As a result, production of Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD), which was just 2.5 lakh carats last year, has reached 5 lakh carats. High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) and CVD technologies are used to manufacture lab-grown diamonds (LGD), with CVD being the favoured method for solitaires.
These diamonds are also conflict-free.
Diamonds mined in a conflict zone and sold to finance and legitimise violence, hostilities, or war efforts are known as blood diamonds. The best examples of blood diamonds would be those that were mined during the civil wars in Sierra Leone, the Ivory Coast, and Angola.
Many illegally operated mines in Western Africa have extracted stones while simulating slavery and with the assistance of children. Blood diamonds are gems that come from regions where these types of actions are frequent. These illegal diamond trades are used to fund war in areas that are already at war.
Real diamonds can be found in both mined and lab-grown forms. They are actually certified diamonds. The Gemmological Institute of America may grade and certify all bloodless diamonds, just like they do with mined diamonds.