One thing we all know about diamonds is how hard they are, which makes them perfect to use as an abrasive. Most industrial diamonds are used for the purpose of an abrasive. Common examples include using small particles of diamond and embedding them into saw blades, drill bits and grinding wheels. These tools with diamonds are then used for cutting, drilling or grinding hard materials. Another similar use for diamonds as an abrasive is grinding the diamond into a fine powder and turn it into “diamond paste” that is used for very fine grinding or polishing.
Diamonds Used to Cut & Polish Diamonds
The only material to cut and polish a diamond is another diamond, so gem cutters for centuries have been honing this process. However, now in the 21st century, gem cutters can use lasers to cut many diamonds, which helps. But small particles of diamond are still used for all diamond polishing. One great type of diamond for this process is the cardbonado diamond, which still has the same hardness as a diamond, but is much tougher because they are polycrystalline.
Synthetic Diamonds as Abrasives
In general, there is more of a demand for industrial diamonds worldwide than can be obtained and supplied through mining. The mining of diamonds was quick and ferocious and a shortage of diamond abrasives happened during the 1940’s. Then, in the 1950’s, there was a discovery of methods of producing synthetic diamonds.
It was long after this discovery that the methods of making synthetic diamonds became so efficient that synthetic diamond abrasives were more reliably available. On top of that, synthetic diamonds were less expensive than diamond abrasives made from natural diamonds.
Today, synthetic diamond abrasives are made in hundreds of factories around the world with a general cost of under $1 per carat. These diamonds perform just as well as abrasives from natural diamonds in industrial use. And are the backbone of the diamond tool manufacturing industry.
Other Uses of Diamonds
In general, most industrial diamonds are used as abrasives. However, there are other uses and applications for diamonds. This is due to their properties, which includes being transparent, very durable, and great resistance to heat and abrasion. Diamonds are used to cover openings in lasers, x-ray machines, and vacuum chambers. There are also diamond windows, which are made from thin diamond membranes.
High-quality speakers might use diamond speaker domes in order to enhance the performance of the speaker. Diamonds are a stiff material, so when they are made into a thin dome, it can vibrate rapidly without the deformation that would degrade the sound quality.
Then there are heat sinks, which are materials that absorb or transmit excess heat. Of any material on earth, diamonds have the highest thermal conductivity. This feature makes them the perfect material to use to conduct heat away from the heat-sensitive parts of the high-performance microelectronics.
Tiny mechanical devices need low-friction micro bearings, which is a way to use synthetic diamonds and utilize their properties. If any sort of device needs extreme abrasion resistance, durability, and reliability, the use of diamonds is front and center.
And wear-resistant parts can be produced by coating surfaces with a thin coating of diamond. During this process, carbon is converted into a vapor that then deposits diamond on the surface of the parts that are more prone to wear. So the diamond offers the best protection possible and reduces wear.
Contact Lieber & Solow Today
Lieber & Solow has been operating in the diamond industry since 1927 and offer customers the best in industrial diamonds. Our headquarters is based in New York City and we ship globally. Over the years, we have become one of the world’s leading suppliers of natural industrial diamonds. Get in touch with us today to learn more about our industrial diamonds.
On top of being a supplier of industrial diamonds, we also supply a full line of materials to diamond tool manufacturers. Get the best in industrial diamonds today when you turn to Lieber & Solow!