Difference Between Natural and Lab Created Emeralds

Natural vs Lab Created Emeralds

Natural and lab created emeralds are green-colored gemstones which are the same in appearance in composition. They are both made under the same conditions, and differ only in the place of production and the tools used. Looking closely, you can’t immediately distinguish the natural emerald from a lab created emerald.

Natural Emeralds

Natural emeralds are, of course, created in nature. In certain parts under the earth’s crust, when high-temperature water happen to deposit and condense beryllium with a slight amount of chromium, emeralds start to form. Chromium is what makes the emerald green; the higher the concentration of chromium, the darker shade of green. Because of some impurities stuck inside the emerald, it is more prone to breaking.

Lab Created Emeralds

Lab created emeralds are also called synthetic emeralds because they are man-made using specific tools in a controlled environment that mimics the conditions found in nature that causes the formation of emeralds. Lab created emeralds cannot be labeled as fake; in fact they are as genuine as the natural emeralds because they are made up of the same minerals and concocted in the same manner.

Difference between Natural and Lab Created Emeralds

Natural emeralds are formed out of the incidental combination of the right amount of minerals and heat in nature. On the other hand, special conditions are set in laboratories with the intention of synthesizing emeralds. This process can be sped up, so lab created emeralds are formed faster than natural emeralds. Because it is time-saving, lab created emeralds are less expensive as opposed to the natural emeralds which take a great deal of time and effort to find. Natural emeralds are also unique due to imperfections in design, while lab created emeralds are hand-crafted so as to contain no irregularities.

In essence, natural and lab created emeralds have no significant differences except only in their price, so it may depend on what you are after: the appearance or sentimental value.

In brief: • Natural emeralds are formed under the earth’s crust without the aid of technology. • Labs created emeralds are made in controlled laboratories following the same conditions in nature which allow the formation of emeralds.