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The Gem Mineral of Emerald, Aquamarine, Morganite. Home Minerals Beryl. This minor ore of beryllium is one of the most important gem minerals. Aquamarine beryl A spectacular crystal of aquamarine from the Shigar Valley of northern Pakistan. Magnetic/czchart-500x500.jpg' alt='Gem Only' title='Gem Only' />This specimen clearly shows the hexagonal form with terminations and a vivid blue color. The specimen is approximately 1. Specimen and photo by Arkenstone www. Rocks. com. What is Beryl Beryl is a relatively rare silicate mineral with a chemical composition of Be. Al. 2Si. 6O1. 8. It is found in igneous and metamorphic rocks in many parts of the world. Before 1. 96. 9, beryl served as the only important ore of beryllium metal. Since then, most of the worlds supply of beryllium is refined from bertrandite, a beryllium silicate hydroxide, mined at Spor Mountain, Utah. Small amounts of beryl, mostly produced as a by product of gemstone mining, are still used to produce beryllium. The major economic interest in beryl today is its use as a gemstone. It is one of the most important gem minerals, and the gems are named by their color as emerald green, aquamarine greenish blue to blue, morganite pink to orange, red beryl red, heliodor yellow to greenish yellow, maxixe deep blue, goshenite colorless, and green beryl light green. Emerald and aquamarine are the most popular. DS0-SUQ/hqdefault.jpg' alt='Gem Only' title='Gem Only' />Ryan Reynolds is easily the king of Twitter. We mean, its rare for a week to go by without the Deadpool actor dropping a witty gem on the social media site. The quietly stirring, exquisitely photographed Columbus is an art house gem that beautifully illuminates not only the architecture of a small Indiana town, but. Compared to other gemstones, emeralds are second only to diamonds in terms of the dollar value imported into the United States. Program To Help Get Drivers License Back. Occasionally, chatoyant specimens of beryl are found that can be cut into cabochons to produce interesting cats eye gemstones. Emerald beryl Vivid green beryl crystals from the Cosquez Mine in Colombia. The cluster measures 5 x 4. Gem Only' title='Gem Only' />Specimen and photo by Arkenstone www. Rocks. com. Geologic Occurrence of Beryl. Beryl is a mineral that contains a significant amount of beryllium. Beryllium is a very rare metal, and that limits the occurrence of beryl to a few geological situations where beryllium is present in sufficient amounts to form minerals. It mainly occurs in granite, rhyolite, and granite pegmatites in metamorphic rocks associated with pegmatites and, in veins and cavities where hydrothermal activity is associated with rocks of granitic composition. These different types of deposits are often found together and serve as an exploration model for finding beryl. Beryl is also found where carbonaceous shale, limestone, and marble have been acted upon by regional metamorphism. The famous emerald deposits of Colombia and Zambia have been formed under these conditions. The carbonaceous material is thought to provide the chromium or vanadium needed to color the emerald. Physical Properties of Beryl. Chemical Classification. Silicate. Color. Green, yellow, blue, red, pink, orange, colorless. Streak. Colorless harder than the streak plateLuster. Vitreous. Diaphaneity. Translucent to transparent. Cleavage. Imperfect. Mohs Hardness. 7. Specific Gravity. Diagnostic Properties. Crystals are prismatic with flat terminations, hexagonal, and without striations. Hardness and relatively low specific gravity. Chemical Composition. Be. 3Al. 2Si. 6O1. Crystal System. Hexagonal occurs in prismatic to tabular crystalsUses. Gemstones, a minor ore of beryllium. Physical Properties of Beryl. The most important physical properties of beryl are those that determine its usefulness as a gem. Color and clarity are very important. Beryl occurs in a diversity of colors, with some of those colors being highly desirable. It also occurs in transparent crystals that have clarity and size that are sufficient for faceting. Many beryls have a color that can be improved by heating. Beryls durability is generally good. It has a Mohs hardness of 7. Beryl breaks by cleavage and it is also brittle. Many specimens, especially of emerald, are fractured or highly included. These weaknesses can make it vulnerable to damage by impact, pressure or temperature change. Beryl can be difficult to identify. When it occurs as a crystal, its prismatic, hexagonal form with flat terminations and lack of striations is a good aid in identification. Beryls high hardness and relatively low specific gravity can be helpful for identifying massive specimens. Uses of Beryl ore of berylliumBeryl was once the only important ore of beryllium metal, but today the mining of bertrandite at Spor Mountain, Utah supplies about 8. The extraction of beryllium from beryl is very costly, and as long as bertrandite is available in large amounts, beryl will be a minor ore of that metal. Red beryl A specimen of red beryl on matrix from the Wah Wah Mountains of Utah. The specimen measures 4. Specimen and photo by Arkenstone www. Rocks. com. Gem Beryls. The primary economic use of beryl today is as a gemstone. It occurs in a wide variety of colors that appeal to many consumers. A brief description of popular gem beryl varieties is presented in the sections below. Lab created emerald Synthetic emeralds can be created in a lab, and these stones are usually superior to natural emerald in their clarity and color. The emeralds in this photo were made by Chatham Created Gems. The faceted stone measures 5. The emerald crystal on the right measures about 8 x 6 x 5 mm and weighs 2 carats. Cesium bearing beryl from Madagascar. Specimen is approximately 1 inch 2. Emerald. Emeralds are gem quality specimens of beryl that are defined by their green color. To be considered an emerald, a stone must have a rich, distinct color in the bluish green to green to yellowish green range. If the color is not a rich saturated green, the stone should be called a green beryl instead of an emerald. There are some disagreements between buyers and sellers on judging the color boundary between emerald and green beryl. Some also believe that the name emerald is reserved for stones with a green color caused by chromium rather than by vanadium. Material colored by iron is almost always too light to be called emerald and usually lacks the distinct green color typically associated with emerald. Emerald is the most popular beryl. Excellent specimens are also quite valuable. Emerald, sapphire and ruby are considered to be the big three of colored stones. More money is spent on these in the United States than all other colored stones combined. In many years, the United States imports a higher dollar value of emerald than of ruby and sapphire combined. Colombia, Zambia, Brazil, and Zimbabwe are major producers of gem quality emerald. A small amount of emerald is sporadically mined in the United States near Hiddenite, North Carolina. Emerald is a beautiful stone, but it is often fractured or highly included. Most of the emerald entering the retail market has been treated in some way. Fractures are often impregnated with glass or resins to stabilize the stone and make the fractures less visible. Wheel Of Colour. Stones are often waxed or oiled to hide fractures and surface reaching inclusions. Heating and drilling are often done to reduce the visibility of inclusions. Even after these treatments, a person with a small amount of knowledge can usually look into a display case at the typical mall jewelry store and with reasonable success identify natural stones and lab created stones by their clarity. Lab created stones have a bright green color and are transparent. Natural stones are usually translucent or have visible inclusions and fractures. Natural stones without these characteristics are extremely rare and have a very high price. Many people prefer natural stones and their visible flaws.