HOW TO MAKE SYNTHETIC DIAMONDS
mined
to conduct experiments along the lines already thought out. In our
opinion views of Moissan that diamonds are made by the compression of
carbon are correct, but his method of making them may be improved upon.
A
plan of the procedure was outlined and the assignment given to senior
students working in the chemistry department. The first step in the
plan was to secure an electric arc furnace capable of producing a
temperature of 3,000 to 4,000 degrees Centigrade—about twice the
temperature obtained by Moissan.
It
was soon learned that no such furnace could be obtained from
laboratory equipment companies in either the United States or Europe.
The use of an oxygen-hydrogen blowtorch was next suggested, and the
necessary equipment was transferred to a local welding shop for an
experiment. However, it was found that the oxygen from the torch burned
away all the carbon from the mixture of carbon and iron before the
desired temperature could be obtained.
Next
firebrick was secured from a steel foundry and attempts were made to
build our own electric arc furnace. A neat furnace was constructed, but
its first trial proved that its current consumption was too great for
the ordinary power lines leading to the college. The equipment was
transferred to the municipal lighting plant, where sufficient current
could be obtained. Here the furnace was reduced to a glazed mass of
molten rock by its own heat. The outlook was very discouraging.
The next five years were spent in gathering equipment and information. At last, a man was found in Chicago who
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