MOISSANITE

Naturally occurring Moissanite was discovered in 1905 by Dr. F.H. Moissan, a French chemist and Nobel Prize winner and was named after him. Natural moissanite is very rare and is limited to iron-nickel meteorites. Virtually all of the moissanite sold in the world is synthetic. Synthetic moissanite is also known as silicon carbide after its chemistry (in industry moissanite is known as the man-made abrasive Carborundum). Moissanite is used as a diamond substitute as it is transparent and hard with a slightly higher refractive index than diamond. Moissanite jewels are cut to minimize their double refraction or birefringent effects. It is lighter and much more resistant to heat. This results in a stone of higher lustre, sharper facets and good resilience. Moissanite remains undamaged by temperatures used to melt gold.
Colour:rarely clear to shades of very pale green.
Hardness:9.5