Scientists discovered an interlocking form of graphite and diamond in an ancient meteorite that was first discovered in 1891. The meteorite that slammed into the Earth 50,000 years ago was called the Canyon Diablo. The scientists believe that the materials' unique properties could help develop superfast charging and other new types of electronics.
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Diamonds From Canyon Diablo Meteorite vs. Earth Diamonds
Diamond is the hardest material known in nature. It has a wide range of uses, including abrasives and electronics, as well as nanomedicine and laser technologies. The most common type of diamond is the cubic. The majority of known diamonds on Earth were created about 90 miles beneath the Earth's surface when temperatures can reach over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
On the other hand, the diamonds found in Canyon Diablo have carbon atoms organized into cubic patterns. It is formed under extremely high pressures and temperatures, and it is believed that it can only be formed when asteroids strike Earth at enormously high speeds.
Scientists call the ancient meteorite's diamond lonsdaleite, named after British crystallographer Dame Kathleen Lonsdale, according to the Encyclopedia website. Shock compression produces dense carbon compounds, and the meteorite is composed of ~90% kamacite, ~4% taenite, and up to 8.5% troilite-graphite nodules (FeS & C). The initial bulk was estimated to measure 100 feet wide and weigh around 60,000 tons. Scientists tried to create it in a lab using gunpowder and compressed air to push graphite disks 15,000 mph against the wall.
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Other Canyon Diablo Diamonds Properties
The researchers discovered the growth of another carbon-based substance called graphene interacting with the diamond. These growths are known as diaphites, and they occur in a fascinating layered pattern inside the meteorite. Instead of a pure hexagonal structure, there are stacking faults between these layers, which means the layers do not line up correctly.
Finding diaphites shows that the material can be found in other carbonaceous materials, which means it could be readily available for usage as a resource. The discovery also provides the researchers with a better understanding of the pressures and temperatures required to build the structure.
Graphene is a one-atom-thick film of hexagonally structured carbon. Despite the fact that research on this material is still ongoing, it has a wide range of possible applications. It might be used for more targeted medicines, tinier electronics with lightning-fast charging speeds, or faster and bendier technology because it is as light as a feather and as strong as a diamond. It is also transparent, extremely conductive and one million times thinner than human hair.
Christoph Salzmann, a chemist at University College London and co-author of the paper, said that the controlled growth of structures should allow for the creation of materials that are both ultra-hard and ductile, as well as having adjustable electronic properties ranging from conductor to insulator.
The discovery of the growing graphene inside the meteorites may lead researchers to learn more about how they arise and how to produce them in the lab.
The research was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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