Valentine's Day Pure Grown Diamonds Sci-Tech Breakthrough

NEW YORK, Feb. 11, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- During the Valentine's Day engagement season, when rough diamond prices are skyrocketing, Pure Grown Diamonds announces a scientific breakthrough with the unveiling of the first-ever, world's largest, laboratory-cultivated white diamonds that are indistinguishable from mined diamonds, even under a microscope, yet cost 30 to 40 percent less, according to the International Gemological Institute.

The World's Largest lab-grown diamond is 3.04 carats; priced at $23,000 compared to an identical earth-mined diamond, priced at $40,000. Pure Grown Diamonds has cultivated thousands of diamonds that sell for as low as $300.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission says these lab-grown diamonds are composed of the exact same chemical, physical and optical properties as earth-mined diamonds.

Fiancés Suffer Sticker Shock

"This 21^st Century technological achievement comes just before Valentine's Day when an estimated six million American couples get engaged; when most men spend 25 percent of their annual salaries on diamond rings and when rough diamond prices are up 75 percent, since 2009," explains Pure Grown Diamonds President and CEO Lisa Bissell.

"Most guys shopping for Valentine's Day diamond engagement rings, bracelets, earrings, and necklaces are suffering sticker shock," says Bissell.

Pure Grown Diamonds Rival Earth-Mined Diamonds in Every Respect

"During the past 70 years, many have tried but failed to grow scintillating, sizeable, colorless diamonds in the laboratory – until now," explains Dr. Devi Shanker Misra, PhD. He is a world-renowned physicist and inventor of the patented Pure Grown Diamond process. "No one, no company has achieved what Pure Grown Diamonds has accomplished -- culturing thousands of alluring diamonds that rival mined-diamonds, in every aspect."

Factoids:

• Pure Grown Diamonds: Not Synthetic, Not Artificial, Not Cubic Zirconium
• Scientific Breakthrough: True 21^st Century Technological Advancement
• First Successful Certified Lab-Cultivated, Near Colorless Diamonds of Significant Carat Weight
• Indistinguishable From Mined Diamonds Even Under Microscope **
• Others Have Tried and Failed
• FTC: Lab-Grown Diamonds Have Same Chemical, Physical, Visual Properties as Earth-Mined Diamonds
• Pure Grown Diamonds: Cost 30%-40% Less Than Earth-Mined Diamonds*
• Rough Diamond Prices Up 75% Since 2009***
• Diamond Prices Forecasted to Escalate by 5% Annually Over Decade****
• Many Mines Depleted****
• New Mines Produce Low Yields****
• New Mining Restrictions: Exploration Costs Exorbitant****
• Increased Consumer Demand in U.S. and New Wealth Classes in China & India***
• Pure Grown Diamonds: 3,000 + Dazzling White, Yellow, Pink Lab-Grown Diamonds on Sale
• Certified by International Gemological Institute
• Gemological Institute of America: "Impressive"
• Pure Grown Diamonds Are Conflict-Free: Refers to Violent Control of Mining Regions
• Mining Previously Associated with Human Rights Violations
• 2015 Valentine's Day Diamond Shoppers will Suffer Sticker Shock
• Lab-Cultivated Patented Process: Microwave Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition
• Diamond Seed Placed in Chamber
• Methane & Hydrogen Gases Introduced
• Microwave Energy Pumped-In
• Plasma Ball Ignites
• Carbon Molecules Rain on Seed
• Crystallization Occurs in Six to 10 Weeks
• Six Million America Couples Get Engaged on Valentine's Day*****
• 27-Years-Old: Avg. Age of Just-Engaged American Couples*****
• 25% Man's Annual Salary Spent on Diamond Engagement Ring*******
• 65% Brides Have Input on Ring Purchase******
• 31% Brides Shopped for Diamond Engagement Ring with Future Groom******
• 47% Brides Say Surprise Engagement Important Factor******
• 46% Women Say They Would Help Pay for Diamond Engagement Ring******

The Inventor & His Invention: The Pure Grown Diamond Process

"Pure Grown Diamonds is about to change the landscape of the mining and jewelry industries," says Misra. "Mining dramatically alters eco-systems and wild habitats, unlike Pure Grown Diamonds, which are marvels of technology that do not undermine the sustainability of the environment."

Misra is a former physics professor at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, Mumbai, India.

He is the inventor of the patented Pure Grown Diamond process that cultivates incredible diamonds in a Microwave Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition chamber from a small carbon seed.

The earth's process of crystalizing carbon is exactingly replicated in state-of-the-art, high-tech facilities at Pure Grown Diamonds Singapore-based sister company IIa Technologies.

The diamond seed is placed inside the chamber.

Hydrogen and methane gases are introduced.

A microwave generator pumps energy into the chamber that ignites a glowing plasma ball.

Carbon molecules rain on the seed.

Crystallization begins.

Pure Grown Diamonds mature within six to 10 Weeks.

The diamond is cut with a laser, polished and then certified by the International Gemological Institute.

Gemological Institute of America & Federal Trade Commission

When inspecting the world's largest Pure Grown Diamond, the Gemological Institute of America remarked, "It's impressive."

Pure Grown Diamonds has cultivated thousands of diamonds that sell for as low as $300.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission says these lab-grown diamonds are composed of the exact same chemical, physical and optical properties as mined diamonds.

Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend But Huge Expense to Mother Nature

"Pure Grown Diamonds are the reasonably-priced, eco-friendly, conflict-free preference of shoppers seeking value; for consumers concerned about the environmental impact of mining; for people troubled by the history of human rights violations and greed-motivated violence in mining regions of developing countries," says Bissell, a seasoned diamond business executive – among the few women CEO's in her industry.

World's Largest Pure Grown Diamond

The world's largest laboratory Pure Grown Diamond was cultivated in November 2014. It is certified by the International Gemological Institute. It is a near-colorless 3.04 carat, round stone, I color, SI1 clarity, very good cut. It sells for $23,012 on www.PureGrownDiamonds.com.

An earth-mined diamond of near identical characteristics sells for approximately $40,000 at some of the best-known jewelry retailers in America.

One carat round diamonds are the most popular for engagement rings in the U.S.

Pure Grown Diamonds quality one carat stones are priced from $1,000 to $3,000.

A high-quality one carat earth-mined diamond starts at $5,000 and can cost more than $10,000.

Most Pure Grown Diamonds are E-H color and VVS1-VS2 clarity certified. The highest colorless rating is D. The highest clarity rating is VVS1.

The company has been quietly growing and harvesting thousands of white, yellow and pink diamonds and making earrings, bracelets, necklaces and rings for the Valentine's Day 2015 global launch of its e-commerce website: www.PureGrownDiamonds.com.

Not Artificial

"Pure Grown Diamonds are not artificial; not synthetic; not cubic zirconium; not costume jewelry. They are diamonds," emphasizes Bissell.

The only difference between a mined diamond and a Pure Grown Diamond is that one is grown in a lab and the other is grown under the earth's crust, according to Misra.

Transparency

The difference between earth-mined diamonds and Pure Grown Diamonds are detectable only by highly sophisticated spectroscopic equipment and from Pure Grown Diamonds' laser-scribed identifications on the stones' girdles that read, "Laboratory Grown."

Laser-scribing is a voluntary policy of transparency that clearly identifies the source of the diamond.

IIa Technologies

Pure Grown Diamonds is the exclusive North American retailer and distributor of diamonds grown by IIa Technologies.

Pure Grown Diamonds are cultivated at IIa (2a) Technologies in Singapore, which is Pure Grown Diamonds sister company.

The company is named after the purest and rarest diamonds – Type IIa, which comprise less than two percent of all mined diamonds.

Type IIa diamonds have a unique growth structure and remarkable clarity and brilliance.

Few mined diamonds are Type IIa. They are very rare.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth and celebrity Elizabeth Taylor are the few women in the world that have owned and worn Type IIa diamonds.

CEO Vishal Mehta characterizes IIa Technologies as, "A one-of-a-kind, cutting-edge company, which, after years of research and development, finally achieved a revolutionary breakthrough – cultivating actual, near-colorless diamonds of significant carat size."

He continues, "The company's mission is to further enhance the cultivation of high-quality, sizeable diamonds with the end-goals of marketability and commercial viability and to strive for perfecting processes for a diverse set of diamond applications."

Footnotes

* International Gemological Institute
** Gemological Institute of America
***WWW International Diamond Consultants Ltd
****Frost & Sullivan Consultancy
*****American Express Survey
****** The Knot.com / Brides Magazine

Clarification

In several December 2014 Pure Grown Diamonds' news releases, the company mistakenly dispatched: "According to the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the term 'synthetic,' in reference to lab-grown diamonds, is misleading as it implies that such stones are imitations." This information was culled from the European Gemological Laboratories website http://www.eglreports.org/node/180. Pure Grown Diamonds regrets the error.

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Valentine's Narrated News Package: https://www.hightail.com/download/UlRRSU5KQk5samZLd01UQw

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SOURCE Pure Grown Diamonds

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