In the last decade, Raman spectroscopy has been used for routine investigation for gemmological purposes, being non-destructive and non-invasive. In addition, this technique grants short measurement times without any sample preparation. In this context, this work is focused on the spectroscopic characterization of different kinds of blue gems, including sapphires, by comparing the performance of a handheld Raman instrumentation along with a micro-Raman spectrometer, with the aim to provide gemmological certification and to get information on the provenance of the gems. The main goal of the present study is to identify imitation gems and to distinguish between natural and synthetic sapphire; in this latter case, micro-Raman measurements were fundamental for the characterization of the inclusions. Moreover, the chemical composition of blue gems has been obtained by portable XRF technique. The obtained data show that a portable Raman spectrometer can be recommended as a fast and easy instrument to discriminate sapphire from imitations. Copyright (c) 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A portable versus micro-Raman equipment comparison for gemmological purposes: the case of sapphires and their imitations

CRUPI, Vincenza;LONGO, FRANCESCA;MAJOLINO, Domenico;VENUTI, Valentina
2014-01-01

Abstract

In the last decade, Raman spectroscopy has been used for routine investigation for gemmological purposes, being non-destructive and non-invasive. In addition, this technique grants short measurement times without any sample preparation. In this context, this work is focused on the spectroscopic characterization of different kinds of blue gems, including sapphires, by comparing the performance of a handheld Raman instrumentation along with a micro-Raman spectrometer, with the aim to provide gemmological certification and to get information on the provenance of the gems. The main goal of the present study is to identify imitation gems and to distinguish between natural and synthetic sapphire; in this latter case, micro-Raman measurements were fundamental for the characterization of the inclusions. Moreover, the chemical composition of blue gems has been obtained by portable XRF technique. The obtained data show that a portable Raman spectrometer can be recommended as a fast and easy instrument to discriminate sapphire from imitations. Copyright (c) 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
2014
File in questo prodotto:
Non ci sono file associati a questo prodotto.
Pubblicazioni consigliate

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11570/3028987
 Attenzione

Attenzione! I dati visualizzati non sono stati sottoposti a validazione da parte dell'ateneo

Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus 28
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 28
social impact