Apa itu Korundum ?

Pengertian, Ciri-Ciri dan Proses terbentuknya

By Flysh Geost di 6/19/2019

Mineral Korundum - Diantara 3 nama ini, korundum, safir dan ruby manakah yang lebih kalian kenal?,
ya sudah pasti hanya ruby dan safir yang dikenal. Tetapi tahukah kalian bahwa sebenarnya ruby dan safir
itu adalah mineral korundum. Korundum adalah nama mineral secara mineralogi dan secara historis
mineral ini dahulu digunakan sebagai bahan abrasif. Jadi, disini perlu kalian pahami bahwa batu permata
ruby dan safir yang terkenal itu sesungguhnya adalah mineral korundum.

Daftar Isi:

1. Pengertian Korundum

2. Korundum Populer Karena Ruby dan Safir

3. Ciri-Ciri Korundum

4. Terbentuknya Korundum

Pengertian Korundum
Korundum adalah mineral pembentuk batuan yang dapat ditemukan di batuan beku, metamorf, dan
sedimen. Mineral disusun oleh aluminium oksida dengan komposisi kimia Al2O3 dengan struktur kristal
heksagonal. Korundum dikenal luas karena tingkat kekerasannya yang ekstrem dan fakta bahwa kadang-
kadang hadir dalam bentuk kristal indah yang transparan dalam berbagai warna.

Kekerasan ekstrimnya membuat korundum menjadi bahan abrasive yang sangat baik, dan ketika sifat
kekerasan berada dalam kristal, maka ini akan menjadi bahan yang sempurna untuk memotong
beberapa jenis batu mulia (batu permata). Korundum alami dan sintetis digunakan dalam berbagai
industri karena sifat kekerasan, dan stabilitas kimianya.

Dipopulerkan oleh Ruby dan Safir

Sebenarnya kebanyakan orang telah mengenal korundum, namun sangat sedikit orang yang tahu
dengan nama mineral ini, karena pada dasarnya mereka hanya mengetahuinya yang namanya ruby dan
safir. Jadi sebenarnya spesimen korundum berkualitas batu permata dengan warna merah tua disebut
sebagai ruby dan korundum berkualitas batu permata dengan warna biru disebut dengan safir.
Sedangkan untuk korundum tidak berwarna dikenal sebagai safir putih dan korundum dengan warna
selain di atas disebut sebagai safir mewah (fancy sapphire).

Ciri-Ciri Korundum

Korundum adalah mineral terkeras kedua, setelah intan. Mineral ini sering juga berfungsi sebagai
mineral indeks untuk kekerasan 9 pada skala mohs. Kekerasan, massa jenis yang tinggi, dan bentuk
kristal heksagonalnya merupakan ciri-ciri utama yang sering digunakan untuk mengidentifikasi mineral
ini. Ringkasan sifat fisik korundum diberikan dalam tabel di bawah ini.

Deskripsi Keterangan

Klasifikasi Kimia Oksida

Warna warna utama abu-abu - coklat, biru, merah, kuning, transparan

Cerat Tidak berwarna

Kilap Adamantin-vitreous

Diaphaneity Transparant-translucent

Belahan Tidak ada

 Kekerasan 9 skala mohs

Massa Jenis 3,9 - 4,1

Komposisi Kimia Al2O3

Sistem Kristal Hexagonal

Pemanfaatan Bahan abrasif, industri elektronik dan batu permata

Proses Terbentuknya Korundum

Korundum pada umumnya ditemukan sebagai mineral utama pada batuan beku seperti syenit, syenit
nepheline, dan pegmatit. Beberapa deposit ruby dan safir yang terkenal di dunia ditemukan dimana
permata tersebut telah mengalami pelapukan dari aliran basal yang kemudian ditemukan pada tanah
aluvial ataupun endapan lereng.

Korundum juga dapat dijumpai di batuan metamorf, pada lokasi dimana endapan bauksit mengalami
proses metamorfisme kontak. Sekis, gneiss, dan marmer yang terbentuk karena metamorfisme regional
terkadang juga mengandung korundum. Beberapa batu safir dan ruby berkualitas, berwarna indah, dan
dengan tingkat kejernihan yang tinggi ditemukan pada marmer yang proses pembentukannya berada
disepanjang tepi tubuh magma di bawah permukaan bumi.

Ketangguhan korundum, tingkat kekerasan yang tinggi, serta ketahanan kimianya memungkinkan
mineral ini bisa bertahan dalam material sedimen walaupun mineral lainnya telah hancur karena selama
mengalami proses sedimentasi. Inilah sebabnya mengapa korundum sering ditemukan terkonsentrasi di
endapan aluvial.

Di beberapa negara, deposit korundum adalah sumber terpenting penghasil batu permata rubi dan safir.
Kebanyakan jenis batu permata ini ditambang dari deposit aluvial. Sebagai contoh Myanmar, Kamboja,
Sri Lanka, India, Afghanistan dan negara lainnya menghasilkan safir dari deposit aluvial. Begitu pula
dengan beberapa negara di Afrika, termasuk Madagaskar, Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, dan Malawi sebagai
produsen utama ruby dan safir.

What is Corundum?

Corundum is a rock-forming mineral that is found in igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks. It is
an aluminum oxide with a chemical composition of Al2O3 and a hexagonal crystal structure.
The mineral is widely known for its extreme hardness and for the fact that it is sometimes found as
beautiful transparent crystals in many different colors. The extreme hardness makes corundum an
excellent abrasive, and when that hardness is found in beautiful crystals, you have the perfect material
for cutting gemstones.

Natural and synthetic corundum are used in a wide variety of industrial applications because of their
toughness, hardness, and chemical stability. They are used to make industrial bearings, scratch-resistant
windows for electronic instruments, wafers for circuit boards, and many other products.

Corundum crystals: Photos of three corundum crystals. On the left is a common corundum from
Transvaal, South Africa, that is about 6 centimeters in height. In the center is a gem-quality ruby
corundum from Karnataka, India, that is about 1.6 centimeters in height. On the right is a blue sapphire
corundum from Sri Lanka that is about two centimeters in height. All three specimens and photos by
Arkenstone / www.iRocks.com.

Made Famous by Rubies and Sapphires

Most people are familiar with corundum; however, very few people know it by its mineral name -
instead they know it by the names "ruby" and "sapphire." A gemstone-quality specimen of corundum
with a deep red color is known as a "ruby." A gemstone-quality corundum with a blue color is called a
"sapphire." Colorless corundum is known as "white sapphire." Corundum of any other color is known as
"fancy sapphire."
Corundum parting: Hexagonal crystal segments of corundum that have been separated by parting.
These specimens are about one centimeter across. USGS photo by Andrew Silver.

Corundum gneiss with sapphire: A specimen of corundum gneiss from Gallatin Valley, Montana. This
specimen is about twelve centimeters across and has a round blue sapphire crystal on the left side.

Properties of Corundum

Corundum is an exceptionally hard and tough material. It is the third-hardest mineral,

after diamond and moissanite. It serves as the index mineral for a hardness of nine on the Mohs
Hardness Scale.

Its hardness, high specific gravity, hexagonal crystals and parting are very good diagnostic properties to
use in its identification. A summary of the physical properties of corundum is given in the table below.
Physical Properties of Corundum

Chemical
Oxide
Classification

Typically gray to brown. Colorless when pure, but trace amounts of various metals
Color produce almost any color. Chromium produces red (ruby) and combinations of iron
and titanium produce blue (sapphire).

Streak Colorless (harder than the streak plate)

Luster Adamantine to vitreous

Diaphaneity Transparent to translucent

Cleavage None. Corundum does display parting perpendicular to the c-axis.

Mohs Hardness 9

Specific Gravity 3.9 to 4.1 (very high for a nonmetallic mineral)

Diagnostic Hardness, high specific gravity, hexagonal crystals sometimes tapering to a pyramid,
Properties parting, luster, conchoidal fracture

Chemical
Al2O3
Composition

Crystal System Hexagonal

Historically used as an abrasive. Specimens with pleasing colors have a long history of
Uses
gemstone use.
Montana alluvial sapphires: A scatter of small alluvial sapphires found in Montana. These blue stones
are untreated and measure about four to five millimeters across.

Geologic Occurrence of Corundum

Corundum is found as a primary mineral in igneous rocks such as syenite, nepheline syenite,
and pegmatite. Some of the world's most important ruby and sapphire deposits are found where the
gems have weathered from basalt flows and are now found in the downslope soils and sediments.

Corundum is also found in metamorphic rocks in locations where aluminous shales or bauxites have
been exposed to contact metamorphism. Schist, gneiss, and marble produced by regional
metamorphism will sometimes contain corundum. Some of the sapphires and rubies of highest quality,
color, and clarity are formed in marble along the edges of subsurface magma bodies.

Corundum's toughness, high hardness, and chemical resistance enable it to persist in sediments long
after other minerals have been destroyed. This is why it is often found concentrated in alluvial deposits.

These deposits are the most important source of rubies and sapphires in several parts of the world.
Traditional sources of alluvial rubies and sapphires include Burma, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India,
Afghanistan, Montana, and other areas. In the past few decades, several parts of Africa, including
Madagascar, Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, and Malawi, have become important producers of ruby and
sapphire.

Emery wheels: An ad offering emery and corundum wheels, published in 1895 by The Springfield
Manufacturing Company of Bridgeport, Connecticut. This was at a time when genuine emery and
corundum were used to make the wheels.

Hardness and Use as an Abrasive

The extreme hardness of corundum makes it especially useful as an abrasive. Crushed corundum is
processed to remove impurities and then screened to produce uniformly sized granules and powders.
These are used for grinding media, polishing compounds, sand papers, grinding wheels, and other
cutting applications.

Some problems with using natural corundum as an abrasive are that the deposits are usually small,
irregular in shape, and the corundum is of variable quality. They are not reliable sources of consistent-
quality material needed to run a manufacturing process. Synthetic corundum, produced using
calcined bauxite, has become a more reliable source with more consistent properties. It has replaced
natural corundum in most manufactured products.

Aluminum oxide sandpaper is made by attaching size-graded particles of synthetic corundum

(aluminum oxide) to a sheet of paper. It is a sandpaper widely used for woodworking and other
manufacturing work. Photo copyright iStockphoto / Ma-Ke.
Emery rock: A specimen of emery rock that is rich in corundum and spinel from Peekskill, New York. This
specimen is approximately six inches (fifteen centimeters) across. Emery has often been crushed,
processed, and screened for use as an industrial abrasive.

Emery nail files: "Emery boards" are a manicure and nail-care product that is made by gluing abrasive
papers to a thin piece of cardboard. They obtained their name in the 1800s when crushed emery was
used as the abrasive. Today's emery boards are not made with emery. Instead, many of them have a
coarse side of synthetic corundum (aluminum oxide) and a fine side of garnet abrasive. Photo copyright
iStockphoto / Acerebel.

Emery

Emery stone is a granular metamorphic or igneous rock that is rich in corundum. It is a mixture of oxide
minerals, typically corundum, magnetite, spinel and/or hematite. It is the most common form of natural
corundum that has been used to manufacture abrasives.

The use of emery as an abrasive has declined significantly in the last several decades. It has been almost
completely replaced by manufactured abrasives such as silicon carbide. Silicon carbide has a Mohs
hardness of 9 to 9.5. It is inexpensive and usually performs better than natural abrasives made from
corundum or emery.
Corundum as ruby, sapphire, and fancy sapphire: Gem-quality corundum is a highly prized and valuable
material. When it is bright red in color it is called "ruby." When it is blue it is called "sapphire." When
colorless it is called a "white sapphire." Gem-quality corundum of any other color is called "fancy
sapphire." In the past, most gem corundum was produced in Asia and Australia. In the 1990s, many gem
corundum discoveries were made in Africa. All of the stones in this photo were mined in Africa. Nearly
all gem corundums are treated by heating or another process to improve their color.

The best way to learn about minerals is to study with a collection of small specimens that you can
handle, examine, and observe their properties. Inexpensive mineral collections are available in
the Geology.com Store.

Use as a Gemstone

In the gemstone and jewelry market, almost all of the attention goes to a small group of gems known as
"the big four": diamond, ruby, sapphire, and emerald. Two of these, ruby and sapphire, are gem
corundums.
These most popular gems are highly sought after and have been mined in many parts of the world for
thousands of years. Today, millions of rubies and sapphires are required every year to meet the
demands of the jewelry market -- from inexpensive commercial stones sold in malls and department
stores to spectacular specimens used in designer and custom jewelry. The demand for attractive stones
exceeds the abilities of mines to supply. As a result, the prices paid for attractive natural stones have
risen to high levels.

When a consumer wants a "ruby ring" or a "sapphire pendant," they are generally not interested in
substituting a red spinel, blue iolite, or other attractive gem of similar color. They want "ruby" or they
want "sapphire." Retail jewelers, especially those selling pieces and sets for under $500, have been
increasingly presenting synthetic or "lab-created" gems alongside the natural stones in their display
cases.

The synthetic materials have the same aluminum oxide composition and crystal structure as natural
rubies and sapphires. Their color is also produced by the same trace elements (chromium for ruby and
iron with titanium for sapphire).

They have the same optical appeal and usually a better physical appearance than similar-size natural
stones of the same price. As a result, many consumers now gladly purchase synthetic stones because
they receive a more attractive product at a price that they can afford. Over the long term, synthetic
gems are likely to continue displacing natural stones from the market, especially in the lower and middle
price ranges where consumers are very conscious about price.

There is nothing wrong with selling or purchasing jewelry that contains synthetic gemstones as long as
two conditions are met: 1) the seller must disclose the fact that the gemstones are products of man
rather than products of nature; and, 2) the buyer clearly understands that the gemstones are synthetic
and made by people rather than being products of nature.

Corundum watch bearings: Corundum (ruby) bearings in an antique pocket watch with a "jewel"
movement. In the early 1900's, synthetic corundum was being used as the jewel bearings in watches.
Image copyright iStockphoto / RobertKacpura.
Corundum bearings: A drawing of jewel bearings and a capstone (red) holding a pivot wheel in a
mechanical watch lubricated by oil (yellow). Public domain image by Chris Burks Chetvorno.

"Jewels" and "Crystals" in Watches

In the mid-1800s, watch makers in Switzerland needed tiny bearings that were highly resistant to
abrasion. They discovered that they could drill a hole into a tiny piece of corundum and use it for a
smooth-running, long-life bearing. The corundum was much harder than the metals used to make the
moving parts of a watch, and it was able to stand up to the continuous abrasion without failing. The
corundum bearings were called "jewel bearings" after their gemstone counterparts.

Swiss watches and their "jewel movements" became famous throughout the world for their long life and
reliability. In the early 1900s, synthetic corundum bearings replaced natural corundum bearings in most
Swiss watches. Synthetic corundum was more uniform than natural corundum as well as being cheaper
and easier to obtain. This use of jewel bearings created a positive reputation for Swiss watches that
continues to this day - even while mechanical watches are being replaced by digital watches.

Colorless synthetic sapphire is also used in watches. Its durability, vitreous luster, and resistance to
being scratched makes it a perfect transparent covering for the face of a mechanical or digital. These
clear covers, known as "crystals" protect the face of the watch from impact, dust, moisture and
abrasion. Synthetic sapphire has been used for this purpose for nearly 100 years.
Synthetic corundum: A boule of synthetic corundum. Because of its red color, it could be called
"synthetic ruby." Material like this is used for watch bearings, gemstones, laser gain mediums, and many
other purposes.

Ruby laser: Diagram of the first working laser. It employed a thin ruby crystal as its gain medium. Public
domain image by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Ruby Lasers

Synthetic corundum is an essential part of many lasers. In fact, the first working laser was a "ruby laser,"
made by Theodore Maiman at Hughes Research Labs in 1960. It employed a synthetic ruby crystal as the
"gain medium." The gain medium is a material in the laser that is the target of an intense burst of light.

That light causes electrons in the gain medium to jump up to a higher energy level causing the emission
of photons, which strike other atoms in the gain medium, causing them to be excited and emit more
photons. This brief chain reaction produces the very intense light of a laser beam. Lasers are named
after the material used as a gain medium, such as "ruby laser" or "titanium sapphire laser" or "YAG
laser" (yttrium aluminum garnet).

In just a few decades, lasers have become common items of our society. Tiny lasers are used in CD and
DVD players. Lasers are used to cut metal, stone, and other tough materials. Lasers are used to remove
tattoos, perform cosmetic surgery, cataract surgery, and LASIK surgery for vision correction.

Synthetic corundum scanner windows: A self-check-out machine with a barcode scanner window at a
retail store in Houston, Texas. The window of the scanner is probably made from synthetic
corundum. Public domain image by WhisperToMe.

Other Uses of Corundum

Corundum has many other uses. It is chemically inert and resistant to heat. These properties make it a
perfect material for making refractory products such as fire brick, kiln liners, and kiln furniture. Today,
these products are usually made with synthetic corundum.

Pure corundum is colorless, transparent, durable, and scratch resistant. Large crystals of clear synthetic
corundum are grown, sawn into thin sheets, and then used as the windows of grocery store scanners,
watch crystals, aircraft windows, and protective covers for electronic devices.