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The chemistry of color-changing alexandrite

June 26, 2018

Alexandrite is a rare form of the chrysoberyl mineral, which has the chemical formula Al2BeO4. Deposits of alexandrite were first discovered in the 1830s, in the Ural Mountains in Russia. Sources attribute its discovery to Nils Gustaf Nordenskjöld, a Finnish mineralogist who initially thought that the gemstone was an emerald. However, he was perplexed by its hardness. Gem hardness is measured on the Moh’s scale, with alexandrite rating at 8.5 to emerald’s 7.5-8.0. Nordenskjöld also noted that the gem changed colors in different lights, appearing red when he examined it by candlelight.

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The chemistry of color-changing alexandrite