Zircon/zirconia confusion (and how it involves lip gloss). continued -->

[Coloratura]

Hi ,

I''m completely confused about zircon and zirconia and I thought Pricescope would be the right place to ask for help.

I happen to be reading the ingredients of a lip gloss online and found ingredients like : "D&C Red No. 33 Zirconium Lake" and "D&C Red No. 27 Zirconium Lake" , and I think there was a Zirconium for Red 6.

Now , the only zircons/zirconium I know are the Zircon that is a teal-colored gem and birthstone of December , and cubic zirconia, aka "fake diamonds." Now , I don''t know if/how the two relate , but that''s all I know about either.

I know that Zircon always has traces of uranium and thorium in it , which is why I would be completely astounded if cosmetic companies are micronizing the gem Zircon to put in lipgloss- which gets licked and eaten off!

I''m know that these zirconium lakes are used for coloring but , I just don''t know what they are , or of what they are comprised.

Someone tell me that they are not using real zircon in lip gloss! Tell me this is a man-made substance or something.

I know that uranium is basically in everything , even water , but I certainly don''t want to add to that exposure through use of my cosmetics.

I asked someone about this and they said that "zirconia" is present in "zircon" but that they are not the same thing. I''m still very confused.

Can someone help clear this up for me? Are they using real zircon (which contains thorium and uranium) in lipstick and lip gloss!?!?!

Thanks so much.

 

[JulieN]

zircon is an element. elements don''t contain other elements. hth.

 

[oldmancoyote]

I''ll try to elaborate:

Zirconium is an element. As Julie said, it contains nothing else apart from zirconium.

Zirconia is zirconium oxide; this can be crystallised in the cubic system (

) to produce a diamond simulant. Natural zirconia is not crystalline and is a source of zirconium, or it can be used in the production of ceramics that are highly resistant to heat.

Zircon is zirconium silicate, which occurs in nature as a gem in many colours (it''s colourless unless it has impurities or is exposed to radiation/high temperatures).

Zirconium lakes are complex compounds of zirconium - not containing more radioactive elements than anything else does - that are red or reddish in colour, hence their use in lip gloss.

 

[oldminer]

Thanks for the great clarification of terms.

 

[Diamond Explorer]

These are often confused. Thanks for explaining it so clearly OMC.

 

[oldmancoyote]

David, Jonathan - thank you for the praise.

Coloratura - is your mind easier that if you choose red lipstick you won''t have a nice green glow afterwards?

 

[Coloratura]

Thank you OldManCayote!

I knew Pricescope was the right place to ask.

I kept researching and researching this yesterday (before I saw your reply) online and I read something about obtaining colors from zirconium salt , and that some have said it's synthetic? I'm not sure if that refers to the various zirconium "lakes" that are used in things like lip gloss and other cosmetics.

So , would you say(would I be correct to think) that "zirconium" is an element and does not contain the gem zircon or any uranium or thorium?

(I think it contains hafnium?)

Thanks so much. This is proving (for me) to be a very educational discussion.

 

[Coloratura]

I see why I can be confused , Wikipedia says that Zirconium is obtain from purifying zircon?

Here''s what Wiki says:

"It is never found as a native metal, but is instead obtained mainly from the mineral zircon, which can be purified by chlorine. Zirconium was first isolated in an impure form in 1824 by Jöns Jakob Berzelius.
Zirconium has no known biological role. Zirconium forms both inorganic and organometallic compounds such as zirconium dioxide and zirconocene dibromide, respectively. There are five naturally-occurring isotopes, three of which are stable. Short-term exposure to zirconium powder causes minor irritation, and inhalation of zirconium compounds can cause skin and lung granulomas."

I thought I was close to figuring it out. lol

 

[Coloratura]

Here''s another page that claims "zirconium" is obtaqined from the mineral "zircon"
through the Kroll process.


http://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele040.html

The Element Zirconium
40
Zr
Zirconium
91.224
Atomic Number: 40

Atomic Weight: 91.224

Melting Point: 2128 K (1855°C or 3371°F)

Boiling Point: 4682 K (4409°C or 7968°F)

Density: 6.52 grams per cubic centimeter

Phase at Room Temperature: Solid

Element Classification: Metal

Period Number: 5 Group Number: 4 Group Name: none

What''s in a name? From the Persian word for gold-like, zargun.

Say what? Zirconium is pronounced as zer-KO-ni-em.

History and Uses:

Zirconium was discovered by Martin Heinrich Klaproth, a German chemist, while analyzing the composition of the mineral jargon (ZrSiO4) in 1789. Zirconium was isolated by Jöns Jacob Berzelius, a Swedish chemist, in 1824 and finally prepared in a pure form in 1914. Obtaining pure zirconium is very difficult because it is chemically similar to hafnium, an element which is always found mixed with deposits of zirconium. Today, most zirconium is obtained from the minerals zircon (ZrSiO4) and baddeleyite (ZrO2) through a process known as the Kroll Process.

Zirconium is a corrosion resistant metal that is used in high performance pumps and valves. Since it also does not easily absorb neutrons, zirconium is widely used in nuclear reactors. The nuclear power industry uses nearly 90% of the zirconium produced each year, which must be nearly free of hafnium. Zirconium is also used as an alloying agent in steel, to make some types of surgical equipment and as a getter, a material that combines with and removes trace gases from vacuum tubes.

Zircon (ZrSiO4) is a zirconium compound that can take many different forms, the most popular of which is a clear, transparent gemstone that can be cut to look like diamond and is frequently used in jewelry. Zirconium dioxide (ZrO2) can withstand very high temperatures and is used to make crucibles and to line the walls of high temperature furnaces. Zirconium carbonate (3ZrO2·CO2·H2O) is used in lotions to treat poison ivy.

Estimated Crustal Abundance: 1.65×102 milligrams per kilogram

Estimated Oceanic Abundance: 3×10-5 milligrams per liter

Number of Stable Isotopes: 4 (View all isotope data)

Ionization Energy: 6.634 eV

Oxidation State: +4

Electron Shell Configuration:

1s2
2s2 2p6
3s2 3p6 3d10
4s2 4p6 4d2
5s2

 

[JulieN]

omc, YES, thank you, my bad.

Date: 4/3/2009 5:29:34 PM
Author: Coloratura
I see why I can be confused , Wikipedia says that Zirconium is obtain from purifying zircon?

That simply means that elemental zirconium does not exist in nature, but is always found as zirconium silicate (ZrSiO3 or something.)

 

[oldmancoyote]

No problemium.