Improving the design of artwork and jewelry made of chalcedony

The study is devoted to the development of technology to enhance the aesthetic characteristics of design objects made of chalcedony. These techniques can be applied to stone figurines and jewelry. An algorithm for designing products based on the properties and processing technologies of stone material is proposed. The surface decoration of a product made of chalcedony consists in the possibility of changing color, drawing a pattern and adding a texture. Two methods for changing the color of chalcedony have been studied - heat treatment and impregnation. The essence of the method of impregnation is the holding of the stone in a coloring solution at a temperature of 90 °C for 170 hours. The heat treatment method consists in processing chalcedony at a temperature of 350 °C, the duration of the temperature exposure is in the range of 5 to 20 hours. When dyeing samples of gray chalcedony, a color spectrum is obtained in the range of wavelengths from 582 to 590 nm. The formation of a smooth texture with various tools and materials of different grain sizes made it possible to obtain surface quality in the range of 1.1 - 0.02 microns. The technologies of drawing a pattern on the surface of chalcedony are revealed: etching, laser processing and local dye impregnation. When applying laser processing and etching, a white rough pattern is formed. Using local impregnation allows creating a color pattern on the surface of chalcedony. Results. The use and combination of the described technologies for decorating chalcedony allows creating the desired aesthetic characteristics of lapidary works of art.