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Most of the Rubies found in the market these days have had some form of treatment applied to them. How do they treat Ruby gemstones and what does it do to the stone? Some of the treatments have names like “Heat Treatment”, “Glass Filling”, “Clarity Enhancement” or “Beryllium treatment”. It is essential to know about what treatments a Ruby is subjected to, because it can seriously affect its value.

What does “Treated or Heated Rubies” Mean?

During the process of getting Rubies from the ground to the final customer, most stones need to be altered by a treatment in order for it to be commercially acceptable. Treatments can improve the colour and clarity of Rubies which make them more desirable in the final market. In a nutshell, it means to alter the Rubies in some way in order to make it more beautiful & appealing.

Various types of Treatments

A treated Ruby is not a bad thing. Less than 1% off all Rubies that are recovered from the ground actually make it to the market without any treatment. These are the most precious and valueble Rubies available. This also means the average person may never see an unheated or untreated Ruby in their whole life.

Untreated/unheated & natural Rubies:

Untreated Rubies are by far the rarest and the most valuable gemstones. These stones have been mined out of the ground, cut and polished and presented to the market. No treatment or any kind of enhancement is performed on these Rubies, which means they are in their natural structural form as they were before mining.

Heat Treated Rubies:

This technique has been used for centuries to treat Rubies to improve their clarity and colour. The Ruby is placed in a crucible and heated to extreme temperatures of around 1800 degrees. The atmosphere around the Ruby can be altered to change the way the Ruby reacts but the basic idea is that the heat will dissolve any rutile inclusions inside the stone which will improve the clarity and improve the red colour. No other additives have been added to the process and the Ruby is as strong and durable as the unheated version.

Flux Healed Rubies:

Sometimes during the heating process, the Rubies will be coated in a flux material. The purpose of this material is to stop multiple Rubies sticking together when heating and acts as a barrier. The down side is that this flux material can melt and penetrate any cracks or fissures in the Ruby. This will improve the clarity of the Ruby by filling in the cracks, but it will decrease the value of the stone since it is a foreign material.

Beryllium Diffused Rubies:

This treatment is more commonly used on Sapphire rather than to treat Ruby gemstones. The Rubies are heated while Beryllium is added to the crucible. The Beryllium diffuses with the crystal lattice of Ruby and can create a more intense, vivid colour.

Glass Filled Rubies:

This is the newest and most commonly seen treatment of Rubies in the market place today. Low grade Rubies is used which is full of cracks and fissures. It is bleached and then heat treated with the addition of a liquid glass. This glass penetrates the Ruby and improves the clarity by reducing the amount of visible cracks on the surface. This treatment is not very stable as temperature changes, ultrasonic cleaners and shock can cause the glass to gradually fall out of the stone cracks.

These are few of the most common types of treatments performed on Rubies these days. In the world of gemology, there are always new treatments coming to light which require different testing methods to detect. One must rely on a gemstone identification report issued by a genuine laboratory which discloses treatments subjected to a Ruby, if any.

Watch out this blog in future for more information on gemstones, diamonds & diamond jewellery.