Heat Treated Sapphire Inclusions

This changes the value of certain colour effective trace elements which explain the colour optimisations.

Heat treated sapphire inclusions. Here it is true that not every stone can be changed to optimum colours by temperature treatment i e. Koivula jonathan muyal shane f. The photo above visually shows why. Heating sapphires at extreme temperatures change the internal characteristics so much that it is quite easy for a trained gemologist to determine if the sapphire has been heated.

Inclusions in natural synthetic and treated sapphire. Almost all sapphires 95 of them today are heat treated. Other images highlight features that may be diagnostic for a particular treatment. So why are some sapphires heat treated.

Why heat a sapphire. Distinguishing these levels of treatment can also affect the price of a sapphire dramatically. Sapphire treatment guide heated. Rutile is a titanium oxide and often it forms in conjunction with a sapphire crystal becoming embedded within the structure of the crystal.

Shigley aug 7 2017. Provides a visual guide to the internal features of natural synthetic and treated sapphires. If you have been shopping for sapphires you will come across stones that are either natural no heat or enhanced by heat heated there are other methods of treatment conducted on sapphires however this article only compares unheated sapphires with heated sapphires as it is the most prevalent method of treatment in the market today. Photo courtesy of apsara co uk.

Microscopic particle inclusions with straight colour banding in a heat treated thai blue sapphire. Mcclure kevin schumacher and james e. The raw material for this is also limited. A case in point is the internal diffusion seen in a heat treated sapphire induced as the titanium from rutile silk inclusions was dissolved into the crystal lattice of the host sapphire at high temperatures.

The study of inclusions in sapphires is a sure way to detect if a sapphire has been treated. The application of heat treatment on sapphires dates back. Heating sapphires at extreme temperatures change the internal characteristics so much that it is quite easy for a trained gemologist to determine if the sapphire has been heated. The study of inclusions in sapphires is a sure way to detect if a sapphire has been treated.

In this treatment rubies and sapphires are usually heated above 1200 c. Many sapphires have inclusions of very fine hair like crystals of a mineral called rutile. The particles give the stone a sleepy or hazy appearance which is common to sapphires from kanchanaburi thailand.