When it comes to gemstones like emeralds and rubies, chemical and physical treatments are very common, but did you know that diamonds are sometimes treated too? If you’ve ever dabbled in the world of diamonds, you may have come across treated diamonds and wondered what was done to them. Today we’ll dive into exactly what these treatments are and how they can alter or improve a diamond’s clarity and color.
Clarity Treatments
There are two main types of clarity treatments commonly used today: laser drilling and fracture filling.
Laser Drilling
Almost all natural diamonds have dark spots and imperfections—known as inclusions—which can impact the stone’s overall appearance. The goal of laser drilling is to minimize these inclusions and maximize clarity. Using a super high-powered laser, a tiny channel is burned into the diamond to reach the targeted inclusion. Then, a very strong acid is injected into the channel to bleach the inclusion. Generally, the channel is completely invisible to the naked eye, and the appearance of the diamond is dramatically improved!
Fracture Filling
Diamonds are known for their amazing strength and durability, but did you know they can break? Usually these fractures occur while the diamond is formed within the earth, leaving cracks both inside and on the surface of the stone. These cracks are another type of inclusion that can affect clarity, and that’s where the fracture filling process can save the day!
If the break reaches the surface of the diamond, it can simply be filled in with a special glass-like material. The filler mimics the color and transparency of the stone, making the crack seem to disappear. If the break is enclosed within the stone, the laser drilling process is used to reach the fracture so that it can be injected with filling. In both of these scenarios, the appearance of the diamond is improved, but the cracks may still be visible under certain lighting.
It’s important to note that these processes are almost always considered cosmetic. What that means is that the actual clarity grade of the diamond—which is determined before treatment—is not improved by treating inclusions or filling cracks. That’s because the cracks and inclusions still technically exist; it’s only the appearance that has been altered.
A downside to this treatment is that ultrasonic cleaners and steamers can sometimes damage fracture fillings, so it’s important to clean them with more gentle methods. On the upside, however, a diamond which has received one or both of these treatments might look nearly identical to one that has not—yet will cost a lot less!
Color Treatments
The two main types of color treatments are irradiation and high-pressure, high-temperature (HPHT).
Irradiation
Fancy color diamonds—like pink, blue, red, and yellow—are exceedingly rare in nature, so irradiation is used to produce more of them. Believe it or not, this treatment can occur in nuclear reactors or in machines known as linear accelerators. During treatment, the stone is subjected to controlled radiation, which changes the diamond’s color! The amount and type of radiation used is highly regulated, so there’s no need to worry—irradiated diamonds and gemstones are totally safe to wear!
Sometimes irradiated diamonds go through an additional step of intense heating in order to enhance or further alter their color. The red, orange and pink diamonds above are examples of what can be produced with this additional step!
High-Pressure, High-Temperature (HPHT)
Another treatment connected to the energy sector, HPHT was actually developed by General Electric. By subjecting certain diamonds to HPHT, stunning results can be achieved, ranging from a black diamond to a nearly colorless one!
Now, changing a brown diamond into a colorless one is really rare and only works about 1-2% of the time, but producing a black one is much more successful. Typically, diamonds with lots of fractures and inclusions are selected for this process. That’s because inclusions are usually just carbon trapped inside the stone, which will convert to graphite during the HPHT process. The effect? A diamond that appears as black as onyx, yet sparkles like only a diamond can!
So there you have it—the the basics of treated diamonds! Thanks to processes like these, it’s easier than ever to find the perfect diamond for you. Why not take a look at our extensive diamond collection online or pop into one of our stores to see a specific stone up close and personal? We’d love to see you soon!
