An Expose' on Flux

I always wanted a pair of real ruby slippers; I think most young girls having watched “The Wizard of Oz” do.  However, with my recent knowledge on the ruby market; I’m not so sure.  Apparently there are some fundamental misunderstandings when it comes to flux in Rubies.  You see we have been led to believe that flux was an unavoidable “residue” left over from the heating process and that borax was used to protect the stone from the heat.

Dr. John Emmett, President of Crystal Chemistry in Brush Prairie, Washington says that the flux which is present in some processed rubies is NOT a “residue”; but rather an infiltration that is fundamental to the processing.  In fact it is as fundamental as impregnating emeralds with oils or plastics to REDUCE THE VISIBILITY OF FRACTURES.

In laymen’s terms; borax is to a ruby what oil is to an emerald: make up.  It is solely for the purpose of hiding fractures and imperfections.  You see Borax (AKA: Sodium Tetraborite Decahydrate) starts to decompose by losing water at 80 degrees Celsius and the anhydrous material melts at 741 degrees Celsius.  This means that its melting point is well below the heat temperature for treating gems which is 1600-1759 degrees Celsius.  Therefore it could not by any stretch of the imagination protect the stone from the heat. 

In fact, you can drop natural corundum out of a furnace and into a bucket of water with out cracking it.  Apparently every heat treater knows this, it’s common knowledge among those whom are in the business of heat treating gems. 

To avoid getting too far down the rabbit hole of chemistry here, I’m gonna break it down.  Some Rubies contain deposits of Aluminum Hydroxide, which when heated turns into Aluminum Oxide.  Aluminum Oxide is amorphous and scatters light poorly (not so shiny L) it also leaves fissures or cracks in the stone.  In comes molten Borax, which wicks into the fissures dissolving the Aluminum Oxide.  These two components combined create Alumino-Borate compounds.  These compounds have high indicies of refraction and thereby do a fair job of matching the corundum; just as oils do for emeralds.

This is all fine and well when one knows they are buying a ruby with fissures that have been patched; rather than a ruby with natural “residue” from the heat treatment.  Gemologists now understand this misrepresentation, but the industry has called these fissure repairs “residue” for so long and has increased acceptance of the material, so the term remains. 

INTRODUCING THE DIAMOND DICTIONARY

This week I have to draw attention to the newest addition to Wink’s Diamonds and Gems Blog; and that is the Diamond Dictionary.  That is a reference guide of gem and diamond terminology.  A simplifying of all the terms and phrases that you have and will come across while enjoying our blog on the topic.  I found myself going and looking up words every couple of sentences while reading some of those diamond journals.  It’s one of those lingo things.  Unless you have gone to Med School, or read medical journals in your spare time, you don’t know the lingo.  Well before I met Wink, I didn't know the lingo; so while the English made sense it had no reference or weight in my mind.  I have had such fun learning these little tid bits myself that I had to share them.  So here is a little teaser of all the super valuable info you will find in the Diamond Dictionary if you just click the tab at the top entitled (Drum roll please…): Diamond Dictionary.

Carat :
The unit of weight by which a diamond is measured. One carat equals 200 milligrams, or 0.2 grams. The word comes from the carob seeds, whose consistent weight was used in times past to measure gemstones

Eye-Clean:
An term used in the jewelry industry to describe a diamond with no blemishes or inclusions that are visible to the naked eye (i.e. a human eye which is not aided by magnifying devices such as a jeweler's loupe or a microscope).  This refers to the view from the top of the stone, as many inclusions that cannot be seen from the top view can be seen from the side or bottom view.

Diamond Production Up?

Wink has given me stacks of Diamond & Gemological magazines.  I have been a busy little bee reading up on the topic.  I came across something I found to be very interesting.  Headline read:  GLOBAL DIAMOND PRODUCTION UP.  As you can imagine, I thought this was curious; it was my understanding that there was some amount of turmoil in the world regarding diamond production.  Naturally I read on, wondering where this increase in diamond production was coming from.

I was surprised to find that it is not so much the finding and cutting of new diamonds that is on the rise, on the contrary, by volume production fell 3%.  Rather, it is the price of production that is on the rise.  The following are some interesting stats to illustrate what this means:

As you can see the price of production in Botswana increased 45%, 11% in Russia, and 21% in Canada and on average 31% globally.  All this math means that the price of rough, uncut diamonds has increased this year, not the quality nor the quantity.  
FACT: both the Chinese and the Indians have started a strong engagement ring tradition in the past few years; which has greatly increased the world wide demand at a time when we might have expected the demand to go down, since the economy in the traditional diamond buying countries is way down.  That, coupled with the lowering of the physical production is why the prices are going up, even in a down economy. 

In my opinion, if I’m going be buying these stones for a higher price all the way around any way, than I’d kinda’ prefer it to be as perfect a stone as it could be; seeing as how I’m all ready paying premium prices.Wink has got that part covered.  High Performance Diamonds meet even the neediest of requirements for their qualification.  Keep that and those stats in mind the next time you find yourself at a jewelry store in the mall.  Just remember that the price of rough diamonds has increased, which means that most of your diamond retailers are going to do one of two things:  A) Hike up their prices to cover their cost or B) cut corners.

At High Performance, there is no such thing as cutting corners when it comes to diamond cut and quality.  You are always getting the best, irrespective of Global Diamond Production or Production Prices.    

An Introduction to Krystal with CMO Marketing:

Wink Jones, a legend in his own right, has entrusted yours truly with the writing of some of his blog posts.  My name is Krystal Moore, by nature and trade I am a wordsmith, but I have always had a fascination with shiny rocks.  Perhaps it is because I am a lady and perhaps it has something to do with my mother naming me after them, whatever the reason may be; I am keen on gemstones.  I am absolutely excited about this writing adventure. 

What do a woman and a fish have in common?  They are both attracted to shiny things... I am no different.  I, like most women, love the things in life that sparkle.  However, like most people, I just look at the sparkle and do not bother with the fine print or unobvious details.  That is, until I met Wink Jones, whom is not only a graduate from the Gemological Institute of America; but is in his 37th year of a love affair with gems.  I, being named after them (and currently having a covetous relationship with them) find myself thirsty for what Wink knows on the topic.

My goal in writing these posts is to bring diamond and gemstone buyers into the “know” on the topic.  I want to simplify Wink’s extensive knowledge and share it with all of you; so that you might go into your future gemstone purchases with an understanding of at least the basics.  Although, it is my ardent hope to share with you the passion for gems that Wink has as well as the expertise he has gained.

I don’t like to go into anything without knowing what I am dealing with.  I think most of us are apprehensive about investing money in things we know little to nothing about.  I understand that, and Wink does too.  This is why we have begun collaborating on this educational blog.  I want to know what I’m buying as well as all that went into that product; Wink is passionate about sharing his volt of information, expertise and experience on gems.  With his extensive knowledge and my apt for wordsmithing combined with my desire to make this somewhat overwhelming topic more feasible to understand; we should have you all armed with the know how to fearlessly purchase your gems and feeling confident that you got your money’s worth.