Learn About Diamond Mining - Sell Diamonds and More

Diamonds have been found in more than 35 countries. As with other precious gems, there are many ways to mine diamonds. These methods include: artisanal mining; hard rock mining; marine mining; open pit mining; and placer mining.

Hard rock mining requires digging tunnels and creating underground rooms. A vertical tunnel, or shaft, is used to haul deposits to the surface. For deposits closer to the surface, open pit mining is used. In this method, the layer of dirt and materials covering the deposit is removed. Also referred to as pipe mining, open pit mining disturbs large areas of land by removing rock and soil to access the diamonds. Another by product of open pit mining is the pit lake that can form at the bottom of mines. Intruding groundwater causes these. Similar to open pit mining, placer mining extracts diamonds with out the use of tunneling, instead using water pressure, surface excavating equipment or hand digging. It is also called sand bank mining. It is used for secondary type deposits of diamonds, which occur when rock and mineral debris are moved by wind, water or gravity. The primary type of diamond deposit is known as kimberlite or lamproite pipes. These vertical tubes bring the gemstones from their place of origin in the Earth’s mantle. Digging diamonds by hand is also known as artisanal mining. Marine mining only became commercially viable in the last 20 years. Diamonds are removed from offshore deposits either by drilling into the seabed and sucking up the material containing diamonds or with underwater mining vehicles that pump material to an offshore vessel.
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