The Mir kimberlite pipe (Yakutia) is the largest diamond quarry in the world. How are diamonds mined?

In Yakutia, near the city of Mirny, there is the largest diamond quarry in the world by total volume - the Mir kimberlite pipe (the city of Mirny appeared after the discovery of the pipe and was named in its honor). The quarry has a depth of 525 meters and a diameter of 1.2 kilometers.
The formation of a kimberlite pipe occurs during a volcanic eruption, when gases from the bowels of the earth escape through the earth's crust. The shape of such a tube resembles a funnel or glass. A volcanic explosion removes kimberlite from the bowels of the Earth, a rock that sometimes contains diamonds. The breed is named after the town of Kimberley in South Africa, where an 85-carat (16.7 gram) diamond was found in 1871, sparking the Diamond Rush.
On June 13, 1955, geologists searching for a kimberlite pipe in Yakutia saw a tall larch tree whose roots had been exposed by a landslide. The fox dug a deep hole under it. Based on the characteristic bluish color of the soil scattered by the fox, geologists realized that it was kimberlite. A coded radiogram was immediately sent to Moscow: “We lit the peace pipe, the tobacco is excellent.” Soon after 2800 km. off-road, convoys of vehicles flocked to the site of the discovery of the kimberlite pipe. The working village of Mirny grew up around the diamond deposit; now it is a city with a population of 36 thousand people.

The development of the field took place in extremely difficult climatic conditions. To break through the permafrost, it had to be blown up with dynamite. In the 1960s, 2 kg were already produced here. diamonds per year, of which 20% were of jewelry quality and, after cutting and turning into diamonds, could be supplied to a jewelry salon. The remaining 80% of diamonds were used for industrial purposes. The South African company De Beers was concerned about the rapid development of Mir, which was forced to buy Soviet diamonds in order to control prices on the world market. The management of De Beers agreed on the arrival of its delegation in Mirny. The leadership of the USSR agreed to this on the condition that Soviet specialists would visit diamond quarries in South Africa. A De Beers delegation arrived in Moscow in 1976 to fly to Mirny, but the South African guests were deliberately delayed by endless meetings and banquets in Moscow, so when the delegation finally reached Mirny, they had only 20 minutes to inspect the quarry. However, South African experts were still amazed by what they saw, for example, by the fact that the Russians did not use water when processing ore. Although this is understandable: after all, 7 months a year in Mirny there is sub-zero temperature and therefore the use of water is simply impossible.
Between 1957 and 2001, the Mir quarry produced $17 billion worth of diamonds. Over the years, the quarry expanded so much that trucks had to travel 8 km along a spiral road. from bottom to surface. The Russian company ALROSA, which owns the Mir quarry, stopped open-pit ore mining in 2001 because... this method has become dangerous and ineffective. Scientists have found that diamonds lie at a depth of more than 1 km, and at such a depth it is not a quarry that is suitable for mining, but an underground mine, which, according to the plan, will reach its design capacity of one million tons of ore per year already in 2012. In total, the development of the field is planned for another 34 years.
Helicopters are strictly prohibited from flying over the quarry, because a huge funnel sucks aircraft into itself. The high walls of the quarry are fraught with danger not only for helicopters: there is a threat of landslides, and one day the quarry may swallow the surrounding, including built-up, areas. Scientists are thinking about a project for an eco-city in a now empty huge pit. The head of the Moscow architectural bureau Nikolai Lyutomsky talks about his plans: “The main part of the project is a huge concrete structure, which will become a kind of “plug” for the former quarry and will burst it from the inside. On top of the pit will be covered with a translucent dome on which solar panels will be installed. Climate in Yakutia it is harsh, but there are many clear days and the batteries will be able to generate about 200 MW of electricity, which should more than meet the needs of the future city. In addition, it is possible to use the Earth’s heat. In winter, the air in Mirny is cooled to –60°C, but at a depth below. 150 meters (that is, below the permafrost) the ground temperature is positive, which adds energy efficiency to the project. The city space is proposed to be divided into three tiers: the lower one for growing agricultural products (the so-called vertical farm), the middle one for a forest park area that purifies the air, and the upper one for permanent use. residence of people, which has a residential function and serves to house administrative and sociocultural buildings and structures. The total area of ​​the city will be 3 million square meters, and up to 10,000 people will be able to live here - tourists, service personnel and farm workers."

Since ancient times, diamonds have been recognized as the most exquisite and expensive jewelry. But the scope of use of precious stones is not limited to jewelry. On the contrary, most of the mined stones are used for production needs.

Diamonds are used in almost all industries. They are used to make tips for cutters and drills, which are used in the processing of metals, hard alloys, glass and other synthetic materials. This application is economically justified, since diamond has very high strength and in this regard is superior to similar tools made of carbide metal.

Diamond powder, obtained by crushing low-grade raw materials, is used to cut other precious stones, including diamonds themselves.

Historical excursion

Diamond ore lies in the earth's crust, in so-called kimberlite pipes. They were formed several million years ago as a result of the eruption of underground volcanoes. Under the influence of enormous pressure and high temperatures, carbon took on a strong crystalline form, which today is called diamond stone.

Kimberlite pipes have the shape of a cone, the base of which reaches the surface, and the tip goes 2 kilometers deep into the earth's crust. This form of occurrence of diamond ores allows for open-pit mining. As a rule, once the pit reaches a depth of 300–600 meters, it is closed, and further development is carried out underground.

In the world, the first explored diamond deposits are considered to be mines in Africa; it was from them that active industrial production began more than a hundred years ago. In Russia, kimberlite mines were discovered in the middle of the last century in Yakutia.

The first significant deposit was discovered in 1954, it was called Zarnitsa. Geologists made big bets on Yakutia and were not mistaken; a year later, another major deposit was explored - “Mir”.

They say that when the data was confirmed, an encrypted telegram was sent to Moscow: “We lit the peace pipe, the tobacco is excellent.” During the development of this field, the city of the same name, Mirny, grew in its vicinity. Today the city's population exceeds 35 thousand people. It is noteworthy that 80% of able-bodied citizens are employees of the largest diamond mining company, Alrosa.

Main diamond deposits in Russia

The following kimberlite pipe locations have been explored on the territory of the Russian Federation to date:

• Republic of Sakha (Yakutia);
• Perm region;
• Arkhangelsk region.

The leader in terms of production volumes is undoubtedly Yakutia; the local industry accounts for 82% of all mined diamonds. The Arkhangelsk region is in second place – 17.5%. Less than one percent of fossil diamonds come from the Perm region.

In Yakutia, 12 diamond-bearing areas have been identified and explored. Three are currently being actively developed:

• Daldyno-Alaktinsky;
• Anabarsky;
• Malo-Botuobinsky.

Well-known kimberlite pipes are located in these areas:

• Successful;
• International;

The Udachnaya kimberlite pipe was the first to be actively developed, then the International and Mir.

The International deposit was discovered in 1969 and is located near the city of Mirny (15 km). The depth of explored diamond reserves here reaches 1220 m. Active development of the mine began in 1971 and has not stopped to this day.

When the quarry reached a depth of 284 meters, open-pit mining was mothballed and diamond ore continued to be extracted using the underground method. The mines began to be built in the 70s. It was the International Mine that became the first deposit in Russia where mining began to be carried out using the shaft method.

Quarry method of extracting diamond ore

Open-pit mining, including diamonds, is the simplest and cheapest option. Its basis is to extract ore to the surface using machines - dump trucks, loaders.

First, the drilling rig makes a hole, then explosives are placed in it. Gentle technologies are used, since diamond can crack and lose integrity, even though it is the hardest of minerals. After blasting, rock fragments are loaded onto dump trucks and transported to the processing plant.

Yakutia has a fairly harsh climate, winter here lasts eight months, and the air temperature sometimes drops to -60 o C. To ensure uninterrupted operations, equipment that can withstand such temperature conditions is needed.

For quarry work, loaders, excavators, and dump trucks of such brands as BelAZ, Cat, Komatsu are used. Such machines are capable of transporting up to 136 tons of ore; about a hundred machines and mechanisms are used to ensure the operation of one quarry.

However, despite all the advantages of the open diamond mining method, its application is limited. As a rule, the depth of quarries should not reach 600 meters. In the funnel of the International Pipe, a dump truck, rising from the bottom to the surface along a serpentine road, covers 10 km.

Underground method of mining diamond ore

When open-pit mining of ore becomes impossible, they move on to constructing underground mines. This mining method requires much more costs, but even with large investments in its organization, it still remains economically justified, since the depth of kimberlite pipes often reaches 1.5 km.

After the closure of the International Quarry, the remaining reserves of diamond ore, according to expert estimates, will be enough for another 25 years of uninterrupted production. In order to prepare the mine for operation, significant capital investments will be required - $3-4 billion. But most of the investments are required only at the initial stage of construction; significantly smaller amounts of money will be needed for operation.

The construction of underground mines is carried out in difficult climatic conditions. Low temperatures are complemented by aggressive groundwater. They are highly mineralized, and under their influence, wheel tires are corroded. Water must be constantly pumped out. This happens in two stages. First, with the help of pumps, liquid is taken and pumped into bunkers located in the middle of the shaft, then, after they are filled, the water from them is pumped to the surface.

Diamonds are mined underground using combine mining. The cutters of the machine rotate, and under their pressure the rock is destroyed. It is then loaded onto special machines that deliver the ore to the surface. The scheme is quite simple and similar to the quarry method; sometimes it is possible to use explosives to destroy kimberlite rock. The most expensive and difficult thing is ensuring the safe operation of miners and equipment underground.

To transport people to their place of work, a cage similar to an elevator is used; up to 20 people can fit in it. The descent time to the bottom point is seven minutes. Oxygen must be constantly supplied to the mine; for this purpose, a cage shaft is built; it serves as an elevator for lowering and lifting miners, cargo, as well as for supplying air to the mine.

The depth of this pillar is 1065 m, diameter is 6.5 meters. A skip shaft is built to release rock and can be used as an emergency lift for people. Niches have been created underground for miners to rest; they are located at a depth of 300 meters; the temperature here is comfortable, dry and warm.

Where and how are diamonds mined? Diamonds of Yakutia

Diamond ore beneficiation

After diamond ore is extracted by any method, it is sent to a processing plant, where it will undergo several stages of purification. First, the rock must be crushed, since pieces of 1.5 meters in size are often encountered. Using cone and jaw crushers, the rock is crushed to a diameter of less than 0.5 meters. Next, the raw materials are sent to classifiers, where the ore is separated by density and size using a stream of water. The washed rock enters the vibrating sieve; it consists of several levels, each subsequent one has smaller holes, thus the raw materials are sorted into fractions. The vibrating sieve is often called the “Rumble” because it makes a lot of noise when it operates.

The next step is necessary to isolate diamonds and medium-sized pieces of ore. Jigging machines deliver a pulsating stream of water, which dissolves or dislodges the rock, and the diamonds settle at the bottom of the installation. The rock of smaller fractions is processed in a different way, using chemical reagents - pneumatic flotation.

Substances, interacting with water, foam, and small particles of diamonds stick to the bubbles and are thus isolated from the rock.

The main and control stage of diamond ore enrichment is X-ray luminescence separation. Along a special conveyor belt, the raw material is fed into blocks equipped with X-rays, when exposed to radiation, the diamond luminesces, and the device detects the flashes and knocks the diamond out of the total mass with a stream of air. Since a small amount of rock is blown out with the air flow, another stage of isolating, cleaning and sorting the diamonds is necessary.

Diamond is not a standardized product; its value is influenced by a combination of various qualities - clarity, color and size. Each stone is assessed by a specialist. After completion of all stages of enrichment, diamonds of larger fractions are sent for cutting or sale in pure form, and fine-grained sand is intended for sale to industrial enterprises; tools and other materials will be made from it.

Main economic indicators of the Alrosa company

Diamond mining in Yakutia is carried out by the largest enterprise in Russia - OJSC Alrosa. The annual production of precious stones amounts to 35 million carats. The company accounts for 97% of all Russian and 25% of global diamond production.

Every year production volumes increase, new deposits are developed, and underground mines are built. Revenue from diamond sales per year is more than 5 billion US dollars. Annual increase in net profit at 3%. In the future, it is planned to increase this figure due to the completion of the construction of mines, which requires significant capital investments.

According to preliminary calculations, up to four billion dollars are needed to equip one underground mine. Due to such expenses, Alrosa was on the verge of loss in 2008, but the state supported the company by allowing the sale of shares, a significant part of which was acquired by VTB Bank.

According to experts, the deposits owned by OJSC Alrosa are quite promising, the expected production volume is 1.23 billion carats, of which 1.014 billion are proven, and 0.211 billion are probable. A carat is a generally accepted measure of the weight of precious stones and is equal to 1.5 grams.

Video: Joint Stock Company "ALROSA"

Everyone knows that diamond is the most precious stone on earth. It is unique in that it is the hardest, most radiant and sparkling among minerals; its external characteristics are not subject to time, mechanical damage and even fire. Both thousands of years ago and now, diamonds attract humanity, beckoning with their cold beauty. Processed diamonds not only produce magnificent diamonds that adorn luxury jewelry, they are also (due to their properties) used in many industrial sectors. There are enough deposits where diamonds can be found in Russia to say that our country is a diamond power. In this article we will tell you more about the extraction of such a useful and beautiful mineral. So, further about where diamonds are mined in Russia: cities, location of deposits.

Diamonds in nature

In the upper mantle of the Earth, at a depth of more than 100-150 km, under the influence of high temperatures and enormous pressure, pure carbon atoms from the graphite state are modified into crystals, which we call diamonds. This crystallization process takes hundreds of years. After spending several million years in the depths of the earth, diamonds are brought to the surface of the earth by kimberlite magma during volcanic explosions. With such an explosion, so-called pipes are formed - kimberlite diamond deposits. The name “kimberlite” comes from the African town of Kimberley, in the area of ​​which diamond-bearing rock was discovered. Nowadays, there are two types of diamond deposits: primary (lamproite and kimberlite) and secondary (placers).

Diamonds were known to mankind three thousand years before our era; the first mentions of them were found in India. People immediately endowed diamond with supernatural properties, thanks to its indestructible hardness, brilliance and transparent purity. It was accessible only to selected persons who had power and authority.

Diamond producing countries

Since each diamond is unique in its own way, it is customary to separate their accounting among world countries according to production volumes and in value terms. The bulk of diamond production is distributed among only nine countries. These are Russia, the Republic of Congo, Botswana, Australia, Canada, Angola, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

In value terms, the leaders among these countries are Russia, African Botswana and Canada. Their total diamond production accounts for more than 60% of the value of the world's mined diamonds.

In less than 2017 (according to the latest data), Russia takes first place in terms of production volumes and value. Its share in value terms accounts for about 40% of total world production. This leadership has belonged to Russia for several years.

The first diamond in the Russian Federation

Now in more detail about production in our country. When and where did diamond mining in Russia first begin? This happened in the 19th century, in the summer of 1829, the serf teenager Pavel Popov, panning for gold at the Krestovozdvizhensky gold mine in the Perm province, found an incomprehensible pebble. The boy gave it to the caretaker and after assessing the precious find, he was given his freedom, and all other workers were told to pay attention to all the transparent stones. So two more diamonds were found. Humboldt, a former German geologist nearby, was told about the place where diamonds are mined in Russia. Then the development of the diamond mine began.

Over the next thirty years, about 130 diamonds were discovered, weighing a total of 60 carats. In total, before 1917, no more than 250 precious stones were found in Russia, where diamonds were mined in the Urals. But, despite the insignificant number, they were all of excellent beauty. These were stones worthy of decorating jewelry.

Already in 1937, large-scale expeditions were organized in Soviet Russia to explore Ural diamonds, but they were not crowned with great success. The placers found were poor in precious stone content; primary diamond deposits were never discovered in the Urals.

Siberian diamonds

Since the 18th century, the best minds of our country have wondered where the diamond deposits are in Russia. The great Russian scientist of the 18th century, Mikhail Lomonosov, stated in his writings that Siberia could be a diamond-bearing region. He outlined his assumption in the manuscript “Diamonds Could Have Occurred in the Northern Lands.” However, the first Siberian diamond was found at the end of the 19th century on the Melnichnaya River, near the city of Yeniseisk. Due to the fact that it weighed only two-thirds of a carat, and also due to a lack of funding, exploration of other diamonds in the area was not continued.

And only in 1949 in Yakutia on the Sokolinaya Spit, near the village of Krestyakh in the Suntarsky Ulus, the first Siberian diamond was found. But this deposit was alluvial. The search for indigenous kimberlite pipes was crowned with success five years later - the first pipe not located in Africa was found near the Daldyn River by geologist Popugaeva. This was a significant discovery in the life of our country. The name of the first diamond-bearing pipe was given in the Soviet style of that time - “Zarnitsa”. The next to be discovered were the Mir pipe and the Udachnaya pipe, where diamonds are still mined in Russia. By the end of 1955, 15 new diamond pipe deposits appeared in Yakutia.

Yakutia, or as the locals call this region, the Republic of Sakha, is the place where gold and diamonds are mined in Russia. Despite the severity of the climate, it is a fertile and generous region, giving our country natural resources.

Below is a map that clearly shows where these precious stones are mined in Russia. The darkest territories are the places where there are the largest number of deposits, and the diamonds themselves are the most expensive in value. As you can see, most of the pipes are concentrated in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). There are also diamonds in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Irkutsk Region, the Republic of Karelia, the Arkhangelsk and Murmansk Regions, the Perm Territory, the Komi Republic and so on.

Mirny is the city with the most diamonds in Russia

In the summer of 1955, geologists searching for kimberlite pipes in Yakutia saw a larch tree with exposed roots. This fox dug a hole here. The color of the scattered earth was bluish, which is a characteristic feature of kimberlite. The geologists were not mistaken in their guesses, and after some time they sent a coded message to the top Soviet leadership: “We smoked the pipe of peace, the tobacco is excellent!” A year later, in the west of Yakutia, large-scale development of the Mir kimberlite pipe begins, similar to quarry excavations.

Around a huge quarry in the form of a funnel, a village is formed, named in his honor - Mirny. Within two years, the village turns into the city of Mirny, today it is a city with a population of more than three tens of thousands of residents, 80% of whom are employed in the diamond mining enterprise. It can rightfully be called the diamond capital of Russia, because millions of dollars worth of diamonds are mined here every year.

Now it is the largest quarry not only in Russia, where diamonds are mined, but throughout the world. The depth of the huge quarry is 525 meters, its diameter is about 1200 meters, the quarry could easily accommodate the Ostankino TV tower. And when descending to the center of the quarry, the length of the serpentine road is more than 8 kilometers.

Below in the photo is just this diamond quarry (Mirny city, Yakutia).

"Yakutalmaz"

The Yakutalmaz trust was created in 1957 in the tent village of Mirny at that time with the aim of developing mining operations for diamond extraction. Exploration of the following deposits was carried out in the difficult conditions of the deep taiga, with severe frosts of 60 degrees and the absence of any infrastructure. Thus, in 1961, almost near the Arctic Circle, the development of the Aikhal pipe began, and in 1969 another pipe was discovered - the International pipe - the most diamond-bearing pipe to date.

In the 1970s and 1980s, several more diamond mines were opened through underground nuclear explosions. The International, Yubileiny and other pipes were discovered in this way. In the same years, Yakutalmaz opened the world’s only kimberlite museum in the city of Mirny. At first, the exhibits represented private collections of geologists, but over time they became more numerous. Here you can see various rocks of kimberlite - a harbinger of diamonds, from different kimberlite pipes around the world.

ALROSA

Since 1992, the joint-stock company ALROSA (Almazy Russia-Sakha), with a state controlling stake, has become the legal successor of the Soviet Yakutalmaz. Since its formation, ALROSA has received a state monopoly on exploration, mining and diamond processing activities in the Russian Federation. This group of diamond mining and processing enterprises produces about 98% of all diamonds in Russia.

Today ALROSA has six mining and processing complexes (GOK), four of which are part of the group. These are Aikhal, Udachninsky, Mirny and Nyurbinsky mining and processing plants. Two more plants - Almazy Anabara and Arkhangelsk Severalmaz - are subsidiaries of ALROSA. Each mining and processing plant consists of one or more diamond deposits and a complex of special equipment and processing facilities.

From all mills in Russia, diamonds, no matter where they were mined, are delivered to the Diamond Sorting Center. Here they are assessed, weighed and initially processed. Then the rough diamonds are sent to Moscow and Yakut cutting plants.

The largest deposits in Russia

Among the largest deposits in Yakutia one can note the Yubileiny quarry. Diamond mining on an industrial scale began here in 1986, and to date the depth of development has reached 320 meters. Further development of Yubileiny up to 720 meters is predicted. Diamond reserves here are estimated at 153 million carats.

The Yubileiny diamond quarry is slightly inferior to the Udachny diamond quarry, which has reserves of precious stones worth 152 million carats. In addition, the Udachnaya pipe was discovered among the very first diamond-bearing pipes in Yakutia in 1955. And although open-pit diamond mining here closed in 2015, underground mining may still continue for several decades. The depth of the Udachny deposit at the time of closure was a world record - 640 meters.

The Mir deposit has also been closed since 2001, and diamond mining here is carried out underground. The oldest quarry still produces surprisingly large diamonds - in 2012, a specimen of 79.9 carats was found. The name of this diamond was given to “President”. True, it is 4 times smaller than the diamond with the name “XXVI Congress of the CPSU” also mined in the Mir pipe in 1980 and weighing 342.5 carats. The total reserves of the Mir quarry are estimated at 141 million carats.

“Yubileiny”, “Udachny”, and “Mir” are the largest diamond deposits not only in Russia, but also in the world.

The Botoubinskaya kimberlite pipe is one of the young, recently developed deposits, also located in Yakutia. Industrial-scale development here began in 2012, and Botouba diamonds entered the world market in 2015. Experts predict that diamond production from this deposit will amount to 71 million carats, and its service life will be at least forty years.

Where are diamonds mined in Russia (except Yakutia)

The opinion that the ALROSA group of companies operates only in cold Yakutia will be erroneous. Moreover, ALROSA is developing deposits not only in Russia, where diamonds are mined, but also in ten other countries.

Indeed, the group’s basic production is concentrated in the Republic of Sakha - in the cities of Yakutsk, Mirny and other cities of Western Yakutia. But there are also representative offices of the joint-stock company ALROSA in other regions of Russia. For example, a subsidiary diamond mining enterprise in the Arkhangelsk region, where the development of diamond deposits began quite recently, about 20 years ago, and the Lomonosov Mining and Processing Plant was opened.

There are also placer diamond deposits in the Perm region. Here they concentrated in the city of Aleksandrovsk and Krasnovishersky district. Although the Permian deposits are not primary, the diamonds mined here are of high quality and are recognized as one of the best for jewelry for their transparency and purity.

ALROSA also has its own representative offices in other cities of Russia, where diamonds are not mined, but processed and turned into polished diamonds. These are Yakutsk, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Orel and a number of other cities.

ALROSA outside Russia

AK ALROSA conducts major activities in the South African Republic of Angola. Here she owns about 33% of the shares of the local mining company - Africa's largest diamond producer. Cooperation began in 2002, after several meetings at the level of senior management in the capital of the republic, the city of Luanda, an ALROSA branch was opened.

In marketing its specific products, ALROSA has opened several sales branches around the world - in London (UK), Antwerp (Belgium), Hong Kong (China), Dubai (United Arab Emirates), as well as in the USA and Israel. These countries are the location of the main rough and polished diamond trading centers, where they are sold at special auctions and tenders.

Diamonds were formed more than 300 million years ago. Kimberlite magma formed at a depth of 20-25 km. Magma gradually rose along faults in the earth's crust, and when the upper layers could no longer contain the pressure of the rocks, an explosion occurred. The first such pipe was discovered in South Africa in the city of Kimberley - that’s where the name came from. In the mid-50s, the richest primary diamond deposits were discovered in Yakutia, where about 1,500 kimberlite pipes have been discovered to date. The development of deposits in Yakutia is carried out by the Russian company ALROSA, which produces 99% of diamonds in the Russian Federation and more than a quarter in the world.

The city of Mirny is the diamond “capital” of Russia, located in Yakutia (Sakha) 1200 km away. from Yakutsk.
The Mir diamond-bearing pipe, discovered by geologists in the summer of 1955, gave its name to a workers’ settlement that grew up in the taiga and became a city 3.5 years later.

The population of the city is about 35 thousand people. About 80% of this population works at enterprises associated with the ALROSA group of companies.

Lenin Square is the city center.

Mirny Airport

Providing Mirny with food and consumer goods occurs in the following ways: aviation, shipping supplies (for the period while navigation is open on the Lena) and along the winter road.

Il-76TD cargo plane of ALROSA airlines

The headquarters of Russia's largest diamond mining company, ALROSA, is located in Mirny.
The history of the company began with the Yakutalmaz trust, formed to develop the primary diamond deposits of Yakutia in the early 1950s.

The main deposit of Yakutalmaz was the Mir kimberlite pipe, discovered on June 13, 1955.
Then geologists sent an encrypted telegram to Moscow: “We have lit the pipe of peace. The tobacco is excellent."

The quarry is located in close proximity to Mirny.

From 1957 to 2001, $17 billion worth of diamonds were extracted from the deposit, and about 350 million m3 of rock were exported.
Over the years, the quarry expanded so much that dump trucks had to travel 8 km along a spiral road. from bottom to surface.

The quarry has a depth of 525 m and a diameter of 1.2 km, and is one of the largest in the world: the height of it could include the Ostankino TV tower.

The quarry was mothballed in June 2001 and since 2009, diamond ore has been mined underground at the Mir mine.

An aquifer passes through the area where the Mir pipe is located. Water is now entering the quarry and thus poses a threat to the mine underneath. Water must be continuously pumped out and directed into the faults that geologists have found in the earth's crust.

The volume of diamond production at the mine in 2013 amounted to more than 2 million carats.
Resources (including reserves) – more than 40 million tons of ore.

About 760 people work at the mine.
The company operates seven days a week. The mine operates on a three-shift basis, with shifts lasting 7 hours.

Surveyors who determine the direction of excavation through the ore body.

9 roadheaders (Sandvik MR 620 and MR360) are used for excavation in the mine.
The combine is a machine with an executive body in the form of an arrow with a milling crown, which is equipped with cutting tools - teeth.

This Sandvik MR360 combine has 72 teeth made of hardened metal.
Since the teeth are subject to wear, they are inspected every shift and, if necessary, replaced with new ones.

To deliver ore from the combine to the ore pass, 8 loading and delivery vehicles (LODs) are used.

The main converter belt is 1200 meters long from the kimberlite pipe to the ore pass skip.
The average diamond content exceeds 3 carats per ton.

From this place to the bottom of the quarry is about 20 meters.

To prevent flooding of the underground mine, a pillar 20 meters thick was left between the bottom of the quarry and the mine workings.
A waterproof layer is also laid at the bottom of the quarry, which prevents water from penetrating into the mine.

The mine also has a water collection system: first, groundwater is collected in special settling tanks, then it is supplied to an elevation of -310 meters, from where it is pumped to the surface.

In total, the mine operates 10 pumps with a capacity of 180 to 400 cubic meters per hour.

Installation of the main tape

And this is underground work on another pipe - “International” (“Inter”).

It is located 16 km from Mirny. Open-pit diamond mining here began in 1971, and when the quarry reached 284 m by 1980, it was mothballed. It was with Inter that underground diamond mining began in Yakutia.

“International” is the company’s richest kimberlite pipe in terms of diamond content in ore - more than 8 carats per ton.
In addition, Inter diamonds are of high quality and are valued on the world market.

The depth of the mine is 1065 meters. The pipe has been explored to 1220 meters.
The length of all workings here is more than 40 km.

The combine beats ore with a working tool (cone cutter) with cutters installed on it.

Next comes loading into loading and delivery vehicles, which transport the ore to the ore passes (mining openings designed to transport ore from the working area to the transport horizon located below), then the trolleys transport it to the main ore pass, through which it is fed into the skip shaft and delivered to surface.

1,500 tons of ore are mined at Inter per day. The volume of diamond production in 2013 amounted to more than 4.3 million carats.

On average, one ton of rock contains 8.53 carats of diamonds.
So, in terms of diamond content per ton of mined ore from Inter, there are 2 tons of ore from Mir, 4 tons from Aikhal, or 8 tons from Udachninsky.

Work at the mine is carried out day and night, seven days a week. There are only two holidays - New Year and Miner's Day.

Nyurbinskaya kimberlite pipe

The Nyurbinsky mining and processing plant was created in March 2000 for the development of deposits of the Nakyn ore field in the Nyurbinsky ulus of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) - the Nyurbinskaya and Botuobinskaya kimberlite pipes, as well as adjacent placers. Mining is carried out by open-pit and placer mining.

For the first time in the history of the association of Yakutalmaz and the Alrosa company, the Nyurbinsky GOK uses a rotational method - with the involvement of workers living in Mirny (320 km), in Nyurba (206 km) and in the village of Verkhnevilyuysk (235 km).

As of July 1, 2013, the depth of the Nyurbinsky quarry is 255 meters.
The open pit will be mined up to 450 meters (up to -200 meters from sea level). There is potential to operate down to -320 meters.

To transport ore and overburden rocks, dump trucks with large and especially heavy load capacity are used - from 40 to 136 tons.

The quarry uses Caterpillar CAT-777D dump trucks with a lifting capacity of 88 tons.

Nyurba Mining and Processing Plant has the highest growth rate of natural diamond production in AK ALROSA.

The volume of diamond production in 2013 amounted to 6.5 million carats.

The average diamond content in the ore is 4.25 carats per ton.

There are about 300-400 carats in the back of such a dump truck.

From a quarry or mine, ore is transported by dump trucks to a factory, where the minerals themselves are extracted from it.

The beneficiation of diamonds from the Mirny Mining and Processing Plant is carried out at factory No. 3, which in the 70s of the last century was the flagship of the country's diamond mining industry.
The capacity of the processing complex is 1,415 thousand ores per year.

Coarse crushing body and jaw crusher.

It grinds by rubbing the movable “cheek” against the stationary one. 6 thousand tons of raw materials pass through the crusher per day.

Medium crushing housing

Spiral classifiers

Designed for wet separation of solid material into sand (sediment, particle size up to 50 mm), and drain containing fine suspended particles.

Wet autogenous mill

Mill diameter - 7 meters

Rumble

The stones are sifted through a sieve, where they are divided into groups according to size.

Finely processed rock is sent to spiral classifiers (screw separators), where all raw materials are separated depending on their density.

The heavy fraction comes from the outer side, and the light fraction comes from the inner side.

Pneumatic flotation machine

Fine material, together with the addition of aqueous reagents, enters a pneumatic flotation machine, where crystals of small classes adhere to foam bubbles and are sent for finishing. The smallest diamonds are extracted using a pneumatic flotation machine - from 2 mm or less.

This is a film machine where reagents are used to create a layer to which small diamond crystals adhere.

X-ray luminescence separator

This separator uses the property of diamonds to glow in X-rays. The material, moving along the tray, is irradiated with X-rays. Once in the irradiation zone, the diamond begins to glow. After the flash, a special device detects the glow and sends a signal to the cutting device.

Central control panel of the processing plant.
The factory also has a finishing shop where diamonds are cleaned, scattered, hand-selected, sorted and packaged.

Diamond Sorting Center

All diamonds mined at the company’s fields in Yakutia are sent to the Sorting Center in Mirny. Here, diamonds are separated by size class, an initial assessment of raw materials from different deposits is carried out and its monitoring is carried out to plan the work of mining and processing plants.

There are no perfect crystals or two identical diamonds in nature, so their classification involves sorting.
16 sizes x 10 shapes x 5 qualities x 10 colors = 8000 positions.

Vibrating sieve screen. Its task is to divide small diamonds into size classes. For this, 4-8 sieves are used.
About 1,500 stones are placed into the device at a time.

The larger ones are handled by weighing machines. The largest diamonds are sorted by people.

The shape, quality and color of crystals are determined by appraisers using magnifying glasses and microscopes.

Dozens of diamonds pass through a specialist per hour, and if they are small, then the number goes into hundreds.

Each stone is looked at three times.

Manual diamond weighing

The weight of a diamond is determined in carats. The name "carat" comes from the seed of the carob tree, carat.
In ancient times, the carat seed served as a unit of measurement for the mass and volume of precious stones.

1 carat - 0.2 g (200 mg)
Stones weighing more than 50 carats are found several times a month.

The largest diamond on the planet, the Cullinan, weighs 621 grams and costs about 200 billion rubles.
The largest diamond among the Yakut ones is the “XXII Congress of the CPSU”, it weighs 342 carats (more than 68 grams).

In 2013, ALROSA Group enterprises produced more than 37 million carats of diamonds.
Of these, 40% goes for industrial purposes and 60% for jewelry.

After selection, the stones go to the cutting plant. There diamonds become diamonds.
Cutting losses range from 30 to 70% of the weight of the diamond.

As of 2013, the reserves of the ALROSA group amounted to 608 million carats, and the forecast reserves are about one third of the global total.
Thus, the company is provided with a mineral resource base for 30 years to come.

Many thanks to ALROSA for organizing the photography!

For any questions regarding the use of photographs, please email.

Kimberlite pipes and mines of the Russian Federation - according to tornado
and tornado-type, craters, batholiths, uranium calderas
Prevention of violations in fields and hazardous industries

• - holes in the ground, dangerous places, 2 scientific videos, 63.8 MB, download in rar archive
• - technical explosions on kimberlites, 4 scientific videos, 257 MB, download in rar archive
• - “Belaz” and equipment on kimberlites, 8 scientific videos, 409 MB, download in rar archive
• - kimberlites "InGOK", "Udachnaya", etc., 17 scientific videos, 552 MB, download in rar archive
• - kimberlite "Phemiston Open" Australia, 9 scientific videos, 451 MB, download in rar archive

In Yakutia, on the left bank of the middle reaches of the Irel River (the right tributary of the Vilyui River) in close proximity to the city of Mirny, there is the largest diamond quarry in the world in terms of total volume (a sample of the primary terrestrial lithosphere of red-brown color - to magma) - the Mir kimberlite pipe "(the city of Mirny appeared after the opening of the pipe and was named in her honor). The quarry has a depth of 525 m and a diameter of 1.2 km, and is one of the largest quarries in the world.

Uranium quarry. The Mir kimberlite uranium pipe is the most typical example of a uranium deposit in the world. In addition to underground mines, open pit mines (some of them up to 500 m deep) are a popular method of extracting uranium. It is believed that the radiation danger of quarries for excavation workers and miners is less than that of closed underground mines (such as the Fergana or Almaden cinnabar mine), but is aggravated by direct releases of lithospheric rocks and volcanic gases (in this case, the working conditions are the same - dangerous).

From time immemorial, nature has puzzled man with its phenomena - tornadoes, kimberlites, each time throwing up more and more new mysteries. One of these extraordinary and amazing phenomena can be considered giant holes in the Earth - mixer-type kimberlites (breakdown to the lithosphere and magma).

These amazing natural phenomena arise for various reasons: natural anomalies (primary kimberlites - breakdowns of meteorites and bolides of the earth's crust), cataclysms (fracture of lithospheric plates), human intervention (the release of karst waters and lakes onto the surface of kimberlites) do their job. The tube looks small from above.

However, increasingly, the causes of such phenomena remain hidden from the eyes of non-specialists, which makes them potentially dangerous - kimberlites, like tornadoes, are not visible (there are special modern methods of working out not only with light and photo filters, but also on a PC, 32-bit digital digital processes - site author).

For the environment, open-pit mining of uranium can pose a danger due to radioactive dust entrainment (especially from dumps). Landscape changes, disturbance and change of vegetation cover, adverse effects on local fauna are the inevitable consequences of open-pit mining. In the mine - leaching of hazardous components by underground water (including springs, underground and above-ground rivers, Donetsk).

A feature of modern kimberlites since 1969 is that the production capacity of the quarries has reached the third, lower - karst level of flooding by groundwater and rivers, incl. poisonous and radioactive (dangerous fumes and volcanoes). Contamination of surface and groundwater (including karst) waters often gives rise to problems, especially when using leaching liquids during extraction by solution and draining liquids during hydraulic development (including when there is a source of spontaneous influx of water into the quarry - atmospheric precipitation, surface waters such as rivers and lakes and karst outlets of groundwater and rivers, the most dangerous).

Currently, it is the second largest man-made crater in the world. This mine is located in Russia, near the city of Mirny. The “world” is so huge that unauthorized visits to the quarry are prohibited (especially of the suicide type), since open-pit mines create a very strong downward flow of air from the caldera (the release of mixed volcanic gases with the influx of water into the quarry). In winter, the temperature in the quarry drops so much that it freezes machine oil and rubber, and leads to the gradual collapse of the quarry. By the time the mine was temporarily closed for examination and reconstruction of the next stage of development (similar to the city of Almaden, Spain, the cinnabar mine - shafts and adits from inside a kimberlite uranium pipe), the time for transport to rise from the bottom of the quarry to the surface reached 1.5-2 hours.

Dangerous photo of kimberlite, misleading - the bottom is not visible, but the structure of the upper walls is visible
Dangerous color of kimberlite (red outcrops) - similar to the “Femiston Open” type (Calgory Super Pit, Australia)
Modern computer processing of the author according to the “wet kimberlite” type - PC computer (color separation)

The most dangerous hallucinations on kimberlites - the bottom of the pipe is not visible, PC computer simulation of the site’s author
This image does not exist - it is generated by the human brain in an extreme situation of affect
The author of the site obtains such images using his own algorithms on a PC computer (32-bit)
Without such images of brain simulation, work on kimberlites of hazard level III is prohibited

Possible hallucinations and color distortions perception of the Mir kimberlite pipe (Yakutia, Sakha, Russian Federation)
palette of perception of kimberlite "Mir" tubes human senses (author, 2014)

Possible road hallucinations on the road- color distortion of road abstraction kimberlite type
palettes of biological perception by human senses road abstraction

Modeling kimberlite phase trajectories of planetary movement - the paths of drivers on kimberlite
A scheme for correlating the movements of planets in the starry sky and drivers on kimberlite helps to avoid accidents
types of biological perception by human senses complex computer model

Kimberlite pipe "Mir" (bottom), Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Russian Federation. Photo: Sergey Karpukhin

Original survey of the bottom of a kimberlite pipe, Mirny, Siberia (RF), depth 525 m, diameter - 1.25 km
Uranium kimberlite and diamond pipe "Mir" - Russia, Mirny (development started in 1957)

Formation of a cascade of highly mineralized waters at the bottom of the Mir kimberlite mine (radiation)
Below, on the penultimate tier (at the bottom) pronounced karst formations and caves are visible

The beginning of the flooding of the ultra-deep quarry "Mir" according to the karst type - kimberlite waters.
Mining depth - 525 m (more than 340 m), upper diameter - 1200 m (exceeds 890 m), water

The quarry, the development of which began in 1957, until its closure in 2011, incidentally produced up to 10 million carats of diamonds per year. "Mir" was sadly closed in 1989 due to the wild racketeering conditions of those working in the field, fugitive prostitutes of all sorts and prisoners from various prisons (including from the city of Almaden, Spain, from forced labor on cinnabar, instead of intellectual and palette work, as well as a refusal to acknowledge that uranium is real, uranium is more expensive) - those who want to profit from radioactive diamonds (Ukraine prohibits their import, cutting, insertion into products and sale, the radiation level is from 99 milliroentgen/hour, only for closed museums, they cause cancer). In 2014, the mine went bankrupt - conflicts with workers were not resolved and there were no examinations, incl. production hazards.

Minimum set of special designations for the transportation of goods from kimberlite deposits
maximum - III (highest) hazard category - karst kimberlite groundwater outcrops

The beginning of complex work at the mining and processing plant and the kimberlite deposit "Mir Quarry" - 1957-2001.

Kimberlite pipe "Udachnaya", Republic of Sakha, Russia (RF). The depth of "Udachnaya" reaches more than 600 meters (ultra-deep and life-threatening - near-batholithic), although it is not as wide as "Mir". Discovered a little later than Mir, Udachnaya is so remote from civilization that the project built its own small town for the mine workers, named after the deposit. In 2010, the developers stole the technology of underground mines such as red cinnabar in Almaden, Spain (West EU) and went bankrupt in 2014 - the kimberlite pipe partially changed (expanded) the type of mining at the mine to underground, incl. similar to the red cinnabar mine "Khaidarkan" (Fergana Valley, Kyrgyzstan, CIS - the oldest mine, mining at a depth of up to 400 m in adits), since open pit mining was suspended for examination of the rock output and dumps (radioactive, over 100 milliroentgen/hour). The kimberlite pipe has been developed since 1982.

A zone of gas release has been identified (a rise at the bottom of the quarry). The Udachnaya pipe is a deposit in the north of Yakutia. Located 20 kilometers from the Arctic Circle, in the Daldyn-Alakit kimberlite field. Work in this quarry has been carried out by open-pit mining since 1982, like the Mir pipe, the quarry has reached a depth below which ore can be extracted by underground mine workings (gas blowing, flooding). 66 o 26 "8.27" N, 112 o 19 "1.90".

Kimberlite pipe "Udachnaya" - karst bottom flooding, danger level III, Yakutia (RF)
Depth 530 m (more than 340 m - karst type), length - 1700 m, and diamonds are not mineral deposits (C)
Kimberlite has reached the third - maximum danger level - volcanic ash (bottom left)
In contrast to the round Mir kimberlite (above), the bottom of the Udachnaya kimberlite resembles a heart

Inadmissible digital photo of kimberlite is in progress - to identify the correct structure of roads
modern PC computer line processing of the author is used - “Desert” (“Vardanes”)
Computer tricks of the site’s author to show hidden (invisible to the eye) gray roads

Kimberlite pipe "Udachnaya", Republic of Sakha, Russia (RF), depth 600 m, crater diameter - 900 m

The Siberian Platform of the Russian Federation is one of the largest ancient (pre-Riphean) platforms located in the middle part of Northern Asia of the Russian Federation. The western border of the platform coincides with the river valley. Yenisei; northern - with the southern edge of the Byrranga mountains, eastern - with the lower reaches of the river. Lena (Verkhoyansk marginal trough), in the south-east. the border approaches the southern tip of the ridge. Dzhugjur; in the south it runs along faults along the southern edge of the Stanovoy and Yablonevoy ridges; then, bending around from the north along the complex fault system of Transbaikalia and Pribaikalia, it descends to the southern tip of the lake. Baikal, the southwestern border of the platform extends along the Main East Sayan Fault.

Village of a geological exploration party searching for deposits of the USSR, Sakha (Yakutia), 1950, 20th century.

The structure of the Siberian Platform of the Russian Federation is distinguished by an Archean-Proterozoic folded crystalline foundation and a sedimentary Riphean-Phanerozoic cover quietly lying on it. The foundation protrudes to the surface in the north (Anabar massif and Olenek uplift), south-east. (Aldan shield) and in the south-west. (Baikal and East Sayan marginal uplifts and Kansky ledge); on the rest of the territory of the Siberian Platform, the foundation is covered by a cover of sedimentary deposits up to 10-12 km thick and is divided into a system of geo-tectonic blocks descended to different depths (horst-fault tertiary structures are the most dangerous).

The total thickness of the earth's crust (up to the Mohorovichichi surface) varies from 25-30 km (in the Vilyui and Tunguska syneclises of the Russian Federation) to 40-45 km (on the Aldan shield and in the marginal uplifts of the basement in the south). The Aldan shield and the Anabar massif of the Russian Federation, separated under the cover of the sedimentary cover by the Urik-Vilyui Late Precambrian aulacogen of the Russian Federation, form the Eastern megablock of the basement of the Siberian Platform of the Russian Federation. The structure of the basement involves highly metamorphosed Archean and Proterozoic crystalline rocks folded into folds (gneisses, crystalline schists, amphibolites, charnockites, marbles, etc.), the absolute age of which ranges from 2.3 (Anabar massif of the Russian Federation) to 3.7 (Kan ledge RF) billion years.

Kimberlite is a complex hybrid (complex) rock in which minerals formed under different thermodynamic conditions are combined like a “solid” tornado (or a funnel of water in a river or ocean). Kimberlite breccias contain fragments of sedimentary rocks of the cover and crystalline rocks of the basement, as well as xenoliths of deep mantle rocks. The bulk of the rock cementing these fragments has an uneven-grained structure. It turns out that the rocks of the upper part of the earth's crust are tornadoed according to the type of tornado-like movement of air in the atmosphere - the capture and distribution of rocks in accordance with a tornado (thrombus, tornado), they also move.

Kimberlite pipe "Mir", "Udachnaya" for the phenomenon of an "inferno" type atmosphere (left), a special
computer processing of the author PC computer atmosphere, imitation of kimberlite - cement mining (right)
The author’s special method for studying the phenomena of the atmosphere and rocks, the author’s development of the site
For those interested in mixer kimberlites - in the author's development

During the breakdown of the lithosphere (primary meteorites), the brown primary rock of the lithospheric plates is captured
and its involvement in the process of rotation with the release of volcanic gases of magma (sublimating spinels - diamonds)
Special author's processing of tornadoes (negative images and line processing), PC
Hypothetical representation of a kimberlite pipe by image - "view from the earth's crust" (atmosphere)
The rotation and movement of kimberlite pipes is like a tornado, leaving traces behind them - failures

The movement of soils and underwater water continues, and the tendency for new depressions to form in the ground is only increasing. The primary task of geologists and geophysicists remains to find out the reasons for their occurrence (tornadoing) and prevent possible tragedies that can be caused by carelessness and illiteracy in kimberlites. However, putting aside prejudices, we can say that nature fascinates with the manifestation of its power. Even if this power is destructive for humans (kimberlite palettes).

Photo of a tornado from space, the type of tornado that forms kimberlite pipes (including those with breakdown)
meteorites of the primary lithosphere, red-brown ferruginous elements - up to magma)
Computer development by the author of the image of the structure of an atmospheric tornado in the negative

The photo simulates the “entrance to a tornado” (hypothetically Almaden, Spain, EU)