Kimberlite Minerals Research Articles

Один из путей повышения эффективности эксплуатации секционных насосов кимберлитовых рудников

When an underground mine reaches the design capacity, the level of the mine water pollution can significantly increase as compared to the first years of its operation. For example, concentration of solid particles in water in a kimberlite mine drainage systems may increase more than two-fold. Increase in the content of suspended abrasive substances in the mine water negatively affects the life of water drainage equipment. One of the ways to improve the operational efficiency of sectional pumps in conditions of changing solid particles content in the mine water is to study the issue of adjusting the frequency of their overhaul. As a criterion of the optimum average time between overhauls of a sectional pump it is necessary to use its flow rate at the moment of overhaul, which corresponds to low specific operating costs for pumping mine water regardless of the size of water inflow and its pumping mode. Based on the results of the performed research a universal method of calculating the optimal average operating life time of a sectional pump before the overhaul is required. This methodology was developed for sectional pumps in kimberlite mines regardless of their model and their operating conditions. Calculations helped to establish that when the concentration of solid particles in the mine waters increases, a decrease in the average time between overhauls of sectional pump before overhaul becomes an economically feasible step.

Assessing the Socio-Economic and Environmental Impact of Koidu Holdings on Local Communities in Tankoro Chiefdom, Kono District, Sierra Leone - Using the Rapid Impact Assessment Matrix Method

The study used the RIAM technique to evaluate environmental sustainability using an environmental impact assessment through nine sessions of focus group discussions in the affected mining communities. The system's methodology involves assigning scores to impact component issues based on predetermined criteria, which are then transferred into arrangements that indicate the extent of positive or negative effects. The RIAM analysis reveals that kimberlite diamond mining has predominant negative environmental impacts across all three communities, A, B, and C. However, certain social and economic components reflected positive changes. Nevertheless, the positive impacts on those three communities are just about the same. From the total scores summary for the three communities, it is obvious that the kimberlite mining in the affected communities have negative effects than the positive effects. Based on these findings, recommendations were made for improvement.

Success in restoring native plant communities on kimberlite mining dumps in the Afro-alpine Drakensberg region of Lesotho.

Rehabilitation strategies for degraded mine dumps have generally seen limited success due to different complications associated with mining biophysical disturbance. In this study, we tested a combination of two methods to expedite revegetation of kimberlite tailings at Letseng Diamond Mine (i.e., in the Afro-alpine areas of Lesotho). We ran trials on different growth media located on fine and coarse kimberlite tailings (i.e. sites) mixed with different substrate combinations and topsoil and sowing a seed mix comprised of native plant species. Overall, as predicted, fine kimberlite tailings displayed significantly higher plant abundance than coarse kimberlite tailings, and sown seeds performed significantly better than spontaneous colonisation by emerging species. Kimberlite tailings mixed with topsoil (100 mm) showed significantly greater plant abundance, and similarly, when coarse kimberlite tailings were introduced to fine tailings. Physicochemical analyses of growth media components suggested that topsoil provided additional nutrients and that plants could readily access available nutrients in the fine kimberlite tailings. We noted a gradual significant increase in plant abundance over 5 years, enhanced by new plant species emerging from the topsoil seed bank or by natural seed dispersal. Although plant abundance differed significantly, both fine and coarse kimberlite tailings displayed high plant species diversity (H = 3.4 and D = 0.95 and H = 3.5 and D = 0.95, respectively). Out of 36 emerging plant species, 15 species spontaneously colonised both growth media. The significant variation in abundance among plant species between treatments was mostly attributed to dominant forb species, namely Chrysocoma ciliata, Glumicalyx montanus, Oxalis obliquifolia, Senecio inaequidens and Trifolium burchellianum. We have identified suitable growth media for plant community restoration on kimberlite tailings in the Drakensberg alpine area using a seed mix of native plant species in combination with natural seed dispersal from the surrounding pristine environment. We provide evidence for using two complementary approaches to optimise native plant community development during restoration in the Drakensberg alpine area.

О некоторых особенностях региональной поисковой алмазной минералогии

Analysis of the results of carried out investigations of mantle modules in kimberlite diatremes of main diamondiferous regions of the Siberian platform was made. Morphology and chemistry of garnets, chrome-diopsides, clinopyroxenes, picroilmenites, chromites and chrome-spinellids were investigated. Generally, the quantity of diamond association minerals is proportional to diamondiferousness of certain variety of kimberlite for each type of kimberlite rocks composing pipes. It is stated that comprehensive studying of kimberlites and diamond property are very important, because the diamond is a mineral with a broad complex of physical-chemical and crystal-morphological features, reflecting peculiarity of thermodynamic and geochemical conditions of their formation, which can be used as typomorphic indicators. Detailed complex investigations of diamond and its paragenetic accessory minerals allow establishing material-indicative parameters of kimberlite magmatism of various productivity and geologic-structural position of kimberlite bodies, and address issues about primary sources of placer diamonds, as well. Upgrading the line of research on creation of more efficient ore processing flowsheets and providing crystalintegrity technologies, expansion of diamond application areas with consideration of their real structure and physical features, as well as revelation of natural targets with increased quality of diamond raw material, are all related with investigation of primary indicator minerals of kimberlites.

Об особенностях некоторых индикаторных минералов кимберлитовых пород

Analysis of the results of carried out investigations of mantle modules in kimberlite diatremes of main diamondiferous regions of the Siberian platform was made. Morphology and chemistry of garnets, chrome-diopsides, clinopyroxenes, picroilmenites, chromites and chrome-spinellids were investigated. Generally, the quantity of diamond association minerals is proportional to diamondiferousness of certain type of kimberlite rocks composing pipes. Both comprehensive investigation of kimberlites and study of diamond itself are very important, as diamond is a mineral with a broad complex of physical-chemical and crystal-morphological features, reflecting peculiarity of thermodynamic and geochemical conditions of their formation, which can be used as the typomorphic characteristics. Detailed complex investigations of diamond and its paragenetic accessory minerals allow establishing material-indicative parameters of kimberlite magmatism of various productivity and geologicstructural position of kimberlite bodies, and address issues about primary sources of placer diamonds, as well. The presence in kimberlites of definite groups of depth xenoliths and xeno-grains of their minerals, chemical and geochemical composition of kimberlites allowed formulating a concept about properties of upper mantle formations, which are the source of magma for each of distinguished type of kimberlites. The existing point of view that bedding depth of magma chambers roots is the reason of differing productivity of kimberlites is confirmed. As a rule, the roots of commercially productive kimberlites occur at a greater depth than of low productive. Upgrading the line of research on creation of more efficient ore processing flowsheets and providing crystalintegrity technologies, expansion of diamond application areas with consideration of their real structure and physical features, as well as revelation of natural targets with increased quality of diamond raw material, are all related with investigation of primary indicator minerals of kimberlites.

Hydrogeological supervision of kimberlite mining in permafrost zone in Western Yakutia

Hydrogeological supervision of kimberlite mining in permafrost zone in Western Yakutia

Immunity of nitrile butadiene rubber and polytetrafluoroethylene in brines in underground kimberlite mines

Immunity of nitrile butadiene rubber and polytetrafluoroethylene in brines in underground kimberlite mines

Совершенствование схемы и режима внутреннего водооборота пенной сепарации алмазосодержащих кимберлитов

The object of this study is the process of enrichment of diamond-containing kimberlites by foam separation. The subject of the research is the recycled water of the foam separation unit. The purpose of the study is to increase the foam separation process efficiency in the enrichment of diamond-containing kimberlites by improving the scheme and regime of internal water circulation. The objectives of the study are to study the effect of sludge on the surface condition and floatability of diamonds, to analyze the composition of sludge products and to establish the causes of the increase in the concentration of sludge in recycled water, to substantiate the approach to the choice of technologies and the development of schemes for desliming recycled waters of the foam separation cycle. To determine the degree of sludge influence on the surface composition and floatability of diamonds, the technique of electron probe X-ray spectral analysis has been used and experiments have been conducted on foam separation of a diamond-kimberlite mixture. Industrial tests of the modes and schemes of clarification of recycled water are carried out at the enrichment plant No. 3 of the Mirninsky Mining and Processing Plant (MPP). The results of X-ray electron spectroscopy show that there is a proportional dependence of the decrease in diamond floatability on the proportion of hydrophilic coatings on the diamond surface. For the destruction of organic-air-mineral aggregates, which are an essential source of sludge, it is proposed to use highly turbulent classification modes in a hydrocyclone, which allows separating grains of hydrophobic kimberlite minerals from drops of apolar collector. In the final stage of clarification of recycled water, it is proposed to use flotation classification technology in a three-product clarifier, which ensures the production of an aqueous phase purified from precipitating and surfacing fractions. The test results of the developed schemes and modes of recycled water desalination in the foam separation department of the processing plant No. 3 of Mirninsky MPP have showed a decrease in the concentration of sludge in recycled water by 2 times, a reduction in the consumption of flotation reagents by 7-10 % and an increase in diamond recovery by 1.2 %.

Phlogopite phenocrystals with inclusions of chrome spinelides from non-diamond-bearing kimberlites: the case of An-195 body of the West Ukukit field

The article presents the results of a microprobe study of the composition of phlogopite macrocrystals with inclusions of chrome spinelides from An-195 kimberlite body of the West Ukukit field; Yakut kimberlite province. The purpose of this study was to establish the genesis of such phlogopites: whether they are representatives of deep mantle matter or their formation is directly related to the formation of kimberlites composing An-195. It was found that the inclusions of chrome spinelides are confined only to chromic non–zonal phlogopites or to chromic sites of zonal macrocrystals (Cr2O3 0.75–1.55 wt.%; TiO2 2.67-3.84 wt.%; Mg# 83-88). Based on a comparative analysis of the studied phlogopites and chromespinelides with the composition of analogues from the parageneses of these minerals in various mantle xenoliths of ultrabasic rocks; eclogites and rocks of the MARID series; it was concluded that these phlogopites most likely represent a phenocrystal association of kimberlite minerals. They clearly differ from phlogopites of the MARID series rocks with equal Mg# and TiO2 in higher Al2O3 contents; from phlogopites of ultrabasic mantle rocks xenoliths – generally with lower magnesia content. Phlogopites from eclogites have a generally higher Cr2O3 content. Inclusions of high–chromium spinelides in phlogopite (Cr2O3 44-50 wt.%; TiO2 3-5.5 wt.%; Fe3+ < 0.35 f.e.) correspond in composition to spinelides from cataclysmic dunites and are products of their recrystallization under the influence of high-temperature mantle fluid. Inclusions of less chromic spinelides (Cr2O3 30-44 wt.%; TiO2 4-7.5 wt.%; Fe3+ > 0.35 fe) probably crystallized simultaneously with phlogopite macrocrystals and were captured by them during long-term co-growth.

Optimizing composition and application conditions of agents for modifying spectral characteristics of diamonds in X-ray luminescence separation

One of the research areas focused on improving the efficiency of diamond-bearing kimberlite beneficiation processes involves the utilization of technology aimed at enhancing the recovery of weakly and anomalously luminescent diamonds during the X-ray luminescence separation process using luminophore-containing chemical agents. The objective of this research was to select the optimal composition of agents that modify the spectral characteristics of minerals and the conditions for their application. A crucial factor for process efficiency is the effective attachment of modifying agents to diamond crystals while avoiding similar attachment to kimberlite mineral surfaces. This is achieved through the use of organic collectors with an optimal composition, characterized by their ability to both adhere to the diamond surface and retain inorganic luminophore grains. The evaluation of luminophore attachment efficiency was performed using visiometric analysis in the UV range. The capability of diamonds to retain luminophore collector droplets or films on their surfaces was evaluated using a technique to measure the three-phase limiting wetting angle. The spectral and kinetic characteristics of diamonds and their recovery during the X-ray luminescence separation process were determined using a separator “Polyus-M”. The feasibility of purposefully modifying the spectral characteristics of weakly and anomalously luminescent diamonds through luminophore-containing compositions based on zinc sulfides and zinc orthosilicate has been confirmed through the conducted studies. By considering the criterion of selectivity in the attachment of luminophore emulsion to diamonds and kimberlite minerals, calculated based on the measured surface concentrations of luminophores on the minerals, the optimal ratios between the masses of inorganic luminophore, organic collector, and the aqueous phase of the emulsion were determined. Dispersing agents that offer selective binding of luminophores to diamond crystals were identified, and rational parameters for the composition of the organic collector were established. The temperature range for treating diamond-containing material was defined. As a result of bench testing the modifying agents with the selected composition and conditions for their application in the diamond-containing material treatment cycle before XRF separation, it was confirmed that the recovery of anomalously and weakly luminescent diamonds could exceed 90%, while keeping the yield of kimberlite minerals in the concentrate below 1%.

Development and substantiation of an improved version of a main drainage facility classical scheme at a kimberlite mine developed by block caving method

Evidence demonstrates that as the production capacity of a kimberlite mine increases, there is a corresponding increase in the volumetric concentration of suspended solids in the mine water extracted from its watercollecting workings. The Udachny mine, known for its high productivity in comparison to other domestic kimberlite mines, experiences a higher concentration of suspended solids in the mine waters, leading to significant sludge settling within the primary drainage facility’s water-collecting workings. This determinal effect adversely affects the operational efficiency of pumping equipment and the reliability of LHDs. To address these issues, an enhanced version of the conventional main drainage facility scheme, specifically designed for kimberlite mine utilizing the block caving method, is proposed. This modified scheme aims to provide improved clarification of the mine water in the water-collecting workings and facilitate more efficient dewatering of the settled slurry sludges. Furthermore, a methodology has been developed to determine the time required for slurry sludge removal, the sedimentation characteristics of the solid phase, and the rheological properties of the liquid phase of the mine water.

О геолого-поисковых типах кимберлитовых трубок

The conducted research on geological structure and material composition of the Siberian platform kimberlites indicated the complexity and diversity of geologic-tectonic and paleogeographic conditions which should be considered when performing the prediction-prospecting works for diamonds in every particular region. The geological-geophysical and geomorphological occurence conditions of kimberlite diatremes determine the mode of their prediction and prospecting. The knowledge on the material composition of not only desired diatremes but also of sedimentary and magmatic formations enclosing and overlying diatremes is an important criterion for prospecting of kimberlite bodies in various geologic-tectonic conditions. Special attention should be paid to typomorphic features of both initial and newly-formed minerals in diatremes. Every diamondiferous region is characterized by a certain complex of typomorphic associations of primary and secondary minerals of kimberlites. The majority of kimberlite pipes are dominated by diamonds with an ultrabasic association of solid intrusion phases (olivine, chromite, pyrope, etc.).

Повышение селективности модифицирования спектральных характеристик алмазов перед процессом рентгенолюминесцентной сепарации

Introduction. A promising direction in solving the problem of increasing the recovery of diamonds with weak or anomalous luminescence is the use of modern technologies for modifying the spectral characteristics of diamonds with luminophore-containing reagents. Materials and methods. In the experiments, we used collections consisting of diamond crystals with weak and anomalous luminosity and grains of kimberlite minerals selected from the gravity enrichment concentrate. When evaluating the efficiency of fixing luminophores on the surface of diamonds, a vision-metric method was used in UV radiation with the determination of the proportion of surface areas covered with luminophores. The spectral and kinetic characteristics of diamond crystals and kimberlite grains were measured under laboratory conditions on a «Polus-M» separator. The separation of diamonds and kimberlite grains was carried out in the mode used in the industrial radar process. Results. The causes and regularities of the interaction of modifier reagents with kimberlite minerals, as well as the effect of dispersant reagents on the fixation of luminophores and the spectral and kinetic characteristics of kimberlite are determined. Discussion. It is shown that the fixation of an organic collector with luminophores on kimberlite minerals proceeds according to the adhesion mechanism with the formation of focal surface formations on hydrophobic minerals and point fixation on the surface of faces with low surface energy. It is shown that the high selectivity of the X-ray luminescence separation process is achieved at a surface concentration of the luminophores on diamonds of at least 15 % and a surface concentration of luminophores on kimberlite minerals of no more than 3%, controlled by the addition of reagents-dispersants. Conclusions. The article presents the results of studies of the mechanism and regularities of fixing luminophore-containing compositions on kimberlitic minerals in the presence of dispersant reagents. It was found that the addition of luminophore-containing reagents-modifiers of sodium hexametaphosphate, sulfonol, carboxymethylcellulose and liquid glass to the aqueous phase of emulsions provides an increase in the selectivity of fixing luminophores on the surface of diamonds and improves the performance of X-ray luminescent separation of diamond-containing products. A mode of increasing the selectivity of the action of an aqueous emulsion of the MLA-3 modifier reagent based on luminophore E-515-115-G5 has been developed by adding sodium hexametaphosphate to the emulsion aqueous phase at a concentration of 1-1.5 g/l, providing 90% recovery of weakly and abnormally luminous diamonds into the X-ray luminescent separation concentrate with a decrease in kimberlite yield by 33 %. The tested modifier agents and the selected conditions of their application can be useful in industrial conditions for the X-ray luminescent separation of diamond-containing kimberlites. Resume. As a result of the studies, a mode was developed to increase the selectivity of the action of an aqueous emulsion of the MLA-3 modifier reagent based on the E-515-115-G5 luminophore with the addition of a dispersant reagent (sodium hexametaphosphate) to the aqueous phase of the emulsion at a concentration of 1-1.5 g/l , providing the possibility of 90 % extraction of weakly and abnormally luminous diamonds into the concentrate of X-ray luminescent separation while reducing the yield of kimberlite by 33 %. Suggestions for practical application and direction for future research. The developed reagents-modifiers and the selected conditions for their use are recommended for testing and implementation in industrial conditions.

Об обеспечении безопасной эксплуатации главной водоотливной установки рудника «Удачный»

Safety of the underground mining operations largely depends on the reliability of the functioning of the drainage facilities system. Practice shows that over the past few years, the reliability of the main drainage system of the underground kimberlite mine Udachny was noticeably decreased. One of the reasons for this was the low operational reliability of pumping equipment. External examinations of the failed parts of the flow part of pumps operating in the drainage systems of domestic kimberlite mines indicate the dominance of hydroabrasive wear in the overall picture of their multifactorial destruction. Mine waters pumped from the drainage mine workings of the Udachny mine is considered the most polluted among the mines of ALROSA. The main reason for the increase in the concentration of solid particles in the mine waters pumped to the daytime surface by the pumping equipment of the main drainage plant of the Udachny mine was the growing pollution of the waters coming from the drainage basins of the district drainage into its clarifying reservoirs. Such an intensive removal of mechanical impurities from the catchments of the district drainage into the clarifying tanks of the main drainage system is explained by an increase in the rate of siltation of the catchment tanks. And the rapid siltation of the catchments, in turn, is caused by the systematic removal of sludge-slurry pulp from the lower part of the skip trunk. It is established that the sludge slurry is formed during the overload of the extracted kimberlite ore from the feeder to the conveyor belt. There, its spilled part is washed off with water used for irrigation of diamond-bearing raw materials into the skip barrel. To reduce the rate of siltation of the drainage basins of the district drainage system, a mechanized complex for cleaning spilled rock mass was developed, described in the article.

Rationale for the temperature regime of the foam separation cycle

The research objective is to determine the optimal temperature regimes for slurry preparation and foam separation of diamond-bearing kimberlites to ensure maximum diamond recovery under high selectivity of the process. Methods of research include the electron probe X-ray spectral analysis, IR spectrophotometry, and measurement of the contact angles of a collecting agent drop on diamonds or minerals. Technological studies were carried out on the setup for foam separation. Research results. It was shown that when the feedstock of the foam separation cycle is heated to a temperature of 80–85 °C the diamonds are effectively purified from hydrophilic coatings, which leads to the restoration of their natural floatability. Through contact angles measurement, the temperature range of 30–40 °C was determined in the feedstock reagent conditioning operation. It is shown that the maximum water repellence of diamonds is achieved in this temperature range without a significant increase in the kimberlite minerals water repellence. Laboratory experiments have shown that the best foam separation results are achieved when in the conditioning operation the feedstock with flotation reagents is maintained at a temperature of 30–38 °C. The flotation studies using F-5 bunker fuel oil as base collecting agent, as well as its compounds with diesel fraction and Machchobinsky oil, determined the optimal temperature of 14–24 °C directly in the process of foam separation. After data analysis, a temperature regime was proposed and tested, which includes the foam separation feedstock heating before the operation of slurry removal and conditioning with flotation reagents up to 85 °C and the subsequent use of accumulated heat in the operations of foam separation feedstock conditioning (30 °C) with reagents and the foam separation process itself (18 °C). The prospects of the technology. The test results of the selected temperature regime for the foam separation process on a test bench show the possibility of increasing the diamonds recovery into the concentrate by 2.3–4.5% when using applied and potential collecting agents, including F-5 bunker fuel oil and compounds based on it. The developed regime is recommended for commercial development in the foam separation cycle at Alrosa processing plants.

Heterogeneity in kimberlite structure and composition as a reflection of its petrogenesis peculiarities

New data on the geological structure and petrochemical characteristics of the first kimberlite pipe in the Syuldyukar kimberlite field and its position in the Ygyatta diamond-bearing area are presented. The petrographic identification of the petrochemical varieties of kimberlites in this area was performed for the first time. The compositions of the rockforming and accessory minerals of kimberlites were studied using a modern hardware complex. The results showed that the directed change in the structural and material characteristics of kimberlites from peripheral to central parts in extended vertical bodies of the Syuldyukar tube type is expressed in the replacement of calcium kimberlites by magnesium kimberlites. Mg-kimberlites are characterized by the largest crystals of diamond, garnets, and ilmenites, high concentrations of magnesium, and a number of other components. All of these changes in kimberlites are caused by flow differentiation. This information allowed us to apply the obtained petrological results to the kimberlites of the Syuldyukar tube as search criteria for forecasting and identifying new kimberlite bodies in the Ygyatta diamond-bearing area.

Compositions of Kimberlite Melts: A Review of Melt Inclusions in Kimberlite Minerals

Compositions of Kimberlite Melts: A Review of Melt Inclusions in Kimberlite Minerals

PLACER DEPOSITS OF DIAMONDS AND THEIR FORMATION CONDITIONS

This article reviews information from published papers and studies by the authors about placer diamond deposits. Original data were obtained in result of field and laboratory-analytical work carried out in various countries of Africa and South America. The main types of placer diamond deposits – fluvial, fluvioglacial, eolian, and man-made – have been considered and characterized. The main attention is given to fluvial continental placers, which are the most diverse, well-studied and have the greatest industrial importance. Primary, secondary and mixed deposits are distinguished according to the method of feeding; short, moderate and long transport deposits – according to the distance of the diamond-bearing material movement. It is noted that although the short transport placers (deluvial-proluvial and beds of short watercourses) have not industrial value, they are very informative for the searching for root sources. It is important to reliably diagnose these deposits by lithological-facies and mineralogical features during prospecting works. The concepts about the conditions for the formation of diamond placers in various landscape and geological conditions are developed and clarified. Alluvial-proluvial-lacustrine and proluvial-lacustrine types of placers studied in Yakutia and Brazil are characterized in detail. Their characteristic feature is that their productive strata, being re-deposited products of crustal weathering, themselves underwent a hypergenic change at the place of occurrence, which significantly masks the primary conditions of formation. Continental alluvial redeposition and long transport placers, as well as marine, yield the most high-quality expensive diamonds, the average value of which can reach $300–400 per carat. Often, such placers are formed due to the erosion of ancient Proterozoic placers, which belong to the category of fossils. The article summarizes the genetic and morphological types of diamond placers in the form of a principle diagram of the distribution of sedimentary reservoirs of kimberlite minerals. The landscape-dynamic zones of sedimentation are highlighted. A classification scheme of sedimentary reservoirs containing diamond placers has been developed. Continental, transitional and marine environments are distinguished, with further detalization of sedimentation environments – peneplain, alluvial-lacustrine accumulative plain, alluvial-deltaic plain and shelf zones of sea basins. It is shown that the formation of valley placers, their internal structure, thickness, granulometric composition and diamond content of alluvium are influenced by the dynamic phases of the formation of annual valleys. Visualization of the mutual relationship of different morpho-genetic types of placer diamond deposits is given.

Compositions of Kimberlite Melts: A Review of Melt Inclusions in Kimberlite Minerals

This work is a comprehensive review of existing data on melt inclusions entrapped in minerals of kimberlite rocks emplaced in different cratonic settings at different times. The crystallized melt inclusions represent snapshots of kimberlite melts at different stages of their evolution. All inclusions are composed of daughter minerals and shrinkage bubbles, but no aqueous fluids and quenched silicate glasses have been so far found. More than 60 mineral species were identified among the daughter phases in the inclusions, however, such diverse phase assemblages are typical of all kimberlites studied to date. Daughter minerals are represented by various Na-K-Ca-, Na-Ca-, Na-Mg-, K-Ca-, Ca-Mg-, Ca-, Mg-, Na-carbonates, Na-Mg- and Na-carbonates with additional anions Сl–, \({\text{SO}}_{4}^{{2 - }},\) \({\text{PO}}_{4}^{{3 - }},\) alkali- sulfates, chlorides, phosphates, sulfides, oxides and silicates. Alkali carbonates, sulfates, and chlorides are usually absent among groundmass minerals the majority of kimberlites in the world, except the Udachnaya-East kimberlite in Siberia. On the other hand, this paragenesis in association with traditional kimberlite minerals, such as olivine, micas, monticellite, spinel group minerals, perovskite, rutile, ilmenite, calcite, and dolomite, is common in the crystallized melt inclusions in all studied kimberlites. Carbonates (~30 to 85 vol. %) always dominate over silicates (only up to 18 vol. %) within inclusions. All inclusions also contain variable (2 to 55 vol. %.) amounts of chlorides (halite and sylvite). When relatively low abundances of carbonate minerals (30–50 vol. %) are observed in the inclusions, chlorides (18–55 vol. %) appear to take over other minerals, including silicates that are traditionally considered as main components of “ultramafic” kimberlite parental melts. The published results on melt inclusions in the kimberlite minerals strongly imply that parental kimberlite melts were generated and further evolved within the Na2O-K2O-CaO-MgO-CO2-Cl system, that is, they were alkali-rich carbonatite/carbonatite-chloride liquids. According to various estimates, the SiO2 content in kimberlite melts at different stages of their evolution could have varied from the first to 19 wt. %. Obviously, during and after of а kimberlite bodies formation, interaction with external waters leads to serpentinization of kimberlite olivine and dissolution of a significant part of kimberlite igneous minerals, such as alkaline carbonates, sulfates, and chlorides. In the traditional approach to studying kimberlites, the role of components such as Na2O, CO2, Cl, and to a lesser extent K2O and S, F in the petrogenesis of kimberlite magmas and rocks have been largely underestimated, while olivine- and serpentine-forming components, such as of SiO2, MgO and H2O are still overestimated in contemporaneous literature.

Технологические решения по обеспечению надежной эксплуатации системы водоотведения на руднике «Удачный»

Drainage from the underground mines and coal mines is one of those technological processes, the degree of reliability of which, first of all depends on the continuity and safety of the mining of solid mineral deposits. In the process of pumping mine water to the surface, it is required to pay close attention to the operation of the water-drainage installation. Practice shows that at present the reliability of the functioning of the main water drainage system of the flooded kimberlite mine Udachny is quite low. The level of its reliability of functioning significantly decreased over the past 6 years. The main reasons for the transition to a lower level of operational safety of the drainage plant are the deterioration of the hydrogeological situation in the area of the kimberlite pipe being developed, as well as the operational reliability of pumping equipment of the drainage plant. It is dictated by the highwater content of the deposit, especially in the warm season, and the degree of contamination of the pumped mine waters with abrasive mechanical impurities. It is established that an increase of the water inflow in the warm season can lead to more intensive hydroabrasive wear of the pumping equipment parts. In order to limit the additional slip of surface water flows into the mine due to the planned dismantling of a local quarry drainage system, it is proposed to build two water catchments in the area of the non-working Udachny quarry, where the capacity of each is about 300 m3. Introduction of design clarification tanks № 5, 6 with a capacity of 3430 and 4030 m3, respectively, into the technological scheme of the main drainage of the Udachny mine will allow to reduce the average concentration of mechanical impurities in mine waters at the outlet of the water collectors from 17 to 4 g/l.