Latest News
- The Quiet Summer of 2011, and Honest Work
- Respectable Showing For the Diamond Sector at PDAC 2011
- PDAC 2011 – this March
- Promising Diamond Find by Metalex in Northern Ontario, Plus Grades from Chidliak and Movement at Renard
- Peregrine Finds 1.15 Carat Diamond at Chidliak
- Stornoway Diamond Corp. Works to Expand Resources at Renard Project
- 2010 Toronto Resource Investment Conference
- Newsworthy Week For Canadian Diamond Companies
- Different Types of Diamonds at Fort à la Corne
- Kimberlites and Diamonds of Western Canada
5034 AAD Aappaluttoq Aber Diamonds ABX ACS AEM Ag Agnico-Eagle Mines Agrium Alberta Alto Ventures Amarillo Amaruk AMEC Amerigo Archangel Diamond Archon Minerals Ltd. Arctic Arctic Star Diamond ARG Argentina Argyle Ashton Mining Canada Attawapiskat ATV ATW ATW Venture Corp. Au Australia AUY Avalon Rare Metals Avanti Mining Corp. Aviat AVL Baffin Island Barrick Bathurst Beluga BHP BHP Billiton Birch Mountains Bling Blue Note Mining Blue Pearl Cluster BN BRIC Buenaventura Buffalo Head Hills Bunder Burnstone Ventures Inc. BVE BVN Canada Candente Candle Lake Canterra carbonatite Caribou Castillian CCE Chariot Resources CHD Chidliak Chile Chris Jennings Chuck Fipke Churchill Churchill craton CL CLF Cliffs Co Codelco Coloured Gemstones Commerce Resources Contact Diamond Corporation copper CTM Cu Cullinan DDN DeBeers Diamond Diamondex Diamonds Diamonds North Dianor Diavik Diopside dividend DNT DO-27 DOR DSP Eastmain Resources Ekati El Teniente emerald EnCana Corp. ER EuroZinc Exotic Metals FALC FGE FGT First Nickel Inc. Fiskenaesset FNI FNV Forest Gate Fort a la Corne Foxtrot Franco-Nevada G Gahcho Gahcho Kue Gem Diamonds geologic terms glossary gold Goldcorp GPR Great Panther Resources Great Panther Silver Greenland Grib Grizzly Discoveries Inc. Gualcamayo Guanajuato Guaniamo GZD Harry Winston Hawthorne Gold Hearne HGC Hibou HUD Hudson Resources Hunter Exploration HW HWD IME In Indicator Minerals indium interview iron Jericho Jericho Diamond Mine Jigsaw K K-2 Kahuna Kennady Lake Killiq kimberlite Kinross KWG Kyle Lake Lac De Gras Las Aguilas lead Leadbetter Lesotho Letseng Li limestone lithium Lockerby LUC Lucara Lukoil LUN Lundin Mining Lynas Lynx Mapimi Marifil Mines Ltd. market hype MAT Matamec Exploration Inc. Metalex Ventures Mexico Mexivada MFM Mina El Carmen Mo molybdenum Monument Diamond Project Motapa Mothae Mountain Province Diamonds MPV MTC MTP MTX Muskox Kimberlite natural gas Nb NEM Neuqen Basin New Gold Newmont New Nadina Diamonds Ltd. NGD Ni NI 43-101 nickel niobium NMC NNA Noront NOT Notch Nunaminerals Nunavut oil Orion Otish Pascua Llama Pb PC Gold Pd PDAC Pedernal Peregrine Peregrine Diamonds Petra Diamonds PGD PGE PGM PKL placer platinum Pogo Mine potash Potash Corp. pre-feasibility PST003 Pt Punta Colorado Qavvik Qilaq QUA Quadra Mining QUC Quebec Quebect Quest Rare Metals Quest Uranium rare earth elements Rare Element Resources Raytech Metals Corp. Re REE Renard RES Restigouche rhenium Rio Colorado Rio Narcea Rio Tinto RSC RTP ruby San Antonio San Juan San Roque sapphire Saskatchewan SGF Shear Diamonds Shear Minerals Shore Gold silver SL Snap Lake Sola Resource Corp Soltoro SOQUEM Inc. SRM Star Stewart Blusson stockhouse.com Stornoway Stornoway Diamonds Strange Lake Strateco Resources SWY Ta TAH Tahera tantalum TCK.A TCK.B TCM Teck Cominco Terrane Metals Tesla TGX Thompson Creek Metals Thor Lake TIF Tiffany & Co. Topia Topia Mine Toronto Resource Investment Conference Triex True North Gems TRX Tsa Da Glisza Tuktu Tuktu-1 Tunerq tungsten Tuzo Type IIa U uranium VAA Vaaldiam Mining Inc. VALE-INCO Veladero Venezuela Victor WDO Wesdome Western Troy Capital Resources WRY WWW International Diamond Consultants Ltd. Yamana Gold Inc. YRI zinc Zn
Categories
Monthly Archives
- July 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
Sponsors
Bending Clifford’s Rule
Posted by David
In his famed 1966 paper, T.S. Clifford noted that diamond-bearing kimberlite pipes were always ones that intruded regions of ancient continental crust. To be more specific, these regions are Archean in age (>2.5 billion years old) and formed the tectonically stable cores of continents known as cratons. Thus “Clifford’s Rule” states that diamondiferous kimberlites occur in geologic regions that have been tectonically stable (i.e. cratons) since the Archean and that diamond exploration should focus on those areas.
However, over the past forty years these regions of high diamond potential have been thoroughly investigated for diamond deposits and a number of world class deposits have been found in this manner, such as those in the Canadian arctic. As time passes, there are fewer and fewer areas of apparent diamond potential that remain unexplored. Diamond prospectors must start looking in places that appear at first not to follow Clifford’s rule. More diamond discoveries are being made in regions where Archean craton is not obvious.
Attending this August’s 9th International Kimberlite Conference, a prevalent theme was diamond exploration and discoveries in atypical areas falling outside of Clifford’s rule. For example, one presentation was regarding the nature of the Arygle mine, owned by Rio Tinto plc. Although situated in a Proterozoic (between 2.5 and 0.542 billion years old) mountain belt, Argyle has probably the highest diamond grade of all operating diamond mines. This presentation suggested the possibility of Archean mantle existing kilometers below the younger material at surface and thus providing the conditions optimal for diamond stability. Another example of developing properties in non-Archean areas is the diamondiferous Carolina kimberlite in Brazil. Located in the 1.8-1.2 billion year old Amazon craton, this kimberlite and others near it are being investigated by Sola Resource Corporation (TSX.V-SL). The characteristics of this kimberlite discovered thus far show no significant deviation from those of kimberlites situated in Archean cratons.
Regardless of how the current market environment is treating diamond stocks, the increasing core demand for diamonds has pushed diamond exploration to looking at areas previously considered to be at the fringes. Examples of significant discoveries in these areas include those mentioned above, plus Fort a la Corne, Saskatchewan; and Guaniamo, Venezuela.
The rising demand for diamonds has caused the small group of large companies who control the bulk of the rough supply (De Beers, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton) to raise prices. As with any commodity, when price rises, new technology and new exploration philosophies are employed to discover deposits in previously unexplored areas.