Yang Liu and Larry Taylor, geologists at the University of Tennessee, have received a $380,000 fund from the National Science Foundation to investigate northern Siberia’s diamond deposits in partnership with scientists at the Russian Academy of Sciences.
The study on northern Siberia’s diamond deposits paves the way for researchers to understand the formation and evolution of the North Asian continent. The three-year partnership between the Russian Academy of Sciences and the University of Tennessee was launched with an official deal for swapping researchers.
The objective of the study is to understand the formation of craton in Asia and its evolution for the past several billions of years. By studying the minerals’ chemical isotopes within the diamonds, the scientists can identify the age of the diamonds and minerals and record their history of evolution.
The project enables the researchers to use samples from throughout the Siberian craton that will allow them to rebuild the whole life of the early formation of the craton. The diamond deposits in northern Siberia are one of the largest deposits in the world. The cold climate in the region protects the deposits from weathering by covering them in permafrost. The region has several unique volcanoes known as kimberlites that bring up diamonds from several miles deep down the earth’s surface.
Taylor commented that this unique volcanic magma known as kimberlite carries diamonds via a conduit known as a pipe. Most of the key diamonds globally originate from kimberlites and carry them from the mantle-stage, where they are produced under high-temperature and high-pressure conditions, he said. Yang commented that the research team polishes the diamonds and uncovers the mineral ingredients to obtain the critical chemical data.
Source: http://www.utk.edu