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Vargem 1 kimberlite, Santo Inácio River valley, Coromandel, Minas Gerais, Brazili
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Vargem 1 kimberlite | - not defined - |
| Santo Inácio River valley | Valley |
| Coromandel | Municipality |
| Minas Gerais | State |
| Brazil | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
18° 33' 21'' South , 47° 1' 41'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Coromandel | 22,647 (2012) | 20.3km |
| Patrocínio | 71,963 (2012) | 43.3km |
| Monte Carmelo | 44,041 (2012) | 53.0km |
The list of large diamonds found in alluvial deposits in this area is impressive. Characteristic features of the diamonds suggest they were not transported far from a primary kimberlite or lamproite source. The Vargem I kimberlite was analyzed as early as 1977, but the preliminary results indicated a poor chance that it contained diamonds. By virtue of several tons of alluvial matrix supplied by GAR Mining, another study of the chemistry of heavy minerals–primarily pyrope garnets–was undertaken, using the well-known evaluation system for kimberlites developed by Gütter et al. (2004), whereby certain ratios of calcium and chromium (as oxides) have been found to be associated with diamondiferous kimberlites more so than other ratios. Chaves (2012) re-analyzed garnets from Vargem-1, and not only found several samples showing favorable CaO/Cr2O3 ratios (plotting in the G10 field), but also found loose diamonds. Although less than 1 carat in size and of subeconomic potential, this discovery shows that other kimberlites in the area previously thought to be infertile for diamonds also should be examined more carefully and exhaustively. The Vargem I find helps solve the old puzzle of failing to find potential primary kimberlite sources near sites where alluvial diamonds have been recovered.
NK, January 2017
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsGallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 1 - Elements | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Diamond | 1.CB.10a | C |
| Group 9 - Silicates | |||
| ⓘ | Pyrope | 9.AD.25 | Mg3Al2(SiO4)3 |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| C | Carbon | |
|---|---|---|
| C | ⓘ Diamond | C |
| O | Oxygen | |
| O | ⓘ Pyrope | Mg3Al2(SiO4)3 |
| Mg | Magnesium | |
| Mg | ⓘ Pyrope | Mg3Al2(SiO4)3 |
| Al | Aluminium | |
| Al | ⓘ Pyrope | Mg3Al2(SiO4)3 |
| Si | Silicon | |
| Si | ⓘ Pyrope | Mg3Al2(SiO4)3 |
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
Brazil
- Minas Gerais
- Coromandel mining districtMining District
South AmericaContinent
South America PlateTectonic Plate
- Saõ Francisco CratonCraton
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Vargem 1 kimberlite, Santo Inácio River valley, Coromandel, Minas Gerais, Brazil