Comparative analysis of labor input required to produce one carat at different methods of synthesis and mining of diamonds

Abstract

Diamond is a form of carbon that has been attracting attention for hundreds of years, owing to its physical and chemical properties of hardness, thermal conductivity, chemical inertness, and transparency. Labor and the long-term impact of a diverse workforce, is one of the most important factors in diamond mining and production and must be considered when assessing economic benefits. In the present study, we examined the labor input required to obtain one carat of diamond, via three methods: open-cast mining, high-pressure high-temperature synthesis and 2.45-GHz microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition. We discovered that to produce a carat of (near-) colorless diamond, the labor inputs are approximately 1.83 h and 3.43 h of work using the HPHT and 2.45-GHz MP CVD methods, respectively. We noted a lower labor input of work per carat for the mining of diamonds of assorted sizes and colors from the two main DeBeers diamond fields in Botswana (Orapa and Jwaneng). This paper is based on our observations and public reports, and we think that our findings will be helpful in understanding the labor input per carat for the analyzed methods, understanding the main technological challenges facing the diamond industry that could potentially affect future labor productivity.

Keywords

• Labor productivity
• Labor input
• High-pressure high-temperature synthesis
• Chemical vapor deposition
• Diamond mining