Where Are Diamonds Found and Used?
Three Kinds of Diamonds: 1.) Original Diamonds: These are the original, valuable diamonds. They are measured in karats. One carat equals 0.205 grams. They are used as jewelry. 2.) Bort: A semi-transparent and striated diamond. It is harder than an original diamond and it is used to carve high quality diamonds. In the drilling industry, these diamonds are used for drill bits. 3.) Carbonado: This is a black, uncarved diamond. It is harder than an original diamond and it is used in the manufacturing of drilling equipment. There is approximately 160 million carats of diamonds being produced each year. The value is about $13 billion at the mine level. A little more then 50% is actually gem quality, which represents about 90% of the total value. The remainder is industrial quality stones used for cutting tools, mining, drill bits, construction and manufacturing. Diamonds of the past came from India dating back to as early as 500 BC. So, for more than 2000 years they were the only producer of
