Murowa diamond mine Murowa diamond mine The Murowa diamond mine is a diamond mine located in Mazvihwa, south central Zimbabwe, about 40 kilometres from the asbestos mining town of Zvishavane in the Midlands province. The mine is majority owned and operated by the Rio Tinto Group, which also owns the Argyle diamond mine in Australia and part of the Diavik Diamond Mine in Canada. The mine is a combination of open pit and underground construction; current estimates put construction costs at $61 million USD and mine reserves are 19 million tonnes of ore, with an ore grade of per tonne. Murowa consists of
Permafrost construction on permafrost owing to the change of soil properties of the ground on which structures are placed and the biological processes in permafrost, e.g. the preservation of organisms frozen "in situ". Building on permafrost is difficult because the heat of the building (or pipeline) can thaw the permafrost and destabilize the structure. Three common solutions include: using foundations on wood piles; building on a thick gravel pad (usually 1–2 metres/3.3–6.6 feet thick); or using anhydrous ammonia heat pipes. The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System uses heat pipes built into vertical supports to prevent the pipeline from sinking and the Qingzang railway