Versatile monazite
I study a wide variety of accessory minerals. These are not found in abundance rocks, but because of their compositions and presence, can be used to track a wide range of geological processes. One mineral that has been the focus of my research is monazite, rare-earth phosphate mineral (Ce,La,Th)PO4. This mineral is an important ore of the rare earth elements, used in a wide variety of emerging technology. Because of its high radioactive element content, it can also be used to time geological processes related to its crystallization.
Monazite is often found in nature as a complexly zoned mineral. I study the best approaches to interpret monazite ages and try to understand why and how monazite chemistry can be used to explain its ages. Chemical variations can create misleading expectations regarding its number of growth stages, and thus the number of temporally distinct tectonic episodes the mineral, rock, or region experienced and recorded.
In addition, monazite composition, zoning, and even its shape have been suggested to identify its origin in specific rock types. The distribution of particular elements in monazite, like Y, Th, and rare earth elements as a tool to discriminate for it origin would be beneficial. I have explored correlations between monazite chemistry, zoning, shape, and provenance and often test some of these generalizations. If I find the mineral in my field areas, I date it and apply its ages to understand how the geology of the region changed over time.