Mineralogy Database

Monazite-(Ce) Mineral Data

Search Webmineral :
  

General Monazite-(Ce) Information

Help on Chemical Formula: Chemical Formula: (Ce,La,Nd,Th)PO4
Help on Composition: Composition: Molecular Weight = 240.21 gm
   Lanthanum   14.46 %  La   16.95 % La2O3
   Cerium      29.17 %  Ce   34.16 % Ce2O3
   Thorium      4.83 %  Th    5.50 % ThO2
   Phosphorus  12.89 %  P    29.55 % P2O5
   Neodymium   12.01 %  Nd   14.01 % Nd2O3
   Oxygen      26.64 %  O
              ______        ______ 
              100.00 %      100.17 % = TOTAL OXIDE
Help on Empirical Formula: Empirical Formula: Ce0.5La0.25Nd0.2Th0.05(PO4)
Help on Environment: Environment: Granitic pegmatites.
Help on IMA Status: IMA Status: Valid Species (Pre-IMA) 1829
Help on Locality: Locality: Mars Hill, Madison County, North Carolina. Link to MinDat.org Location Data.
Help on Name Origin: Name Origin: From the Greek monazeis - "to be alone" in allusion to its isolated crystals and their rarity when first found.
Help on Name Pronunciation: Name Pronunciation: Monazite-(Ce) Say MONAZITE-(CE)
Help on Synonym: Synonym: Cheralite-(Ce)
  ICSD 79746
  PDF 32-199
 

Monazite-(Ce) Image

Click Here for Larger Image in a New Browser Window Images:
Click Here for Larger Image

  Monazite-(Ce)

Comments: Orange crystals of monazite-(Ce) on lepidolite.
Location: Conselheiro Pena, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Scale: Not Given.
© Lou Perloff / Photo Atlas of Minerals

Monazite-(Ce) Crystallography
Help on Axial Ratios: Axial Ratios: a:b:c =0.9686:1:0.9215
Help on Cell Dimensions: Cell Dimensions: a = 6.79, b = 7.01, c = 6.46, Z = 4; beta = 103.633° V = 298.82 Den(Calc)= 5.34
Help on Crystal System: Crystal System: Monoclinic - Prismatic H-M Symbol (2/m) Space Group: P 21/n
Help on X Ray Diffraction: X Ray Diffraction: By Intensity(I/Io): 2.862(1), 3.078(0.8), 1.963(0.5),
Help on Forms: Forms:

Mouse
Dbl Clk - Start-Stop Rotation
RMB - Cycle Display Modes
Drag1 - Manipulate Crystal
Drag2 - Resize
Keyboard
S - Stereo
I - Indicies
<space> - Start-Stop Rotation
F - Fit to Screen
M - Menu
Help on Above

Forms: ( 0 1 0) ( 1 1 1) ( 1 0 1) ( 1 1 0) ( 1 0 0) ( 1 0 1)

Warning: this java applet does not work in some browsers because of security restrictions.

 

Physical Properties of Monazite-(Ce)

Help on Cleavage: Cleavage: {001} Distinct, {100} Indistinct
Help on Color: Color: Brown, Colorless, Greenish, Gray white, Yellow.
Help on Density: Density: 4.8 - 5.5, Average = 5.15
Help on Diaphaneity: Diaphaneity: Subtransparent to subtranslucent
Help on Fracture: Fracture: Conchoidal - Fractures developed in brittle materials characterized by smoothly curving surfaces, (e.g. quartz).
Help on Habit: Habit: Crystalline - Fine - Occurs as well-formed fine sized crystals.
Help on Habit: Habit: Twinning Common - Crystals are usually twinned.
Help on Hardness: Hardness: 5-5.5 - Apatite-Knife Blade
Help on Luminescence: Luminescence: Non-fluorescent.
Help on Luster: Luster: Adamantine - Resinous
Help on Streak: Streak: grayish white
 

Optical Properties of Monazite-(Ce)

Help on Gladstone-Dale: Gladstone-Dale: CI meas= -0.003 (Superior) - where the CI = (1-KPDmeas/KC)
CI calc= 0.032 (Excellent) - where the CI = (1-KPDcalc/KC)
KPDcalc= 0.1517,KPDmeas= 0.1572,KC= 0.1567
Ncalc = 1.75 - 1.86
Help on Optical Data: Optical Data: Biaxial (+), a=1.785-1.8, b=1.787-1.801, g=1.837-1.849, bire=0.0490-0.0520, 2V(Calc)=18-24, 2V(Meas)=6-25. Dispersion r > v or r < v.
Help on Pleochroism (x): Pleochroism (x): colorless or light yellow.
Help on Pleochroism (y): Pleochroism (y): colorless or dark yellow.
 

Calculated Properties of Monazite-(Ce)

Help on Electron Density: Electron Density: Bulk Density (Electron Density)=4.58 gm/cc
note: Specific Gravity of Monazite-(Ce) =5.15 gm/cc.
Help on Fermion Index: Fermion Index: Fermion Index = 0.02
Boson Index = 0.98
Help on Photoelectric: Photoelectric: PEMonazite-(Ce) = 407.22 barns/electron
U=PEMonazite-(Ce) x relectron=1,864.04 barns/cc.
Help on Radioactivity: Radioactivity:

GRapi = 91,584.34 (Gamma Ray American Petroleum Institute Units)
Concentration of Monazite-(Ce) per GRapi unit = 10.92 (PPM)

Monazite-(Ce) is Radioactive as defined in 49 CFR 173.403. Greater than 70 Bq / gram.

Estimated Maximum U.S. Postal Shipping Size (10 mRem/hr limit, Unshielded 10 cm box) 332.12 ± 83.03 grams of pure Monazite-(Ce) .

Estimated Radioactivity from Monazite-(Ce) - weak
Specimen
Size
Weight/Volume
(Sphere) *		 Calculated
Activity
Bequerols
(Bq)		 Calculated
Activity
Curies (Ci)		 Estimated
Activity
GR(api)		 Estimated
Exposure
(mRem**)/hr
If Held in Hand
For One Hour
1000 gm / 7.18 cm 2,163,839 5.85E-05 91,584.34 30.11
100 gm / 3.33 cm 216,384 5.85E-06 9,158.43 3.01
10 gm / 1.55 cm 21,638 5.85E-07 915.84 0.30
1 gm / 7.18 mm 2,164 5.85E-08 91.58 0.03
0.1 gm / 3.33 mm 216 5.85E-09 9.16 0.00
0.01 gm / 1.55 mm 22 5.85E-10 0.92 0.00
0.001 gm / 0.72 mm 2 5.85E-11 0.09 0.00

Weight of pure Monazite-(Ce) in grams (gm) and Calculated Diameter of a Sphere with a Density of 5.15 gm/cc.*
Goverment Estimate of Average Annual Exposure ( 360 mRem) **
Note: 10 microsieverts/hr = 1 mRem/hr **
Max Permissable Adult Dose 50,000 mRem/yr (hands), 15,000 mRem/yr (eyes)
Lethal Dose LD(50) Exposure 400,000 to 500,000 mRem
 

Monazite-(Ce) Classification
Help on Dana Class: Dana Class: 38.04.03.01 (38)Anhydrous Phosphates, etc
  (38.04)A+ XO4
  (38.04.03)Monazite Group (Monoclinic: P21/n)
 
38.04.03.01 Monazite-(Ce) (Ce,La,Nd,Th)PO4 P 21/n 2/m
 
38.04.03.02 Monazite-(La) (La,Ce,Nd)PO4 P 21/n 2/m
 
38.04.03.03 Cheralite-(Ce)? (Ce,Ca,Th)(P,Si)O4 P 21/n 2/m
 
38.04.03.04 Brabantite? CaTh(PO4)2 P 21 2
 
38.04.03.05 Monazite-(Nd) (Nd,Ce,La)(P,Si)O4 P 21/n 2/m
 
38.04.03.06 Gasparite-(Ce) CeAsO4 P 21/n 2/m
 
38.04.03.07 Monazite-(Sm)! SmPO4 P 21/n 2/m
Help on Strunz Class: Strunz Class: 08.AD.50 08 - PHOSPHATES, ARSENATES, VANADATES
  08.A - Phosphates, etc. without additional anions, without H2O
  08.AD -With only large cations
 
08.AD.50 Brabantite? CaTh(PO4)2 P 21 2
 
08.AD.50 Gasparite-(Ce) CeAsO4 P 21/n 2/m
 
08.AD.50 Monazite-(Ce) (Ce,La,Nd,Th)PO4 P 21/n 2/m
 
08.AD.50 Monazite-(La) (La,Ce,Nd)PO4 P 21/n 2/m
 
08.AD.50 Monazite-(Nd) (Nd,Ce,La)(P,Si)O4 P 21/n 2/m
 
08.AD.50 Rooseveltite BiAsO4 P 2/m 2/m
 
08.AD.50 Monazite-(Sm)! SmPO4 P 21/n 2/m
 

Other Monazite-(Ce) Information
Help on See Also: See Also: Links to other databases for Monazite-(Ce) :
1 - Alkali-Nuts(English)
2 - Alkali-Nuts(Francais)
3 - Am. Min. Crystal Structure Database
4 - Athena
5 - EUROmin Project
6 - GeoScienceWorld
7 - Google Images
8 - Google Scholar
9 - Handbook of Mineralogy (UofA)
10 - MinDAT
11 - Mineralienatlas (Deutsch)
12 - Online Mineral Museum
13 - QUT Mineral Atlas
14 - Ruff.Info
15 - Uranium Minerals
16 - WWW-MINCRYST

Search for Monazite-(Ce) using:

Google
 
Web webmineral.com
[AOL] [Bing] [Dog Pile] [GeoScienceWorld] [HotBot] [Ixquick] [Lycos] [MAMMA] [Scirus] [Teoma] [WebCrawler] [Wikipedia] [YAHOO]

Visit our Advertisers for Monazite-(Ce) :

Ask about Monazite-(Ce) here :
Ask-A-Mineralogist from the Mineralogical Society of America
Mindat.org's Discussion Groups
Original Rockhounds Discussion Group
Rockhounds Discussion Group on Yahoo Groups
Mineral Discussion Forum from Fabre Minerals - also available in Espa�ol

Print or Cut-and-Paste your Monazite-(Ce) Specimen Label here :

Monazite-(Ce)

(Ce,La,Nd,Th)PO4
Dana No: 38.04.03.01 Strunz No: 08.AD.50
Locality:

 

Notes:

 
 

Dakota Matrix
Excalibur Minerals
Exceptional Minerals
Hudson Insitute
John Betts Fine Minerals
Mc Dougall Minerals
Mineral News
Rock and Mineral Shows
Weinrich Minerals, Inc.