Mode monazite

Biotite and magnetite are also usually present and visible in hand specimen, muscovite may be present, and more rarely other oxides may be seen. Field estimates of modes ranged from 20-35 vol.% quartz, 15-35 vol.% plagioclase, 30-50 vol.% potassium feldspar, and 1-10 vol.% biotite. Accessory minerals include magnetite, muscovite, monazite, xenotime, zircon, apatite, epidote, ilmenite, titanite, allanite, molybdenite, and galena. The major U and Th minerals are uraninite and uranothorite. 

At the end of this chapter we will treat the working up of monazite as a representative for the mode of recovering rare earths from these minerals, but at first we will consider the different techniques for the separation of the individual components from a rare earth concentrate. 

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