NEW MICROANALYTICAL METHODS TO SOLVE NEW (AND OLD) MINERALOGICAL CHALLENGES: LASERS, PLASMAS AND NEW WAYS TO ANALYZE AND VISUALIZE DATA

The use of analytical instrumentation has always brought additional interpretive power to the skills of the petrologist. The improvements in more sensitive, more accurate and higher spatial resolution analytical instruments such as electron microprobes, Laser Ablation ICP-MS (LA-ICP-MS) and spectrometers have allowed us to better unravel geological, geochemical and mineralogical problems. Here we summarize existing and developing analytical tools that are increasing our ability to tackle new (and old) mineralogical and geochemical puzzles. The use of Laser Ablation ICP-MS as a trace element microprobe has become more common in geochemistry. However, limitations in spatial resolution, quantification and data processing procedures have remained problematic. This work summarizes some of the recent advances in quantitative trace element mapping of minerals, enhanced spatial resolution and expanded elemental coverage using laser-based techniques. Advancements in techniques such as Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) for elemental and isotopic information has been introduced. Using LIBS and in some cases simultaneous LIBS and LA-ICP-MS for additional important elements such as fluorine, carbon, oxygen and others have been added to our toolkit. This work will present trace element mapping results for important metamorphic minerals such as garnet, apatite, zircon and others. New methods for collecting, processing and presenting these types of complex datasets will be presented. A discussion of some of the future directions for the next 100 years of mineralogical analyses and research will also be laid out.