Peter Nancarrow, BSc (Geology and Crystallography), F.Min.Soc.

I'm interested in many aspects of mineralogy and geology and the instruments and techniques used in their investigation.

Professional experience

1973 to 1990: Geologist, petrologist and mineralogist, with the British Geological Survey
In the Petrographical Department at The Geological Museum in South Kensington from 1973 to 1984, then in the Applied Mineralogy Research Group (1984-87), and the Mineral Sciences and Isotope Geology Research Group of the Geochemistry Division(1987-90).

Research interests:
Ores of non-ferrous metals, igneous and metamorphic petrology (including granites, pegmatites, alkaline and ultramafic rocks), U mineralisation and radioactive waste disposal, tectonics & volcanicity, crystallography, microscopy, topographical mineralogy, mineral analysis, specimen curation and gemmolgy. (I studied for my FGA Diploma in 1982-1984, whilst working at the Geological Museum.)

Regional experience/interests:
The geology and mineralogy of the Lake District
The St Kilda intrusive centre (Outer Hebrides)
The Moine Thrust Zone and Lewisian basement of the North-west Highlands of Scotland
The Lizard Complex, and the Li-mica granites of St Austell and Tregonning-Godolphin in Cornwall.
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1990 - 2000: Mineralogist for the European division of Rio Tinto Borax (latterly Rio Tinto Minerals)
Responsible for laboratory support of exploration and mining activities, technical troubleshooting, refined product quality control and commercial research projects, including characterisation of borate ores and minerals, mineral processing trials, and investigation of various applications of borate minerals, e.g. in glass & ceramics manufacturing, detergent formulation, timber preservation and fire retardancy.
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During those appointments I was responsible for research projects, laboratory management, museum curatorial tasks, answering public enquiries, training students, giving scientific presentations, and contributing to technical reports and research publications.
Those tasks required the identification, analysis and characterisation of a wide range of rocks and minerals and synthetic materials (e.g. metals, glass and ceramics, natural and synthetic gemstones, and other crystalline industrial products), using techniques such as optical microscopy, mineral separation (using magnetic, electostatic, density, and flotation methods), thermal analysis, infra-red spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence, scanning electron microscopy and the electron microprobe.

As well as my laboratory and museum duties, many of my projects involved various types of fieldwork, including geological mapping, collecting samples for analysis and museum display, site investigations, borehole logging, topographical surveying and sea-bed surveys.
These were carried out at a wide variety of field locations including working and disused mine and quarry sites, and in many different environments, from farm and moorland to high mountain terrain, on remote islands, and at offshore locations.

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Following my retirement, I have kept up my interest in mineralogy with active involvement in Mindat, by contributing to the database and forum discussions, and joining field trips, including the Mindat Conference visit to Madagascar in 2014 and travels with other Mindat members (e.g. to Namibia in 2018). Also with the Sussex Mineral and Lapidary Society (SMLS) [https://www.smls.online/] with whom I have enjoyed visits to Portugal, the Faroe Islands, and locations in many parts of the UK; e.g. The Isles of Mull and Skye, Strontian, Shropshire, Cumbria, and Cornwall.

Summary of my recent Mindat Forum posts: https://www.mindat.org/message_search.php?u=723

Amongst my other interests are: angler, birdwatcher, bookworm, collector (not only of rocks and minerals, but also books, maps, music recordings and a huge pile of various bits of timber to support my woodworking activities). Gardener, hill walker, microscopist, petrolhead (watching and participating in various motor sport events - but not so often the latter, at my age!) Also photographer, sailor, sceptic, snorkeler, stargazer, sunbather, traveller, woodworker . . .
I do sometimes wonder how to make time for all of those activities, and unfortunately of course, with so many demands on my time, conflicts of interests are much too common! E.g.(Heresy/spoiler alert!) - I have even been known to miss out on a mineralogical field trip to take up an invitation to go blue water sailing on a racing yacht; it's a tough life, this retirement lark!

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Publications available on-line
(Mostly joint authorships; reference details and co-authors' names are shown in linked documents. Listed here partly because some people have asked for them, and partly for my own convenience!)
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Provisional analyses of Minerals and Glasses from A.E.R.E. [Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Harwell] (1979)
https://resources.bgs.ac.uk/PublicationPDFs/19800446.pdf

Analyses of scapolites and feldspars from Scourie Dyke rocks, Outer Hebrides (1979)
https://webapps.bgs.ac.uk/data/publications/publication.html?id=20187943

Electron probe X-ray microanalyses of Scourie dyke rocks from the Outer Hebrides, Scotland (1980)
https://webapps.bgs.ac.uk/data/publications/publication.html?id=19573070

A note on the occurrence of chevkinite, allanite, and zirkelite on St. Kilda, Scotland; Min.Mag. Vol 46 (1982)
https://rruff.geo.arizona.edu/doclib/MinMag/Volume_46/46-341-445.pdf

The sand and gravel resources of the country around Chichester and north of Bognor Regis, Sussex (1983)
https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/534986/1/B02670_138_Bognor.pdf

St Kilda: an illustrated account of the geology (1984)
On-line reader: https://webapps.bgs.ac.uk/memoirs/docs/B01274.html
Scanned copy of original book: https://pubs.bgs.ac.uk/publications.html?pubID=B01274

Saint Kilda Geological Map (British Geological Survey 1:25 000 Special Sheet) (1984)
https://largeimages.bgs.ac.uk/iip/mapsportal.html?id=1003964

Vanadiferous Nodules from the Littleham marl near Budleigh Salterton, Devon. (1985)
http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/504485/1/WGPM85012.pdf

Thermal decomposition reactions of caledonite and their products; Mineralogical Magazine, Vol. 50, PP. 521-6 (1986)
https://rruff.geo.arizona.edu/doclib/MinMag/Volume_50/50-357-521.pdf

Mn minerals from Mynydd Rhiw, North Wales (1987)
https://webapps.bgs.ac.uk/data/publications/publication.html?id=19557425

The Lithium potential of the St Austell Granite (1987)
https://pubs.bgs.ac.uk/publications.html?pubID=B01309

Millerite from the Cumbrian Coalfield; B. Young and P.H.A. Nancarrow Journal of The Russell Society vol.2 pt1 (1988)
https://www.mindat.org/jrs/JRS%20Vol%2002-1.pdf

Rozenite and Other Sulphate Minerals from the Cumbrian Coalfield (1988)
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/mineralogical-magazine/article/abs/rozenite-and-other-sulphate-minerals-from-the-cumbrian-coalfield/1227A8064D917CAFA07014FA020B3CFB

Electron microprobe analyses of rock-forming minerals from minor intrusions near Scawgill Bridge and Dodd by Hope Beck, Lorton, Cumbria (1988)
https://webapps.bgs.ac.uk/data/publications/publication.html?id=19562426

Hydrothermal mineralogy in geothermal assessment: studies of Miravalles Field, Costa Rica and experimental simulations of hydrothermal alteration. (1989)
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/277312320_Hydrothermal_mineralogy_in_geothermal_assessment_studies_of_Miravalles_Field_Costa_Rica_and_experimental_simulations_of_hydrothermal_alteration

Stratabound barium and base-metal mineralisation in Middle Dalradian metasediments near Braemar, Scotland. (1989)
https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/534554/1/MRP104_WF89012.pdf

Chromium Minerals in Microdiorite from the English Lake District. N.J. Fortey and P.H.A. Nancarrow Journal of The Russell Society vol.3 pt1 (1990)
https://www.mindat.org/jrs/JRS%20Vol%2003-1.pdf

Hausmannite from West Cumbria
B. Young and P.H.A. Nancarrow, Journal of The Russell Society vol.3 pt1 (1990)
https://www.mindat.org/jrs/JRS%20Vol%2003-1.pdf

Direct indication of hydrocarbons by airborne and ground magnetic survey: summary report (1990)
https://resources.bgs.ac.uk/PublicationPDFs/19791729.pdf

Alstonite in situ at Brownley Hill Mine, Nenthead, Cumbria (1990)
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/mineralogical-magazine/article/abs/alstonite-in-situ-at-brownley-hill-mine-nenthead-cumbria/4DB170BD55C876AACC1990F1EB059609

Gold in the Ochil Hills, Scotland (1991)
https://pubs.bgs.ac.uk/publications.html?pubID=B02878

The Occurrence of Daqingshanite-(Ce) in the Nkombwa Hill Carbonatite, Zambia (Mineralogical Magazine, Sept 1992, Vol.56 pp 419-422)
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249849597_The_Occurrence_of_Daqingshanite-Ce_in_the_Nkombwa_Hill_Carbonatite_Zambia

Mineral exploration in the Lower Palaeozoic rocks of south-west Cumbria. Part 1: regional surveys (1993)
British Geological Survey Technical report WF/93/4 - Mineral Recconnaisance Programme Report No.128
https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/509953/1/WF93004.pdf

Borate Raw Materials for the Ceramic Frit Industry;
Key Engineering Materials 132-136 (1997)
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272909785_Borate_Raw_Materials_for_the_Ceramic_Frit_Industry

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Full Publications list available by PM on request
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Society memberships

Ashdown Sailing Club
https://ashdownsc.co.uk/

Mineralogical Society of Great Britain (Fellow)
https://www.minersoc.org/membership-categories.html

Papercourt Sailing Club
https://papercourt-sc.org.uk/

Portsmouth Offshore Group of The Civil Service Sailing Association -
https://pog-cssa.co.uk/

Royal Horticultural Society
https://www.rhs.org.uk/

Royal National Lifeboat Institution
https://rnli.org/

Royal Society For The Protection of Birds
https://www.rspb.org.uk/

Royal Yachting Association
https://www.rya.org.uk/

Sussex Mineral and Lapidary Society
https://www.smls.online/

(Formerly also FGA [Diploma qualified Fellow of The Gemmological Association of Great Britain], which is now lapsed because, being retired, I could not justify paying out the ever increasing fees just to maintain my Fellowship status!)