Skip to main content

Trinity College Dublin, The University of Dublin

Menu Search


Trinity College Dublin By using this website you consent to the use of cookies in accordance with the Trinity cookie policy. For more information on cookies see our cookie policy.

      
Profile Photo

Dr. Juan Diego Rodriguez-Blanco

Associate Professor (Geology)
MUSEUM BUILDING
      
Profile Photo

Dr. Juan Diego Rodriguez-Blanco

Associate Professor (Geology)
MUSEUM BUILDING

 rodrigjd@tcd.ie

 3531896 1691


I am an Ussher Associate Professor in Nanomineralogy. I am an experimental mineralogist, highly experienced in crystallisation and environmental geochemistry. I have a strong successful track record in quantifying natural processes in the laboratory and applying these results to illuminating natural and societally relevant processes. Currently I am building a strong research group of experts in experimental nanomineralogy and also developing very strong national and international collaborations. My goals are to develop new methods for the removal of (in)organic waste products from drinking water, to and to design more energy efficient separation and recycling methods for strategic metals and to develop new carbon capture and storage techniques. The purpose of my research is to find out how to manage resources in a way that we can preserve the quality of life that we have now into the future generations. In particular, my research is focused on the understanding of mineral nucleation and growth from solution and mineral-water interaction processes. I am using a multidisciplinary approach to understand: a) Mineral formation and its role in geochemical cycles: I study the mechanisms of crystallisation of minerals at the nanoscale in order to understand the formation processes of carbonate minerals and their relevance for carbon capture and storage, biogeochemical element cycling and biomineralisation processes. b) The interaction of common seawater ions, pollutants and organics with mineral surfaces: I aim to shed light on mineral-water reactions that can be applied to remediate polluted waters and soils, to control the mobility and to find new sources of strategic metals. In particular, I focus my work on the evaluation of the capacity of carbonates, sulphates and phosphates to remove pollutants and rare-earths from natural waters with the purpose of designing more energy efficient separation and recycling methods for strategic metals.
  AMORPHOUS SOLIDS   aqueous geochemistry   Biomineralization   carbonates   CRYSTALLIZATION   Economic Geology   ELECTRON MICROSCOPY   FOURIER TRANSFORM INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY   FOURIER-TRANSFORM SPECTROSCOPY   GEOCHEMISTRY   GEOLOGY   Karstic Geomorphogy, Karst Hydrogeology,   LANTHANIDES   MATERIALS SCIENCE   MINERALOGY   Mineralogy and crystallography   mineral-water interaction   NANOCRYSTALS   NUCLEATION   Petrology, Minerology, Geochemistry   phosphates   rare-earths   RECRYSTALLIZATION   SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPY   Small Angle X-ray Scattering   sulphates   SYNCHROTRON RADIATION   TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPY   Wide Angle X-ray Scattering   X-RAY DIFFRACTION
Project Title
 SEparating Critical metals ThrOugh mineRal crystallization (SEleCTOR)
From
01/09/2020
To
31/08/2024
Summary
The goal of SEleCTOR is to develop novel, clean and cheap protocols to separate rare earths from waters. We will design functionally engineered nanosized carbonates with targeted structures and surface properties that will control the selective capture of specific rare earths from water. Rare earths (e.g., lanthanum, neodymium, dysprosium) are indispensable elements for smart technology and their utilisation is a key economic indicator. However, their supply is at risk in the medium term (2020-2030) because their demand is steadily increasing and their separation requires inefficient, expensive and environmentally aggressive extraction methods. SEleCTOR aims to build a deep, fundamental understanding of how rare earths fractionate during the formation of synthetic Ca-Mg-Sr carbonate nanominerals. By manipulating basic parameters (e.g., supersaturation, Ca/Mg/Sr ratio, pH, temperature) it will be possible to design carbonate nanominerals with targeted structural and surface properties that will promote the capture of specific rare earth elements from aqueous solutions. This method will decrease water contamination and reduce Ireland's reliance on energy imports. I will combine my world-class skills in mineral-water interaction and mineral formation processes with leading knowledge in carbonate and rare earth geochemistry at Trinity College Dublin to establish a unique platform for rare earth recovery.
Funding Agency
Science Foundation Ireland
Programme
Frontiers for the Future
Project Type
Research project
Project Title
 TARGETing crystallisation for Enhanced Carbon Capture and Storage (TARGET-CCS)
From
01/09/2018
To
31/08/2022
Summary
This project aims to investigate the poorly understood geochemical conditions under which metastable carbonates can crystallise during the interaction of CO2-rich fluids with basaltic rocks in order to enhance their stability and maximise their capacity to store CO2.
Funding Agency
Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)
Programme
SFI Supplemental PhD funding programme to the Research Centres
Project Type
Research
Project Title
 Design of synthetic rare-earth carbonate minerals for chemical filters
From
01/09/2019
To
31/08/2023
Summary
Today, mineral-water interaction studies have become increasingly relevant to environmental problems. In particular, many studies address the use of ubiquitous minerals (e.g., gypsum, calcite) for the potential purification and removal of toxic pollutants from wastewaters. This project will evaluate the feasibility of synthetic rare-earth carbonates as green chemical filters for industry. In particular, the aims of this study are: (i) to find out the precise conditions at which rare- earth carbonates are able to remove specific (in)organic pollutants from natural waters, (ii) determine the mechanisms by which the removal of pollutants takes place, (iii) quantify the efficiency and reproducibility of the decontamination process and the course of the reaction over time. We will do this by carrying out batch experiments in which pollutants will be interacted with rare-earth carbonates while they crystallise from solution. We will test common and problematic soil pollutants: divalent and trivalent cations (e.g., Pb2+, Cr3+) and simple organics (e.g., chlorinated solvents like perchloroethene). Besides, a bonus to this project will be the use of synchrotron-based techniques to follow these reactions in situ and real time. This will allow us to obtain high-resolution kinetic data to understand the nature of the crystallisation mechanisms as well as the fate of pollutants.
Funding Agency
Trinity College Dublin
Programme
Provost Awards
Project Type
Research
Project Title
 Targeting the crystallisation of environmentally and technologically important inorganic materials by a novel hydrothermal injection process.
From
01/09/2018
To
31/08/2021
Summary
In this project we aim to explore the crystallisation of environmentally and technologically relevant materials under hydrothermal conditions using a novel "hydrothermal injection" reactor designed at TCD. This reactor system allows targeting of the nucleation and growth of specific crystalline phases by the introduction of reagents to a pre-heated, pressurised aqueous system at the exact temperature desired. Internal temperature and pressure monitoring enable precise control of the sample environment. These combined factors will facilitate a greater understanding of the relationship between the hydrothermal conditions of temperature, pressure, and time and the structure and morphology of the obtained products, giving fundamental insights into crystallisation mechanisms and pathways. Here we aim to apply this novel reactor technology to developing a deeper understanding of the hydrothermal crystallisation of important naturally occurring minerals, such as the Ca-Mg-Sr carbonates, as well as expanding on existing work on the generation of functional II-VI semiconducting nanomaterials.
Funding Agency
Trinity College Dublin
Programme
Intra-faculty TCD awards
Project Type
Research
Project Title
 MetalIntelligence Research Training Network - Project: Efficient characterisation of minerals and fabrics with the scanning electron microscope
From
01/09/2017
To
31/08/2020
Summary
This project is part of the H2020 MetalIntelligence Research Network (European Industrial Doctorates - 6 PhD students). The general objectives of this research network are: i) Training and equipping a new generation of leaders in the minerals processing field. ii) Providing lasting novel technological and training methods to build capacity and improve efficiency. iii) Undertaking innovative research across the trans-disciplinary edges of sector compartments. This specific research project ("Efficient characterisation of minerals and fabrics with the scanning electron microscope") aims at bridging the gap between industry and academia in terms of mineral and material (natural or synthetic) characterisation. SEM-EDS allows for data acquisition within a reasonable timeframe and can be also used for in situ chemical analysis, grain association and mineral liberation analysis (MLA), using AZtec software, developed by industry partner Oxford Instruments. However, distinguishing among different grains and their associations is still difficult to be satisfactorily achieved and is very time-consuming. Thus, the key objective of this project is to improve the software limitations so as to make MLA quicker and more accurate, resulting in more industry-relevant analysis turnaround.
Funding Agency
European Commission
Programme
H2020 Framework Programme
Project Type
European Industrial Doctorate

Page 1 of 3
Details Date
Assessor for funding bodies: Member of the Evaluation Panel of the Committee "Functioning of fluid and solid Earth" of the French National Research Agency (ANR, l'Agence Nationale de la Recherche). 2015-now
Assessor for funding bodies: Scientific evaluator of the HORIZON 2020 - FET-OPEN Challenging Current Thinking Research and Innovation Actions (RIA); FETOPEN-01-2018-2019-2020: FET-Open Challenging Current Thinking 2018-now
Assessor for funding bodies. Proposal evaluator for the Chilean National Science and Technology Commission. 2016
UK and Ireland Mineralogical Society representative at TCD. 2017-
Assessor for funding bodies. Proposal evaluator for the Ser Cymru II COFUND program - Welsh European Funding Office (WEFO) under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). 2016
Assessor for funding bodies. Proposal evaluator for the Australian synchrotron. 2015
Graphical Advisor of the EAG international peer-reviewed journal 'Geochemical Perspectives' (www.geochemicalperspectives.org) 2013-now
Member of the Editorial Board of the journal 'Minerals' (MDPI journals) 2016-now
Member of the Editorial Board of the journal 'Crystals' (MDPI journals) 2018
Reviewer for periodical publications (on average a minimum of 15 papers/year) American Mineralogist (MSA), Applied Geochemistry (Elsevier), Applied Surface Science (Elsevier), Biogeosciences (EGU), CrystEngComm (RSC), Chemical Communications (RSC), Chemistry of Materials (ACS), Environmental Science & Technology (ACS), Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta (Elsevier), Geology (GSA), Journal of Crystal Growth (Elsevier), Journal of Hazardous Materials (Elsevier), Journal of Microscopy and Ultrastructure (Elsevier), Materials Research Bulletin (Elsevier), Minerals (MDPI), Mineralogical Magazine (GeoScienceWorld), Nanotoxicology (Informa Healthcare), Nanoscale (RSC). 2008-now
Assessor for funding bodies. Proposal evaluator for the Austrian Science Fund (FWF). 2017
Language Skill Reading Skill Writing Skill Speaking
English Fluent Fluent Fluent
Spanish Fluent Fluent Fluent
Details Date From Date To
European Association of Geochemistry. Honorary Member. 2011 Now
American Chemical Society 2015 2016
Juan Diego Rodriguez"Blanco, Melanie Maddin, Rémi Rateau, Adrienn Maria Szucs, Luca Terribili, Beatriz Vallina, Kristina Petra Zubovic, Crystallization, replacement, and redox pathways governing rare earth carbonate and phosphate formation, CrystEngComm, 28, (9), 2026, p1453 - 1469, p1453-1469 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Andreea Elena Maftei, Alecsandra Lupu, Juan Diego Rodriguez"Blanco, Rémi Rateau, Loredana Brinza, Chromium removal via coprecipitation with carbonates and iron oxyhydroxides minerals: The effect of organic complexing agents, The Science of The Total Environment, 965, 2025, p178686 - 178686, p178686-178686 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Luca Terribili, Adrienn Maria Szucs, Melanie Maddin, Kristina Petra Zubovic, Rémi Rateau, Juan Diego Rodriguez"Blanco, Mechanistic Insights into the Early-Stage Crystallization and Nanophase Formation of Metastable Light Rare-Earth Carbonates, Crystal Growth & Design, 25, (4), 2025, p945 - 962, p945-962 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Kristina Petra Zubovic, Anna Horvath, Daniel Brien, Rémi Rateau, Luca Terribili, S. J. Winters, Emeline Docaigne, Paul C. Guyett, Juan Diego Rodriguez"Blanco, Crystallisation of CaCO3 polymorphs induced by layered PET-based microplastic particles, Environmental Sciences Europe, 37, (1), 2025, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Melanie Maddin, Luca Terribili, Rémi Rateau, Adrienn Maria Szucs, Juan Diego Rodriguez"Blanco, Nanophase REE phosphate crystallization induced by vivianite oxidation: mechanistic insights and mineralogical implications, RSC Advances, 15, (14), 2025, p11257 - 11270, p11257-11270 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Gabrielle Stockmann, Juan Diego Rodriguez"Blanco, Editorial for Special Issue "Research on Ikaite"Natural Occurrences and Synthetic Mineral Precipitation", Minerals, 15, (5), 2025, p524 - 524, p524-524 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Andrea Pierozzi, Niamh Faulkner, Adrienn Maria Szucs, Luca Terribili, Melanie Maddin, Federica Meloni, Kavya Devkota, Kristina Petra Zubovic, Paul C. Guyett, Juan Diego Rodriguez"Blanco, Natural carbonation in alkali basalts: Geochemical evolution of Ca"Mg"Fe carbonates at Sverrefjellet, Svalbard, Carbon Capture Science & Technology, 17, 2025, p100510 - 100510, p100510-100510 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Adrienn Maria Szucs, Rémi Rateau, Melanie Maddin, Juan Diego Rodriguez"Blanco, Transient Epitaxial Growth of Rare Earth Carbonates during Low-Temperature Replacement of Calcite, Aragonite, and Dolomite, Crystal Growth & Design, 25, (21), 2025, p9275 - 9287, p9275-9287 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Dideriksen, K. and Zhen-Wu, B.Y. and DobberschÃŒtz, S. and Rodríguez-Blanco, J.D. and Raahauge, P.J. and Ataman, E. and Oelkers, E.H. and Stipp, S.L.S., A quantitative description of barite thermodynamics, nucleation and growth for reactive transport modelling, Applied Geochemistry, (106033), 2024, Notes: [cited By 0], Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Rateau, R. and Maddin, M. and Szucs, A.M. and Terribili, L. and Drost, K. and Guyett, P.C. and Rodriguez-Blanco, J.D., Utilization of Eggshell Waste Calcite as a Sorbent for Rare Earth Element Recovery, ACS Omega, 2024, Notes: [cited By 0], Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
  

Page 1 of 8
Rateau, R., Maddin, M., Szucs, A.M., Terribili, L. Guyett, P.C., Zubovic, K.P., Rodriguez-Blanco, J.D., Sustainable rare earth capture using seashell carbonates: Mineralogical pathways and comparative uptake behaviour of mussel, cockle, and oyster shells, Science of The Total Environment, 1027, 2026, p181698-, Journal Article, PUBLISHED
Hodson, M.E., Benning, L.G., Cinque, G., Dermachi, B., Frogley, M., Penkman, K.E.H., Rodriguez-Blanco, J.D., Schofield, P.F., Versteegh, E.A.A., Wehbe, K., Synchrotron-based micro Fourier transform infrared mapping to investigate the spatial distribution of amorphous and crystalline calcium carbonate in earthworm-secreted calcium carbonate balls., Spectroscopy Europe, 28, (3), 2016, p12 - 15, Journal Article, PUBLISHED

  


Award Date
Distinguished Lecturer 2021 - European Association of Geochemistry 2021
Distinguished Service Award (European Association of Geochemistry) 2014
Extraordinary Doctoral Award - Honorific mention, given to a PhD thesis of a graduate student I supervised (University of Oviedo) 2015
Extraordinary Award of M.Sc. - Honorific Mention. University of Oviedo (Spain) 2003
Inspiring Educator Award 2025
Special Commendation as runner-up for the Award for Excellence in Supervision of Research Students 2025
My research establishes experimental nanomineralogy as a bridge between fundamental mineral-formation science and solutions to resource and environmental challenges. I investigate nucleation, crystallisation and mineral"water reactions from the nanoscale upwards, combining time-resolved experiments, electron microscopy, spectroscopy and diffraction. This programme has evolved from defining pathways of carbonate, sulphate and phosphate formation to three connected priorities: understanding how critical-metal minerals and ore textures develop; designing lower-energy routes for rare-earth separation and recovery; and controlling mineral reactions for carbon capture and water remediation. The distinctive contribution of my work is to resolve transient phases and multistep reaction pathways, and then translate that mechanistic understanding into applications. My group has elucidated pathways to a key mineral for energy and industry, bastnäsite, including the roles of fluocerite and nanocerianite; demonstrated targeted crystallisation of rare-earth carbonate polymorphs; quantified how rare earths modify CaCO3 crystallisation kinetics, morphology and replacement textures; and shown that waste eggshell calcite can recover rare-earth elements from water. These advances connect economic geology, geochemistry, crystallisation science, nanomaterials and the circular economy. This coherent focus is supported by sustained output, leadership and a rising trajectory. As PI, I have secured more than €900,000, including the Research Ireland SEleCTOR award, and built a research team spanning PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and MSc/undergraduate projects. SEleCTOR alone delivered more than nine peer-reviewed papers, two book chapters, extensive international dissemination and award-winning researcher development, while generating further publications and new research directions. My international profile "evidenced by significant collaborations, invited and keynote lectures, and the European Association of Geochemistry Distinguished Lecturer Award" has enhanced Trinity"s visibility in nanomineralogy, critical raw materials and environmental geochemistry. Together, these achievements demonstrate a substantial, sustained and internationally recognised programme with clear potential for continued excellence and impact.