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Optimization of calcium-based bioclogging and biocementation of sand

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Abstract

Bioclogging and biocementation can be used to improve the geotechnical properties of sand. These processes can be performed by adsorption of urease-producing bacterial cells on the sand grain surfaces, which is followed by crystallization of calcite produced from the calcium salt and urea solution due to bacterial hydrolysis of urea. In this paper, the effect of intact cell suspension of Bacillus sp. strain VS1, suspension of the washed bacterial cells, and culture liquid without bacterial cells on microbially induced calcite precipitation in sand was studied. The test results showed that adsorption/retention of urease activity on sand treated with washed cells of Bacillus sp. strain VS1 was 5–8 times higher than that treated with culture liquid. The unconfined compressive strength of sand treated with the suspension of washed cells was 1.7 times higher than that treated with culture liquid. This difference could be due to fast inactivation of urease by protease which was present in the culture liquid. The adsorption of bacterial cells on sand pretreated with calcium, aluminum, or ferric salts was 29–37 % higher as compared with that without pretreatment. The permeability of sand varied with the content of precipitated calcium. For bioclogging of sand, the content of precipitated calcium had to be 1.3 % (w/w) or higher. The shear strength of biotreated sand was also dependent on the content of precipitated calcium. To achieve an unconfined compressive strength of 1.5 MPa or higher, the content of precipitated calcium in the treated sand had to be 4.2 % (w/w) or higher. These data can be used as the reference values for geotechnical applications such as bioclogging for reducing the permeability of sand and biocementation for increasing the shear strength of soil.

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Acknowledgments

Part of the study presented in this paper was supported by the SERC Grant No. 0921420043 from the Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore. Part of study also formed part of a collaborative program with Hohai University, China, under the University Characteristics Project of the Ministry of Education, People Republic of China, Grant No. Ts2012HHDX029.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA

    Jian Chu & Volodymyr Ivanov

  2. School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Ave, Singapore, 639798, Singapore

    Jian Chu & Maryam Naeimi

  3. Department of Biotechnology and Microbiology, National University of Food Technologies, 68 Volodymyrskaya Str., 01601, Kiev, Ukraine

    Viktor Stabnikov

  4. College of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hohai University, Nanjing, China

    Han-Long Liu

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  1. Jian Chu
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  2. Volodymyr Ivanov
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  4. Viktor Stabnikov
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Correspondence to Jian Chu.

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Chu, J., Ivanov, V., Naeimi, M. et al. Optimization of calcium-based bioclogging and biocementation of sand. Acta Geotech. 9, 277–285 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11440-013-0278-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11440-013-0278-8

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