Biogeochemical Changes During Bio-cementation Mediated by Stimulated and Augmented Ureolytic Microorganisms

Microbially Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) is a bio-mediated cementation process that can improve the engineering properties of granular soils through the precipitation of calcite. The process is made possible by soil microorganisms containing urease enzymes, which hydrolyze urea and enable ca...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2019-08, Vol.9 (1), p.11517-15, Article 11517
Main Authors: Gomez, Michael G., Graddy, Charles M. R., DeJong, Jason T., Nelson, Douglas C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
14/63
631/326/2522
639/166/986
704/47
Bacteria
Bacteria - enzymology
Bacteria - growth & development
Bacteria - metabolism
Biogeochemistry
Calcite
Calcium Carbonate - metabolism
Chemical Precipitation
Colony Count, Microbial
Environmental impact
Humanities and Social Sciences
Hydrolysis
Microbial activity
Microorganisms
Microscopy, Electron, Scanning
multidisciplinary
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Soil columns
Soil microorganisms
Spatial distribution
Sporosarcina pasteurii
Urea
Urease
Urease - metabolism
Ureolytic bacteria
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Summary:Microbially Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) is a bio-mediated cementation process that can improve the engineering properties of granular soils through the precipitation of calcite. The process is made possible by soil microorganisms containing urease enzymes, which hydrolyze urea and enable carbonate ions to become available for precipitation. While most researchers have injected non-native ureolytic bacteria to complete bio-cementation, enrichment of native ureolytic microorganisms may enable reductions in process treatment costs and environmental impacts. In this study, a large-scale bio-cementation experiment involving two 1.7-meter diameter tanks and a complementary soil column experiment were performed to investigate biogeochemical differences between bio-cementation mediated by either native or augmented ( Sporosarcina pasteurii) ureolytic microorganisms. Although post-treatment distributions of calcite and engineering properties were similar between approaches, the results of this study suggest that significant differences in ureolysis rates and related precipitation rates between native and augmented microbial communities may influence the temporal progression and spatial distribution of bio-cementation, solution biogeochemical changes, and precipitate microstructure. The role of urea hydrolysis in enabling calcite precipitation through sustained super-saturation following treatment injections is explored.
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/s41598-019-47973-0