This paper presents a novel laboratory experiment that can be incorporated into introductory soil mechanics courses to introduce students to the field of biogeotechnical engineering and the use of biostimulated microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP). Applying MICP to granular soils results in an increase in peak strength and shear stiffness of the soil as a result of the precipitation of calcium carbonate on soil particle surfaces and at soil particle contacts. The authors developed protocols to treat small volumes of soil and to test the effectiveness of the treatment using a simple strength test based on ASTM D3967-16. In fall 2020, the experiment was piloted as a four-week, course-based research experience that can be conducted by students remotely or in a traditional laboratory environment. This paper provides an introduction to MICP and describes the protocols for conducting the experiment. The paper also suggests approaches for how the experiment can be incorporated into a traditional introductory soil mechanics course.
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State of the Art: MICP soil improvement and its application to liquefaction hazard mitigation
The field of biogeotechnics has emerged from the realization that processes intrinsic to natural systems can provide new approaches and inspiration through which the efficiency, sustainability, and functionality of geotechnical systems can be improved. Of these processes, microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) has advanced the most rapidly with the use of ureolytic microbial activity providing an opportunity to control the precipitation of calcium carbonate minerals throughout a soil matrix, thereby significantly improving soil engineering behaviors. The process affords increases in soil stiffness, strength, and dilatancy, with utility across a breadth of geotechnical and geoenvironmental applications, including mitigation of earthquake- induced soil liquefaction. This state of the art paper first covers: (1) enabling scientific processes, (2) treatment methods, and (3) monitoring techniques, which are broadly useful for different engineering applications. The second part focuses on how MICP can: (1) improve engineering behaviors at the element scale, (2) be modeled at the particle- and continuum-scales, (3) be applied at the field-scale, and (4) improve the resistance to liquefaction triggering and reduce the consequences when it does occur.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1824647
- PAR ID:
- 10382643
- Editor(s):
- Rahman, M.; Jaksa, M.
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the 20th ICSMGE-State of the Art and Invited Lectures
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Tang, Qiang (Ed.)As an environmentally friendly technology, microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) is widely used to improve the engineering properties of soil. The goal of this study was to investigate the effect of rainfall-induced erosion on the stability of sandy slopes which were treated by MICP technology. The observation of the erosion pattern of low concentration (0.25 M Ca) and high concentration (0.5 M Ca) of MICP-treated slopes, the mechanical behaviors of MICP-treated and cement-treated samples, and the effects of rainfall-induced erosion on the roughness of 0.5 M Ca MICP-treated and 10% cement-treated slope were studied through visual observation, unconfined compressive tests, and roughness tests. For the 0.25 M Ca MICP-treated sample, surface erosion was found to occur soon after the start of the rainfall erosion test, while for the 0.5 M Ca MICP-treated sample, the slope surface remained intact after exposing to the rainfall for 24 hours. Through unconfined compressive tests, it can be concluded that the 0.5 M Ca MICP treatment achieved a high strength, which was similar to 10% cement-treated sand. The roughness test results showed that the surface of 0.5 M Ca MICP-treated slope looked smoother than the uneroded surface after 24-h rainfall-induced erosion. On the contrary, the surface of the 10% cement-treated slope became rougher after 24-h rainfall-induced erosion. These results indicated that the MICP-treated sandy slope had lower resistance against rainfall-induced erosion compared to the cement-treated sandy slope.more » « less
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