Influence of bacteria on self healing properties and durability characteristics of biocrete

Abstract

newline The manufacturing of cement involves a lot of mining and when the cement comes in contact with water, it leads to hydration of cement. This process releases heat of hydration which adds to the greenhouse gases. In addition, Calcium hydroxide present inside the concrete will account for various durability problems. This calls for appropriate material for substituting cement which provides comparable strength to the concrete and also decreases the amount of calcium hydroxide. Concrete is a major element of the construction materials used in infrastructure and the majority of buildings. Despite its construction versatility, it is known to have several constraints. It has low tensile strength, limited ductility, shrinkage and little crack resistance. The envisaged objectives for the present investigation include: Extraction, identification and culture the calcite precipitating Bacillus megaterium bacteria by serial dilution technique with a Cell concentration of 105 cells / ml of Bacillus bacteria. Mix design and fresh concrete properties for Bacterial Mortar incorporated with Metakaolin and Polypropylene fiber (BMPM) and Bacterial Concrete incorporated with Metakaolin (MK) and Polypropylene fiber (BMPC) Evaluation of suitable curing methods and different curing conditions for BMPM and BMPC. Evaluation of mechanical properties of BMPM and BMPC. Evaluation of the morphology and mineralogical composition of the deposited CaCO3 crystals with XRD, SEM and the interaction between elements by FTIR in BMPM and BMPC. Experimental studies on durability properties and self-healing efficiency for BMPC mixes. iv Present investigation deals with studies on BMPM and BMPC. In the present study (i) calcite precipitating Bacillus megaterium bacteria have been isolated by serial dilution technique with a Cell concentration of 105 cells / ml (ii) mix design has been proposed for BMPM and BMPC (iii) suitable curing methods and curing conditions for BMPM and BMPC has been evaluated (iv) mechanical properties such as Compres