Engineered applications of ureolytic biomineralization: a review

Abstract

Microbially-induced calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) precipitation (MICP) is a widely explored and promising technology for use in various engineering applications. In this review, CaCO₃ precipitation induced via urea hydrolysis (ureolysis) is examined for improving construction materials, cementing porous media, hydraulic control, and remediating environmental concerns. The control of MICP is explored through the manipulation of three factors: (1) the ureolytic activity (of microorganisms), (2) the reaction and transport rates of substrates, and (3) the saturation conditions of carbonate minerals. Many combinations of these factors have been researched to spatially and temporally control precipitation. This review discusses how optimization of MICP is attempted for different engineering applications in an effort to highlight the key research and development questions necessary to move MICP technologies toward commercial scale applications.

Keywords:

• calcium carbonate
• urea hydrolysis
• biofilm
• MICP
• mineral precipitation
• mineralization

Acknowledgments

Funding was provided from the US Department of Energy (DOE) under NETL No. DE-FE0004478 and DE-FE0009599 and Zero Emissions Research Technology Center (ZERT), Award No. DE-FC26-04NT42262, DOE EPSCoR Award No. DE-FG02-08ER46527 and Subsurface Biogeochemical Research (SBR) Program, contract No. DE-FG02-09ER64758. Additional funding was provided through National Science Foundation Award No. DMS-0934696 and European Union Marie Curie Reintegration Grant, No. 277005. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the DOE. Special thanks to Peg Dirckx for the artwork. The authors also wish to thank James Connolly and the anonymous reviewers for their valuable suggestions to improve the manuscript.