BIOSOIL

Biological treatment of soils: development of tools to monitor the application and to predict changes on the material's hydro-mechanical properties / Tratamento biológico de solos: desenvolvimento de ferramentas para monitorizar a aplicação e para prever alterações nas propriedades hidro-mecânicas destes materiais

Started 01/10/2018, 45 months

CERIS/ IST-ID (Rafaela Cardoso, PI) and INESC-MN (Susana Freitas)

Funding: FCT I.P. (Ref. PTDC/ECI-EGC/32590/2017)


SUMMARY

The biological treatment of soils consists in using biological agents, such as bacteria, to produce calcium cabonate (biocement). This mineral bonds the grains and therefore improves the hydro-mechanical properties of the soil (permeability, stiffness and strength). This green technique has huge potential, but the applications at large scale are scarce. Aiming to contribute to its dissemination it is proposed to develop a biosensor for in situ monitoring, as well as tools to predict the properties of the treated material. The biosensors will be tested in a small scale laboratory prototype simulating a field application in sand. Standard laboratory tests will be performed on samples extracted from the prototype and others prepared for that purpose. Data found will allow relating biological activity detected by the biosensors with the amount of biocement and the improvements observed on the treated sand. The biosensor and these relationships are useful tools to geotechnical design.


SCIENTIFIC OUTPUTS

JOURNAL PAPERS
Published:
1. Cardoso, R., Pedreira, R., Duarte, S. O and Monteiro, G. (2020). About calcium carbonate precipitation on sand biocementation. Engineering Geology, 271, 105612
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2020.105612

2.  Cardoso, R., Arbabzadeh, E., Lima, J. T, Costa e Silva, M., Costa Pereira. M.F, Flores-Colen, I. Duarte, S. O. and Monteiro, G. (2021).The influence of stone joints width and roughness on the efficiency of biocementation sealing. Construction and Building Materials, 283, 122743
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2021.122743

3. Fernandez, R., Ponte, M., Bento, R. and Cardoso, R. (2022). Potential of Structure from Motion (SfM) photogrammetry to monitor slope fast erosion by runoff water. Catena, 216
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2022.106359

4. Fernández Rodríguez, R. and Cardoso, R. (2022). Study of biocementation treatment to prevent erosion by runoff water in a small-scale sand slope. Transportation Geotechnics
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trgeo.2022.100873

5. Cardoso, R., Vieira, J.and Borges, I. (2022) On the use of Biocementation to treat collapsible soils. Engineering Geology.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2022.106971

6. Cardoso, R., Vieira, J.and Borges, I. (2022) Water retention curve of biocemented sands using MIP results. Applied Science, MDPI.
https://doi.org/10.3390/app122010447

7. Cardoso, R.,Borges, I., Vieira, J. Duarte, S.O and ,Monteiro, G.  (2023). Interactions between clay minerals, bacteria growth and urease activity on biocementation of soils. Applied Clay Science
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clay.2023.106972

Conference papers
International
1. Felício, F., Silvério, V., Duarte, S.O., Galvão, A., Monteiro, A., Cardoso, S. and Cardoso, R (2019). Preliminary tests on a microfluidic device to study pore clogging during biocementation. Proc. 7th International Symposium on Deformation Characteristics of Geomaterials (IS-Glasgow2019), Glasgow, UK.
2. Arbabzadeh, E. and Cardoso, R. (2019). Efficiency of biocementation as rock joints sealing technique evaluated through permeability changes. 4th International Conference on Geotechnical Research and Engineering (ICGRE'19), Rome, Italy.
3. Cardoso, R, Borges, I and Pires, I. (2019). Modelling oedometer tests on biocemented soils considering bonds presence. Congress on Numerical Methods in Engineering, 2019 (CMN2019), Guimarães, Portugal.
4. Centeno Dias, F., Borges, I, Duarte, S., Monteiro, G and Cardoso, R. (2020). Comparison of experimental techniques for biocementation of sands considering homogeneous volume distribution of precipitated calcium carbonate. 4th European Conference on Unsaturated Soils, E-UNSAT2020, Lisbon, Portugal
5.Fernández Rodríguez, R. and Cardoso, R. (2022). Relationship between enzyme concentration and carbonate precipitation in a sand treated by biocementation using enzyme. Proc.7th World Congress on Civil, Structural, and Environmental Engineering (CSEE'22) ONLINE
6.Cardoso, R., Barroso, A. C., Borges, I., Fernández Rodríguez, R. and Flores-Colen, I. (2022). Use of biocementation for sealing stone joints. Construction Pathology, Rehabilitation Technology and Heritage Management, REHABEND2022, September 13-16, 2022. Granada, Spain ACCEPTED

National
1. Cardoso, R., Monteiro A., Colen, I. e Monteiro G. (2018). Considerações sobre o uso da biocimentação para reparação de fendas em vigas de betão armado. Betão Estrutural 2018, Lisboa.
2. Albuquerque, D., Cardoso, R., Monteiro, G, Martins, V, and Cardoso, S. (2019). Towards a portable magnetoresistive biochip for urease-based biocementation monitoring. Proc. 6th IEEE Portuguese Meeting on Bioengineering (ENBENG 2019), Lisboa.
3. Cardoso, R., Borges,I., Braz de Oliveira, S. e Milhomens, N. (2021). Estudo da biocimentação como técnica de tratamento superficial de taludes para evitar ravinamento. 17º Congresso Nacional de Geotecnia, Lisboa.
4. Cardoso. R. e Borges, I. (2021). Modelação de ensaios edométricos realizados em amostras de areia tratada por biocimentação considerando a presença das ligações. 17º Congresso Nacional de Geotecnia, Lisboa.

5.Fernández Rodríguez, R. and Cardoso, R.SfM photogrammetry as a tool to monitor slope erosion and evaluate bio-stabilization treatment.Test&E, Lisboa.

Book chapters

1- Micaelo,R., Faria, P. and Cardoso, R. (2021). Chap 6: New trends on biocementation and self-healing testing. Advances on Testing and Experimentation in Civil Engineering, Eds. Carlos Chastre, José Neves, Diogo Ribeiro, Maria Graça Neves and Paulina Faria, Springer ACCEPTED


MSc Theses
Completed:
1. Francisco Centeno Dias (2019) - Comparação de técnicas de tratamento de solos arenosos por biocimentação considerando a homogeneidade e seus efeitos na resistência à compressão simples.  MSc Thesis, Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, Portugal

2. Maria Damas Pinto (2020) - Bio-cimentação em Solos Arenosos: Efeito do Tempo de Tratamento na Compressibilidade e na Quantidade de Bio-cimento Produzido. MSc Thesis, Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, Portugal

3. Catarina Barroso (2021) - Estudo da biocimentação como técnica de reparação de fissuras. MSc Thesis, Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, Portugal

4. Joana Vieira (2022) - Análise do comportamento hidro-mecânico de um solo real tratado por Bio-cimentação. MSc Thesis, Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, Portugal

5 Filipa Calheiros (2023) - Estudo das características hidromecânica de uma areia tratada ppor biocimentação.


PhD Theses
Ongoing:

1. Inês Feijão Borges - Design and development of monitoring tools for soil improvement using biocementation - Bolsa individual da FCT com referência SFRH/BD/144257/2019 desde Janeiro 2020 (Orientação Rafaela Cardoso, Co-orientação Susana Freitas,INESC-MN).

2. Mariana Mateus Pinto - Study on bacteria and calcite fixation on soils and consequent durability of the improvement achieved by Biocementation. Development of monitoring tools and application to slopes - Bolsa individual da FCT com referência SFRH/BD/01999/2020 desde Novembro 2020 (Orientação Rafaela Cardoso).


ORGANIZATION OF EVENTS
Special session on Biocementation,as soil improvement tecnhique. 4th European Conference on Unsaturated Soils, E-UNSAT2020 Lisbon (online) - 10 papers presented (21 October 2020)


ORAL PRESENTATIONS

National

1.  Biocimentação para melhoramento de terrenos - Aula Aberta sobre Biocimentação, IST, 26 de Outubro de 2018

2.  Biocimentação como Técnica de Melhoramento de Terrenos  - Seminário FUNDEC, Técnico+ Formação Avançada, Online, 30 de Abril de 2020

International

1.  R. Cardoso - Soil improvement using ureolytic bacteria and monitoring tools - 4th International Congress on Biomaterials and Biosensors (BIOMATSEN)?, 17th May 2019, Blue Lagoon, Fethiye / Mugla, Turkey (in presence).

2. R. Cardoso - Biocementation from a chemo-hydro-mechanical coupled behaviour perspective. 2 July 2021,  Barcelona, Spain (online)

3. R. Cardoso - Field application of biocementation: how laboratorial tests can help. 3rd Edition of AGERP -International Workshop on Biogeotechnics, 24 February de 2022 (Online)

4. R. Cardoso -   Biocementation of soils from laboratory tests towards field application, 3rd International Conference on Materials Science and Engineering, Materials -22, 18-20 April 2022, Boston (in presence)