Sivakumar Gowthaman

Incorporating sustainable materials into geotechnical applications increases day by day due to the consideration of impacts on healthy geo-environment and future generations. The environmental issues associated with conventional synthetic materials such as cement, plastic-composites, steel and ashes necessitate alternative approaches in geotechnical engineering. Recently, natural fiber materials in place of synthetic material have gained momentum as an emulating soil-reinforcement technique in s

Instability of slope soils under varying nature is one of the serious concerns in geotechnical engineering. Microbial induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) is a recently emerged, biological ground improvement technique, and that has the potential to enhance the shear strength, modify the surface conditions and promote the stability of deposits. This paper presents the experimental works conducted to investigate the durability and shear responses of MICP treated slope soil, demonstrating the fea

Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) is one of the most popular biotechnological soil stabilization techniques since it results in significant improvements in the geotechnical properties of soil. The current study presents a laboratory-scale MICP investigation performed to demonstrate the feasibility of slope soil stabilization of the Hokkaido expressway through surficial treatment. The objectives of this preliminary study are to investigate the feasibility of (i) augmenting indigenous

Abstract Cyclic wet-dry is one of the influential weathering agents which can rapidly alter the mechanical properties of soils, limiting their durability and consistent performance. This study investigates the effect of wet-dry cycles on the mechanical behaviour of bio-cemented soil. Microbial-induced carbonate precipitation-based bio-cementation is an innovative soil improvement method, which is gaining increasing attention as a potential alternative for stabilizing slope surface. As the treate

Biocementation technology has recently become a new soil improvement method. In majority of the biocementation processes, the formation of calcium carbonate occurs as the consequence of enzymatic urea hydrolysis, producing carbonate-ions and alkaline pH (ranging between 8.5–9.5). The problem of conventional biocementation method at alkaline conditions is the release of ammonium ions (that pollute water) and gaseous ammonia (that pollutes atmosphere). In this paper, a new biocementation method is

Abstract Purpose Instability of slope surface is a critical concern in Geotechnical and Environmental Engineering. MICP (Microbial-Induced Carbonate Precipitation), an innovative bio-cementation technique, has attracted the attention for slope surface protection. In this work, MICP was investigated to evaluate its durability under the exposure of acid rain and to advance the understanding on long-term performance of slope soil preserved by MICP. Methods MICP treatment was applied to a fine-grain

Microbial induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) is a promising bio-cementation method that involves ureolytic bacteria to improve the geotechnical properties of soil. The laboratory-scale studies carried out in the recent past showed that the MICP can be a potential alternative for slope surface preservation. However, the use of analytical-grade chemicals makes this method too expensive, limiting the applicability of the method especially when implicated at field-scale. The purpose of this rese

Peat is one of the most challenging and problematic soils in the fields of geotechnical and environmental engineering. The most critical problems related to peat soils are extremely low strength and high compressibility, resulting in poor inhabitancy and infrastructural developments in their vicinity. Thus far, peat soils were stabilized using Portland cement; however, the production of Portland cement causes significant emission of greenhouse gases, which is not environmentally desirable. Micro

One of the promising soil improvement techniques that have recently gained increased attention in Geotechnical and Civil Engineering is microbial induced carbonate precipitation (MICP). The MICP is mediated by ureolytic bacteria through a chain of biochemical reactions which lead to the formation of calcium carbonate cement in soil matrix and persuades the substantial bonds between the soil particles. The study presented herein focuses on surficial stabilization of slope soil (Hokkaido, Japan) b

Concrete pavement often experiences accelerated deterioration due to water and chemical ingress through micro-cracks and surface voids. Particularly, the ingress of aggressive agents into the concrete matrix results in irreversible changes and deterioration on its endurance. Numerous studies unveiled that hydrophobic surface protection could be an inexpensive and effective way of enhancing the durability of concrete. This research work aims to assess the feasibility of bio-cement posttreatment f

Microbial Induced Carbonate Precipitation (MICP) has recently become a new technology for stabilizing the slope surface. The applicability of MICP, however, is limited in fine-grained soils due to the restrictions regarding the transportation of bacteria cells. The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of an alternative called Bacterial-Enzyme Induced Carbonate Precipitation (B-EICP) for stabilizing the fine-grained slope soils. Unlike the MICP strategy (involving whole-cells of ba