Bearing Capacity and Strength of Bacterial Soil Columns Full-Scale Tests

Abstract

Infrastructure development often faces challenges due to soils with low bearing capacity, which can potentially cause instability and subsidence and threaten the safety of structures. Therefore, an efficient and environmentally friendly stabilization method is required. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) in improving bearing capacity and soil strength through the formation of bacterial soil columns. This study employed a full-scale physical model test using 40 cm diameter and 200 cm deep soil columns filled with soil mixed with Bacillus subtilis, compacted, and cured for 56 days. The results showed significant improvements in the geotechnical characteristics of the soil, with CBR values increasing from 5.5% to over 12%, unconfined compressive strength reaching 345 kPa, and modulus of elasticity increasing to 12.5 MPa. Soil cohesion increased to 65 kPa, while internal friction angle increased from 10° to 34°. The novelty of this research is the application of MICP technology in the form of bacterial soil columns as an innovative, effective, and sustainable stabilization method to improve the mechanical properties of soft soils. Doi: 10.28991/CEJ-2025-011-04-06 Full Text: PDF

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