International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology (IJCIET)
Volume 10, Issue 04, April 2019, pp. 1354-1360, Article ID: IJCIET_10_04_141
Available online at http://www.iaeme.com/ijciet/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=10&IType=04
ISSN Print: 0976-6308 and ISSN Online: 0976-6316
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STUDY OF SELF-HEALING BIOCONCRETE
Salman Dawood Salman Al-Dulaimi*
Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, National Research Mordovian State
University named after N. Ogarev, Republic of Mordovia, Russia
Taher AL-DAFAFEA
Ministry Of Higher Education And Scientific Research / Iraq
Maksimova I.N
Department of civil Engineering, Penza State University of Architecture and Construction,
Penza, Russia
Erofeev V.T
Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, National Research Mordovian State
University named after N. Ogarev, Republic of Mordovia, Russia
* Corresponding author
ABSTRACT
In recent years, along with the continuous improvement of existing materials,
contributing to a significant technical and economic effect due to a unique combination
of properties, there have been trends in the creation of new materials capable of
actively interacting with external factors [1]. Such materials are called "intellectual".
They are able to "feel" their physical condition, external influences and react in a
special way to these "sensations", i.e. able to self-diagnose the occurrence and
development of the defect, its elimination and stabilize their condition in critical areas.
Due to the variety of properties of “intelligent” materials, their use will allow
monitoring and predicting the state of various structures and structures at the required
time and even in hard-to-reach areas, significantly increasing the service life of the
systems and their reliability. It is known that animals and plants have the natural ability
to heal small bodily injuries in a relatively short period of time without any external
influence. In concrete, there is also a built-in recovery mechanism, which is caused by
continuously ongoing physical, chemical and mechanical processes.
Keywords: crack, calcium lactate, bacteria, zeolite, pumice
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Salman Dawood Salman Al-Dulaimi, Taher AL-DAFAFEA, Maksimova I.N and Erofeev V.T
Cite this Article: Salman Dawood Salman Al-Dulaimi, Taher AL-DAFAFEA,
Maksimova I.N and Erofeev V.T, Study of Self-Healing Bio-Concrete. International
Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology, 10(04), 2019, pp. 1354-1360
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=10&IType=04
1. INTRODUCTION
For many years, the ability of concrete to self-heal itself, known as “self-healing” of cracks,
was observed [6, 7]. It was observed that in old constructions micro cracks declined as a result
of recrystallization of calcite [8, 9, 10, 12, 13]. That is, the precipitation of calcium carbonate
is the most important stage of self-healing.
Recovery is possible if the average crack width is 0.2 mm. The carbonate-calcium
production is based on a carbonation reaction, during which diffuse carbon dioxide reacts with
calcium hydroxide, a hydration product, according to equation (1).
С02 + Сa (OН)2 ->СaСOз + Н20
(1)
In recent years, to prolong the service life of concrete, methods are being developed for its
self-healing with the participation of bacteria [6, 9].
In the work of Jonkers [2], it was proposed to add a two-component substance to the
concrete mix, consisting of bacteria and a mineral precursor compound, which promotes the
tightening of cracks. After cracking the system, water penetration into the matrix increases.
Bacteria convert the precursor mineral substance into calcium carbonate mineral, better known
as limestone. The principle of recovery involving bacteria also consists in the precipitation of
calcium carbonate [4]. Leaked water activates dormant bacteria. Bacteria convert the precursor
mineral compound in concrete into dense layers of calcium carbonate.
In the case of calcium lactate, the reaction occurs according to equation (2), where bacteria
act only as a catalyst.
Сa (СзН502)2 + 702СaСOз + 5С02 + 5Н20
(2)
As a result of the metabolic conversion of calcium lactate, carbon dioxide is formed, which
then reacts with calcium hydroxide from the matrix of concrete according to the chemical
reaction described by equation (2), with the formation of an additional amount of calcium
carbonate.
The deposition of limestone on the surface of cracks contributes to the blocking and sealing
of cracks, as a result of which the matrix becomes less accessible to the penetration of water
and other harmful substances.
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Figure 1. The sequence of filling cracks involving bacteria introduced into concrete
Thus, self-healing concrete is a product whose structure is microbiologically formed
limestone to seal cracks that appear on the surface of concrete structures.
In the process of preparing the concrete mix, specially selected types of bacteria, a nutrient
based on calcium, namely calcium lactate, as well as nitrogen and phosphorus are added to the
traditional components of concrete. These substances that promote self-healing can be in
concrete at rest up to 200 years [3].
The use of bacteria to protect concrete is an unconventional direction for the study of
concrete. However, this is a new approach to the old idea that microbiological sedimentation
of minerals is constantly occurring in the environment. The long-term goal is to understand the
meaning of microorganisms in concrete structures [4].
Capillary water in the matrix of fresh concrete, as a rule, is characterized by pH values from
11 to 13. In view of this, the bacteria that are added to the concrete mix must not only withstand
mechanical stresses when mixed, but also must withstand high alkalinity for a long time.
Therefore, the sign, the most promising bacteria for inclusion in the concrete matrix are
alkaliphilic (alkali-resistant) spore-forming bacteria. Since the concrete matrix is toxic due to
the penetration of oxygen into it (diffusion through the capillaries of the matrix), the built-in
bacteria must also be oxygen-tolerant. Such aerobic alkaliphilic spore-forming bacteria are
found among bacteria of the genus Bacillus. For these reasons, several representatives of them
chose to test their effectiveness as a means for self-healing concrete [5]. The starting point of
the study is the search for bacteria that can survive in an extreme alkaline environment. When
mixing cement and water, the pH value reaches 13. As a rule, adverse conditions for life in
which most microorganisms die, is a medium with a pH value of 10 or higher. Initially, these
bacteria are obtained from a source and first cultured in solid medium, and then transferred to
sterile nutrient broth (liquid) and continue to shake in an incubator. Spore-forming alkaliresistant bacteria can be isolated from their source. Bacterial strains such as Bacilluspasteurii,
Escherichiacoli, Bacillussphaericus, Bacillussubtilis, Bacilluscereus, etc. are commonly used
in research and development. Searches were concentrated among microbes that grow in
alkaline environments that occur under natural conditions [14, 15]. Samples of endolytic
bacteria (bacteria that can live inside the stones) and bacteria found in the bottom sediments of
lakes were taken. It has been established that strains of bacteria of the genus Bacillus thrive in
this highly alkaline medium. The reducing substance that is contained in the concrete
eliminates inspection and repair and, in addition, increases the strength of the structure. Adding
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such a substance to the concrete mix will save money and save the environment. Before adding
bacteria to cement composites, a hemocytometer measures the concentration of bacterial cells;
optical density can be determined by spectrophotometric analysis. To determine the
morphology of bacterial strains, the Gram stain method is used; bacterial cultures are tested for
urease activity, as well as the ability to precipitate calcium carbonate [6, 7]. When preparing
samples for testing before adding bacteria to the cement mixture, it is necessary to clean the
residual culture by repeated centrifugation and resuspension of the cell sludge obtained in clean
tap water. The urealytic strain of bacteria, such as B. sphaericus, can precipitate CaCO3 by
converting urea into ammonium ions and carbonate ions. It was established that with the
introduction of subtilisin into concrete, the tensile strength of the first in compression increases
by 28% compared with the control samples of concrete with the optimum concentration [8]. In
recent years, to prolong the life of concrete, methods of its self-healing involving bacteria have
been developed. In the work of Jonkers [1], it was proposed to add a two-component substance
to the concrete mix, consisting of bacteria and a mineral precursor compound, which promotes
the tightening of cracks. After cracking the system, water penetration into the matrix increases.
Bacteria convert the precursor mineral into calcium carbonate mineral, better known as
limestone. The deposition of limestone on the surface of cracks contributes to the blocking and
sealing of cracks, as a result of which the matrix becomes less accessible to the penetration of
water and other harmful substances. This article presents the results of a quantitative
assessment of self-healing based on the speed of the ultrasonic pulse (UPV). Samples were
tested according to the following procedure. After aging for 28 days, samples of the fibrorated
cement slurry were cracked, applying a load at four points. It was difficult to achieve uniform
regulation of the width of the cracks, since all the samples were loaded after a maximum until
a deflection of 0.7 mm was obtained. The observed crack widths ranged from 0.2 to 0.6 mm.
Three samples of each mixture were retested after 120 days of reduction, and the remaining
samples after 240 days of reduction. It was established that, despite the absence of complete
tightening of the cracks at their tip, visible healing was observed at the root of the crack. As a
result, existing cracks continued to expand during retesting after rebuilding. Figure 2 shows a
sample with a half-cracked crack. Since the width of cracks in one sample varied from 0.1 to
0.6 mm, difficulties arose with a quantitative estimate of the degree of healing of cracks.
Figure 2. Tightening cracks in the specimen with incorporated bacteria
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The results of measuring UPV, performed before loading, after loading before failure and
after restoration, are shown in Table 1.
From the obtained data it follows that for the control sample the increase in speed after 8
months of recovery was 51 m / s, whereas for the sample containing nutrients + pumice - 84 m
/ s, and for the sample containing nutrients + zeolite - 75 m / s Along with this, an increase in
UPV was 401 m / s for S. pasteurii, 372 m / s for B. subtilis and 300 m / s for S. ureae. Such
an increase in UPV in the case of bacteria-treated samples indicates the effectiveness of the
self-healing process in the sample with cracks. It was established that the difference in the UPV
values for the same bacteria, but immobilized in different carrier materials, is negligible (about
20 m / s). Figure 3 shows the change in UPV values after 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 months of
recovery. An increase in UPV values indicates recovery efficiency. It can be seen from the
graph that for the control sample and samples containing nutrients + pumice and nutrients +
zeolite; the increase in UPV values is insignificant compared with samples treated with selected
types of bacteria. The largest increase in the UPV value was observed for S. pasteurii bacteria
immobilized in pumice, then for S. Pasteurii bacteria immobilized in zeolite. From figure 3 it
can be seen that initially (before recovery within 2 months), in the sample of B. subtilis +
pumice, a somewhat higher increase in the value of the UPV was observed than in the sample
of S. pasteurii + zeolite. However, after 2 months of recovery, the UPV value in the sample of
S. pasteurii + zeolite increased. At the same time, the values of UPV in samples with S. ureae
bacteria remained less significant than in samples with two other bacterial species. From these
data, it follows that bacteria of the species S. pasteurii have the best property of recovery under
conditions of longer regeneration. An increase in UPV values in the first months shows a
gradual upward trend, and then it is slightly aligned.
Table 1 - UPV measurement results, performed before loading, after loading and after recovery
during different periods
Sample
Control sample
Nutrients+ pumice
Nutrients+zeolite
Zeolite +S. pasteurii
Zeolite+B. subtilis
Zeolite+S. ureae
Pumice+S. pasteurii
Pumice+B. subtilis
Pumice+S. ureae
UPV
value before
cracking (m / s)
3884
3993
3989
3912
3856
3844
4183
3958
3970
UPV value
immediately after
cracking (m / s)
3584
3645
3667
3621
3644
3701
3802
3798
3628
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UPV value after healing (m/s)
4 months
6 months
8 months
3593
3687
3753
3712
3688
3812
3943
3815
3690
3644
3710
4122
3904
3850
3992
4205
3977
3912
3646
3724
4186
3931
3902
3998
4227
4057
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Salman Dawood Salman Al-Dulaimi, Taher AL-DAFAFEA, Maksimova I.N and Erofeev V.T
Figure 3 - Changing UPV values over time
Thus, progress in the technology of producing concrete is to increase its strength and wear
resistance as a result of the use of environmentally friendly and natural methods.
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