Effectiveness of E. coli Biofilm on Mortar to Inhibit Biodegradation by Biogenic Acidification
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 28, Issue 4
Abstract
Effectiveness of E. coli DH5α biofilm growth on mortar surfaces to inhibit microbiologically-influenced deterioration is investigated. Unlike traditional chemical deterioration processes through direct acid addition, biodegradation is realistically simulated through biogenic acidification using two species of sulfur-oxidizing bacteria (SOB). Calcium leach-out analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) suggest that E. coli DH5α biofilm prevents or controls microbiologically-induced mortar deterioration. The pH of the solution in the reactor containing E. coli biofilm-covered mortar did not decrease as the SOB was not able to grow. However, the growth of SOB in the control reactor with mortar increased the sulfate concentration to and the calcium leach-out to 69 ppm. SEM and XRD analyses showed the presence of gypsum on control mortar without E. coli biofilm; however, there was no sign of gypsum on the biofilm-covered mortar surface. Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis shows that SOB did not attach to the surface of biofilm-covered mortar and the E. coli biofilm was still present after biogenic acidification.
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Acknowledgments
The authors gratefully acknowledge the funding received from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) to support this research project. The authors also thank Dr. Thomas K. Wood from the Texas A&M University for providing the E. coli DH5α strain used in this study. The assistance of Image Acquisition Core Facility at University of Ottawa is also acknowledged for providing access to CLSM.
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 28 • Issue 4 • April 2016
Copyright
© 2015 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 21, 2014
Accepted: Jul 31, 2015
Published online: Oct 12, 2015
Discussion open until: Mar 12, 2016
Published in print: Apr 1, 2016
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