Sustainable biocementation of mine tailings: Reduction of urea requirements through bicarbonate-based MICP

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dc.contributor.authorZuniga-Barra, Hector
dc.contributor.authorPardo-Vasquez, Camila
dc.contributor.authorVelastegui, Edgar
dc.contributor.authorMartinez-Ruano, Jimmy Anderson
dc.contributor.authorRivas, Mariella
dc.contributor.authorJeison, David
dc.date.accessioned2026-08-28T01:25:21Z
dc.date.available2026-08-28T01:25:21Z
dc.date.issued2025
dc.description.abstractMicrobially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) has emerged as a promising technique to contribute to a more sustainable management of mine tailings deposits. While ureolytic activity has been the predominant driver of conventional MICP to date, the associated release of ammonia poses significant environmental hazards. This study explores a novel, environmentally friendly approach by replacing urea with sodium bicarbonate as the carbon source for MICP, with the aim of reducing urea requirements and thus ammonia release. Leveraging the principles of the MICP, it was observed that when urea concentration was reduced to 0.7 M, by replacing it with bicarbonate, surface strength was close to 400 kPa. Furthermore, wind tunnel testing showed a significant reduction in dust emission, where the mass loss rate of the biocemented sample was below 10 kg m⁻ 2 h⁻ 1 , which means a 9-fold reduction compared to untreated samples. So, it was demonstrated that bicarbonate can effectively replace urea, achieving a relevant reduction of up to 75 % in urea use without compromising the surface strength of the biocemented tailings and reducing the environmental hazards of ammonia release. These results highlight the potential of bicarbonate-based MICP as an innovative and sustainable approach to mitigate the environmental impacts associated with tailings deposits.
dc.description.sponsorshipANID through project ANID/FONDECYT [1190664]; ANID [21201013, ANID/FONDAP/15130015]; CRHIAM Centre [ANID/FONDAP/15130015, ANID/FONDAP/1523A0001]
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.eti.2025.104255
dc.identifier.issn2352-1864
dc.identifier.urihttps://repositorioabierto.uantof.cl/handle/uantof/720
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherElsevier
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 International
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.sourceEnvironmental Technology & Innovation
dc.subjectMICP
dc.subjectTailings
dc.subjectBiocementation
dc.subjectUrea
dc.subjectBicarbonate
dc.titleSustainable biocementation of mine tailings: Reduction of urea requirements through bicarbonate-based MICP
dc.typeArticle
oaire.citation.volume39
organization.identifier.rorhttps://ror.org/04eyc6d95
organization.legalNameUniversidad de Antofagasta
uantof.identificator.departmentDepartamento de Biotecnología
uantof.identificator.facultyFacultad de Ciencias del Mar y Recursos Biológicos
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