Abstract
Experimental work was conducted to investigate the influence of biofilm on the consolidation and strength characteristics of two barrier soils. Biofilm has potential as a low-cost additive for soil stabilization, and it may be formed naturally in landfills throughout the developing world. The EPS-producing bacterium Beijerinckia indica was used to prepare solutions of varying concentration of exopolymeric substances (EPS). These solutions were then used as the molding moisture for compacted specimens of locally available clay (βred bull tallow,β RBT) as well as a mix of 65% sand and 35% bentonite (65:35 mix). As compared to tap water, the influence of the nutrient solution or biofilm on RBT is to increase the compression index (Cc), although this trend is variable for increasing EPS concentration. While the effect of biofilm on the 65:35 mix is less uniform, the largest increase in Cc was observed for the highest level of biofilm amendment (EPS-5, 300 mg/L). Amendment with biofilm results in both increases and decreases in the rate of consolidation (cv). The cv values ranged from 0.4 to 13.6 m2/year and from 0.2 to 19.3 m2/year for RBT and 65:35 mix, respectively. In general, EPS has a decreasing effect on observed strength. For example, the peak unconfined compressive strengths for unmodified RBT and 65:35 mix were found to be 667.0 and 395.3 kPa, respectively. Many of these values decreased with increasing biofilm amendment, and for the highest level of amendment, the observed peak strengths were 159.1 and 98.8 kPa. To the extent that naturally-occurring methanotrophic activity in landfill cover systems results in biofilm production, the results suggest potential concerns with cover stability.
Access provided by Autonomous University of Puebla. Download to read the full chapter text
Chapter PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allison, L.E. (1947) Effect of microorganisms on permeability of soil under prolonged submergence. Soil Science, 63, 439β450.
ASTM (2000a) Standard test methods for laboratory compaction characteristics of soil using standard effort (12,400 t-lbf/ft3) American Society for Testing of Materials, D698, Philadelphia, PA.
ASTM (2000b) D2435 Standard test method for one-dimensional consolidation properties of soils. American Society for Testing of Materials, Philadelphia, PA.
ASTM (2000c) D2166 Standard test method for unconfined compressive strength of cohesive soil. American Society for Testing of Materials, Philadelphia, PA.
ATCC (2002) American Type Culture Collection, growth instructions accompanying ATCC strain #9038.
Blumenkrantz, N. and Asboe-Hansen, G. (1973) New method for quantitative determination of uronic acids. Analytical Biochemistry, 54, 484β489.
Borjesson, G., Sundh, I., Tunlid, A., Frostegard, A., and Svensson, B.H. (1998a) Microbial oxidation of CH4 at high partial pressures in an organic landfill cover soil under different moisture regimes. FEMS Microbiology Ecology 26, 207β217.
Borjesson, G., Sundh, I., Tunlid, A., and Svensson, B.H. (1998b) Methane oxidation in landfill cover soils, as revealed by potential oxidation measurements and phospholipid fatty acid analyses. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 30(10/11), 1423β1433.
Bowles, J.E. (1992) Engineering Properties of Soils and Their Measurement, 4th edition, McGraw-Hill, Boston, MA.
Brune, M., Ramke, H.G., Collins, H.J., and Hanert, H.H. (1991) Incrustation processes in drainage systems of sanitary landfills. Proceedings, Sardiniaβ91, 3rd International Landfill Symposium, Cagliari, Italy, pp. 999β1035.
Clement, T.P., Hooker, B.S., and Skeen, R.S. (1996) Macroscopic models for predicting changes in saturated porous media properties caused by microbial growth. Ground Water, Septemberβ October, 934β942.
Cornell University (1950) Final Report, Soil Solidification Research Cornell University, Ithaca, N Y.
Costerton, J.W., Geesey, G.G., and Cheng, K-J. (1978) How bacteria stick. Scientific American 238, 86β95.
Daniels, J.L. and Cherukuri, R. (2005) Influence of biofilm on barrier material performance. ASCE Practice Periodical of Hazardous, Toxic and Radioactive Waste Management, 9(4), 245β252.
Daniels, J.L. and Inyang, H.I. (2004) Contaminant barrier material textural response to interaction with aqueous polymers. ASCE Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 16(3), 265β275.
Daniels, J.L., Inyang, H.I., and Kurup, P. (2002) The influence of dissolved polymers on the properties of earthen barriers used in waste containment applications. In W.-P. Hong (Ed.), Proceedings of the 6th International Symposium on Environmental Geotechnology and Global Sustainable Development. Seoul, Korea, July 2β5, pp. 363β370. Environmental Geotechnology, Nanjing, PR China, pp. 326β333.
Daniels, J.L., Inyang, H.I., and Iskandar, I. (2003) Durability of Boston blue clay in waste containment applications. ASCE Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 15(2), 144β152.
Daniels, J.L., Cherukuri, R., Hilger, H.A., Oliver, J.D., and Bin, S. (2005) Engineering behavior of biofilm amended earthen barriers used in waste containment. Management of Environmental Quality, An International Journal, 16(6), 691β704.
Dennis, M.L. and Turner, J.P. (1998) Hydraulic conductivity of compacted soil treated with biofilm. ASCE Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, 124, 120β127.
Gibson, D.T. (1999) Beijerinckia sp strain B1: A strain by any other nameβ₯. Journal of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology, 23, 284β293.
Hart, R.T., Fekete, T., and Flock, D.L. (1960) The plugging effect of bacteria in sandstone systems. Canadian Mining and Metallurgical Bulletin, 53, 495β501.
Hilger, H.A. and Barlaz, M.A. (2000) Methane oxidation and microbial exopolymer production in landfill cover soil. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 32, 457β467.
Hilger, H.A., Liehr, S.K., and Barlaz, M.A. (1999) Exopolysaccharide control of methane oxidation in landfill cover soil. ASCE Journal of Environmental Engineering, 125, 1113β1123.
Kightley, D., Nedwell, D.B., and Cooper, M. (1995) Capacity for methane oxidation in landfill cover soils measured in laboratory-scale soil microcosms. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 61(2), 592β601.
Koerner, R.M. (1997) Designing with Geosynthetics, 4th edition, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 761 p.
Kulhawy, F.H. and Mayne, P.W. (1990) Manual on Estimating Soil Properties for Foundation Design, Final Report, Project 1493β6, EL-6800, Electric Power Research Institute, Palo Alto, CA.
Mitchell, R. and Nevo, Z. (1964) Effect of bacterial polysaccharide accumulation on infiltration of water through sand. Applied Microbiology, 12(3), 219β223.
Mitchell, J.K. and Soga, K. (2005) Fundamentals of Soil Behavior, 3rd edition, Wiley, New York.
Mitchell, J.K., Seed, R.B., and Seed, H.B. (1990) Kettleman Hills waste landfill slope failure. I. Liner-system properties. ASCE Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, 116(4), 647β668.
NAVFAC (1982) Soil Mechanics, DM 7.1, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Alexandria, VA.
Okubo, T. and Matsumoto, J. (1979) Effect of infiltration rate on biological clogging and water quality changes during artificial recharge. Water Resources Research, 15, 1536β1542.
Okubo, T. and Matsumoto, J. (1983) Biological clogging of sand and changes of organic constituents during artificial recharge. Water Resources Research, 17, 813β821.
Qian, X., Koerner, R.M., and Gray, D.H. (2002) Geotechnical Aspects of Landfill Design and Construction, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 717 p.
Rowe, R.K., Armstrong, M.D., and Cullimore, D.R. (1998) Effect of particle size on the rate of clogging of a granular media using municipal solid waste leachate. Research Report, Geotechnical Research Center, University of Western Ontario, Ontario, Canada.
Seed, R.B., Mitchell, J.K., and Seed, H.B. (1990) Kettleman Hills waste landfill slope failure. II. Stability analysis. ASCE Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, 116(4), 669β690.
Shaw, J.C., Bramhill, B., Wardlaw, N.N., and Costerton, J.W. (1985) Bacterial fouling in a model core system. Applied Environmental Microbiology, 49, 693β701.
Taylor, S.W. and Jaffe, P.R. (1990) Biofilm growth and the related changes in the physical properties of a prorous medium. 2. Permeability. Water Resources Research, 26(9), 2161β2169.
Terzaghi, K. and Peck, R.B. 1967. Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice, 2nd edition, Wiley, New York, 729 pp.
Vandevivere, P. and Baveye, P. (1992) Relationship between transport of bacteria and their clogging efficiency in sand columns. Applied Environmental Microbiology, 58, 2523β2530.
Wingender, J., Neu, T.R., and Flemming, H-C. (1999) What are bacterial extracellular polymeric substances? In J. Wingender et al. (Eds.), Microbial Extracellular Polymeric Substances: Characterization, Structure, and Function. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, Germany.
Winterkorn, H.F. and Fang, H.Y. 1975. Soil technology and engineering properties of soils, In H.F. Winterkorn and H.Y. Fang (Eds.), Foundation Engineering Handbook (Chapter 2). Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, pp. 67β120.
Wise, M.G., McArthur, J.V., and Shimkets, L.J. (1999) Methanotroph diversity in landfill soil: Isolation of novel type I and type II methanotrophs whose presence was suggested by culture-independent 16S ribosomal DNA analysis. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 65(11), 4887β4897.
Wood, W.W. and Bassett. R.L. (1975) Water quality changes related to the development of anaerobic conditions during artificial recharge. Water Resources Research, 11, 553β558.
Wroth, C.P. and Wood, D.M. 1978. The correlation of index properties with some basic engineering properties of soils, Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 15(2), 137β145.
Wu, J., Gui, S., Stahl, P., and Zhang, R. (1997) Experimental study on the reduction of soil hydraulic conductivity by enhanced biomass growth. Soil Science, 162(10), 741β748.
Yang, I.C.-Y., Li, Y., Park, J.K., and Yen, T.F. (1993) The use of slime-forming bacteria to enhance the strength of the soil matrix. In E.T. Premuzic and A. Woodhead (Eds.) Microbial Enhanced Oil Recovery β Recent Advances. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 89β96.
Yen, T.F., Yang, I.C.-Y., Karimi, S., and Martin, G.R. (1996) Biopolymers for geotechnical applications. Proceedings of the North American Water and Environment Congress, ASCE, 6 p.
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by University of North Carolina at Charlotte and Duke Energy. Special thanks are given to Dr. James Oliver, Cone Distinguished Professor of Biology and his students Maya Dougler and Tonya Bates for their microbiological work.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
Β© 2009 Springer Science + Business Media B.V
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Daniels, J.L., Cherukuri, R., Ogunro, V.O. (2009). Consolidation and Strength Characteristics of Biofilm Amended Barrier Soils. In: Yanful, E.K. (eds) Appropriate Technologies for Environmental Protection in the Developing World. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9139-1_25
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9139-1_25
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-9138-4
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-9139-1
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)