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Denitrification is a microbial step in the nitrogen cycle where nitrate (NO3-) is reduced to nitrogen gas (N2) and organic carbon is oxidized to carbonate (CO3-2). Under the right conditions this reaction leads to the precipitation of calcium carbonate and some nitrogen gas and excess carbon dioxide. This process may lead to a low-cost and effective ground improvement method for preventing the occurrence of piping or liquefaction.
Denitrification
Liquid Soil
Gas
Gas pockets and biomass change the flow through the system
Strength improvement:
Permeability change:
Soil
The figure to the left shows a CT image of a treated sand column. In this figure the cracks are formed by gas that moves through the column along with the flow. Pieces of sandstone from the treated sand column.
Research steps
1. Parameter investigation Parameters that govern the reaction rate and phase distributions are studied by small scale laboratory experiments. 2. Physical modelling Effect of biocementation on the occurrence of piping or liquefaction will be tested in large scale experiments, simulating the actual phenomena. 3. Pilot test The feasibility of the technique will be tested for full scale applications.
A first series of experiments was carried out in order to test the influence of the particle size on the reaction rates and the transportation of substances. Different columns were packed with very coarse, medium and fine grained sand and were saturated with a liquid containing denitrifying bacteria and substrates (mainly calcium acetate and calcium nitrate). Gas formation resulted in water being expelled from the columns during the course of the experiment. In the first five days and the highest amount of water was expelled from the coarse sand. After five days the water flow in the coarse sand came to a stop while it continued to flow in the fine sand. The different observations can be explained by differences in permeability and capillary suction between the columns.
Current results
Medium sand
Fine sand
The figure shows microscopy images of the expelled liquid containing bacteria from the columns. Varying grain sizes show a difference in biomass concentration in the expelled liquid: A smaller grain size results in more adsorption of bacteria.