Microbial-Induced Calcium Carbonate Precipitation – A Potentially Sustainable Approach for Geo-environmental Challenges: A Retrospection into the Mechanism, Influencing Factors, Characterization, and Applications

Abstract

Microorganisms carry out numerous biogeochemical processes in the soil. For many in geotechnical engineering, this is a new paradigm. The soil–microorganism interactions have attracted the attention of numerous researchers over the past few years, and the implications and applications have greatly expanded. The development in the field of soil–microorganism interaction, especially microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP), helped to deal with the strength improvement of different types of soil, immobilization of toxic heavy metals in soil and water, disaster risk reduction by soil stabilizing, improving resistance to erosive force, and potential drought mitigation. Incorporating industrial by-products, food, and agricultural waste products during the MICP process makes the technique more sustainable and enhances waste valorization, aligning with the goals of a net-zero and circular economy. Are the alleged advantages of using microbes in traditional geotechnical issues valid? The current review effort aims to create an in-depth understanding of the developments in bio-mediated geotechnics through the urea hydrolysis pathway that has been documented. This evaluation intends to provide a retrospective look at how far research has come and a forward-looking assessment of the opportunities and difficulties in bio-mediated geotechnics. The primary insights from this review indicate that there is insufficient research on determining the optimal dosage of enrichment media and the cementitious solution, less focus is given to the microbial part associated with MICP, and there is a lack of structured methodology for the MICP process.