Constitutive Response of Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation Cemented Sands

In the last decade, microbial induced calcite precipitation (MICP) emerged as a novel technique for implementing soil improvement in an environmentally-friendly and economically beneficial manner. However, the mechanical behavior and constitutive response of these materials are still not fully explored by researchers. In this dissertation, the characteristics of MICP cemented sands are investigated through numerical modelling and experimental tests, including macro and micro tests under both static and dynamic loading.;In the first part, the mechanical behavior of MICP cemented sands were probed using monotonic load testing and the existence of calcite precipitation was verified by scanning electron microscopy, with this behavior compared to traditionally cemented soil and naturally cemented soil. Both MICP cementation and traditional cementation were verified to be effective in the increase of stiffness and strength, and unique characteristic of MICP cemented soil was highlighted.