Evidence of a bacterial carbonate coating on plaster samples subjected to the Calcite Bioconcept biomineralization technique

Séverinne Anne (1) , Olivier Rozenbaum (1) , Pascal Andreazza (2) , Jean-Louis Rouet (1)

1 ISTO - Institut des Sciences de la Terre d'Orléans
2 CRMD - Centre de Recherche sur la Matière Divisée

Degradation of historical buildings is mainly due to the intrusion of water which is the main vector of pollutants. Different types of surface treatment have been proposed to avoid or limit this effect. One alternative to chemical treatments is the use of the carbonatogenesis property of some bacteria. This bacterial production has been evidenced on concrete and on limestone samples in an aqueous environment. However, the carbonate production was measured indirectly and the experimental protocol was far from real conditions of use. In this paper, with the same protocol as an industrial one, and using a surface selective investigation method, grazing incidence X-ray diffraction, we show the structural and morphological evolution of the carbonate coating produced on model plaster samples. This substrate was chosen in order to unambiguously detect the bacterial carbonate production.

Keywords: Coating; Bioremediation; Carbonate production; Plaster; Grazing incidence; X-ray diffraction; Bacterial surface treatment; Weathering; SEM; Microprobe mapping

Domains: Geochemistry; Global Changes

Séverinne Anne, Olivier Rozenbaum, Pascal Andreazza, Jean-Louis Rouet. Evidence of a bacterial carbonate coating on plaster samples subjected to the Calcite Bioconcept biomineralization technique. Construction and Building Materials, 2010, 24, pp.1036-1042. ⟨10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2009.11.014⟩. ⟨insu-00491139⟩