Assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approach

Abstract The effectiveness of microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) in reducing the hydraulic conductivity (HC) of soils has been evaluated in several geotechnical engineering applications. However, optimizing MICP parameters to achieve minimal hydraulic conductivity for waste containment...

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Main Authors: Roland Kufre Etim, Paul Yohanna, Adrian Oshioname Eberemu, Kolawole Juwonlo Osinubi, Thomas Stephen Ijimdiya
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-07-01
Series:Scientific Reports
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-12907-6
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author Roland Kufre Etim
Paul Yohanna
Adrian Oshioname Eberemu
Kolawole Juwonlo Osinubi
Thomas Stephen Ijimdiya
author_facet Roland Kufre Etim
Paul Yohanna
Adrian Oshioname Eberemu
Kolawole Juwonlo Osinubi
Thomas Stephen Ijimdiya
author_sort Roland Kufre Etim
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The effectiveness of microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) in reducing the hydraulic conductivity (HC) of soils has been evaluated in several geotechnical engineering applications. However, optimizing MICP parameters to achieve minimal hydraulic conductivity for waste containment liners remains underexplored. This study presents a comprehensive laboratory analysis investigating the influence of bacterial suspension density and compaction energy on compacted lateritic soil, prepared under varying moisture conditions. Bacillus megaterium (B. megaterium) was introduced at different suspension densities, followed by compaction. Results revealed that increased bacterial density and compaction energy significantly reduced hydraulic conductivity due to calcite formation, confirmed through XRD, SEM, XRF, and FTIR analyses. To optimize the hydraulic conductivity, bio-inspired algorithms including particle swarm optimization (PSO), smell agent optimization (SAO), and bacterial foraging optimization (BFO) were deployed. Successive iterations demonstrated that PSO achieved the lowest hydraulic conductivity (k = 2.27 × 10−11 m/s), followed by SAO (k = 2.85 × 10−11 m/s) and BFO (k = 2.66 × 10−9 m/s). These findings highlight the critical role of compaction effort, moisture content, and bacterial density in designing compacted lateritic soil liners for geotechnical applications. Optimization results underscore PSO’s superior performance in achieving design criteria for liners.
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spelling doaj-art-a453fcff2ac34b8eaa23d69f9ed3ee652025-08-20T04:03:03ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-0115112510.1038/s41598-025-12907-6Assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approachRoland Kufre Etim0Paul Yohanna1Adrian Oshioname Eberemu2Kolawole Juwonlo Osinubi3Thomas Stephen Ijimdiya4Department of Civil Engineering, Akwa Ibom State UniversityDepartment of Civil Engineering, Kampala International UniversityDepartment of Civil Engineering, Ahmadu Bello UniversityDepartment of Civil Engineering, Ahmadu Bello UniversityDepartment of Civil Engineering, Ahmadu Bello UniversityAbstract The effectiveness of microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) in reducing the hydraulic conductivity (HC) of soils has been evaluated in several geotechnical engineering applications. However, optimizing MICP parameters to achieve minimal hydraulic conductivity for waste containment liners remains underexplored. This study presents a comprehensive laboratory analysis investigating the influence of bacterial suspension density and compaction energy on compacted lateritic soil, prepared under varying moisture conditions. Bacillus megaterium (B. megaterium) was introduced at different suspension densities, followed by compaction. Results revealed that increased bacterial density and compaction energy significantly reduced hydraulic conductivity due to calcite formation, confirmed through XRD, SEM, XRF, and FTIR analyses. To optimize the hydraulic conductivity, bio-inspired algorithms including particle swarm optimization (PSO), smell agent optimization (SAO), and bacterial foraging optimization (BFO) were deployed. Successive iterations demonstrated that PSO achieved the lowest hydraulic conductivity (k = 2.27 × 10−11 m/s), followed by SAO (k = 2.85 × 10−11 m/s) and BFO (k = 2.66 × 10−9 m/s). These findings highlight the critical role of compaction effort, moisture content, and bacterial density in designing compacted lateritic soil liners for geotechnical applications. Optimization results underscore PSO’s superior performance in achieving design criteria for liners.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-12907-6Lateritic soilB. megateriumHydraulic conductivityMicroanalysisOptimization
spellingShingle Roland Kufre Etim
Paul Yohanna
Adrian Oshioname Eberemu
Kolawole Juwonlo Osinubi
Thomas Stephen Ijimdiya
Assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approach
Scientific Reports
Lateritic soil
B. megaterium
Hydraulic conductivity
Microanalysis
Optimization
title Assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approach
title_full Assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approach
title_fullStr Assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approach
title_full_unstemmed Assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approach
title_short Assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approach
title_sort assessing the biocementation of lateritic soil using hydraulic conductivity and bioinspired optimization approach
topic Lateritic soil
B. megaterium
Hydraulic conductivity
Microanalysis
Optimization
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-12907-6
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