Application of Bacteria as Self-Healing Agent for the Concrete and Microscopic Analysis of the Microbial Calcium Precipitation Process

Cracks affect the durability of concrete by increasing its permeability. Self-healing materials can begin repairing themselves immediately after creating a crack. This is a big advantage of self-healing materials. In this study, effect of self-healing agents based on calcium carbonate precipitation for concrete is monitored for three months. Bacillus pseudofirmus was chosen as a self-healing agent and was tested on old cement pastes. Calcium precipitation was analyzed by scanning electron microscope with Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The effect of added spontaneous calcination, culture media, bacteria and Ca2+ was monitored.