scholarly journals Transformation of Construction Cement to a Self-Healing Hybrid Binder

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (12) ◽  
pp. 2948 ◽  
Author(s):  
Werner E.G. Müller ◽  
Emad Tolba ◽  
Shunfeng Wang ◽  
Qiang Li ◽  
Meik Neufurth ◽  
...  

A new biomimetic strategy to im prove the self-healing properties of Portland cement is presented that is based on the application of the biogenic inorganic polymer polyphosphate (polyP), which is used as a cement admixture. The data show that synthetic linear polyp, with an average chain length of 40, as well as natural long-chain polyP isolated from soil bacteria, has the ability to support self-healing of this construction material. Furthermore, polyP, used as a water-soluble Na-salt, is subject to Na+/Ca2+ exchange by the Ca2+ from the cement, resulting in the formation of a water-rich coacervate when added to the cement surface, especially to the surface of bacteria-containing cement/concrete samples. The addition of polyP in low concentrations (<1% on weight basis for the solids) not only accelerated the hardening of cement/concrete but also the healing of microcracks present in the material. The results suggest that long-chain polyP is a promising additive that increases the self-healing capacity of cement by mimicking a bacteria-mediated natural mechanism.

2019 ◽  
Vol 969 ◽  
pp. 472-477
Author(s):  
Sachin Tiwari ◽  
Shilpa Pal ◽  
Rekha Puria ◽  
Vikrant Nain ◽  
Rajendra Prasad Pathak

Concrete largely used for construction material, degrades with the development of cracks that becomes easy passage for entry of chemicals and harmful compounds. Self healing capability is helpful to mitigate the deterioration of the concrete structures. This research work focuses on the self healing behaviour and mechanical properties of the bioconcrete supplemented with three different bacteria namely Bacillus sphaericus, Bacillus cohnii and Bacillus megaterium. Concrete supplemented with Bacillus cohnii exhibited 35.31% increase in compressive strength compared to control mix after 28 days. Concrete supplemented with other bacteria Bacillus sphaericus and Bacillus megaterium also showed enhanced compressive strength. Interestingly, addition of bacteria aided in healing of artificially generated cracks by formation of CaCO3 minerals. Maximum amount of healing (bacterial precipitation) which could be quantified as calcite minerals present in the bacterial concrete was 11.44% with B. cohnii confirmed by the Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS).


Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (10) ◽  
pp. 2360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emad Tolba ◽  
Shunfeng Wang ◽  
Xiaohong Wang ◽  
Meik Neufurth ◽  
Maximilian Ackermann ◽  
...  

There is a strong interest in cement additives that are able to prevent or mitigate the adverse effects of cracks in concrete that cause corrosion of the reinforcement. Inorganic polyphosphate (polyP), a natural polymer that is synthesized by bacteria, even those on cement/concrete, can increase the resistance of concrete to progressive damage from micro-cracking. Here we use a novel bioinspired strategy based on polyP-stabilized amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) to give this material self-healing properties. Portland cement was supplemented with ACC nanoparticles which were stabilized with 10% (w/w) Na–polyP. Embedding these particles in the hydrated cement resulted in the formation of calcite crystals after a hardening time of 10 days, which were not seen in controls, indicating that the particles dissolve and then transform into calcite. While there was no significant repair in the controls without ACC, almost complete closure of the cracks was observed after a 10 days healing period in the ACC-supplemented samples. Nanoindentation measurements on the self-healed crack surfaces showed a similar or slightly higher elasticity at a lower hardness compared to non-cracked surfaces. Our results demonstrate that bioinspired approaches, like the use of polyP-stabilized ACC shown here, can significantly improve the repair capacity of Portland cement.


Materials ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (14) ◽  
pp. 2313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hongyin Xu ◽  
Jijian Lian ◽  
Maomao Gao ◽  
Dengfeng Fu ◽  
Yue Yan

Bacteria-based self-healing concrete is a construction material used to repair cracks in concrete, in which the bacterial spores are immobilized by bacteria carriers. However, the currently available bacteria carriers are not always suitable due to a complicated procedure or high cost. To develop a more suitable bacteria carrier as well as improve the anti-crack capability of self-healing concrete, in this study we evaluate the feasibility of using rubber particles as a novel bacteria carrier in self-healing concrete. Two types of self-healing concrete are prepared with rubber particles of different sizes to quantify the crack-healing effect. In addition, the fluidity and mechanical properties of the self-healing rubber concrete are compared with those of plain concrete and normal rubber concrete. The experimental results show that the self-healing rubber concrete with a particle size of 1~3 mm has a better healing capacity than the self-healing rubber concrete with a particle size of 0.2~0.4 mm, and the width value of the completely healed crack is 0.86 mm. The self-healing rubber concrete has a higher slump than the plain concrete and normal rubber concrete. According to the strength tests, the compressive strengths of the self-healing rubber concrete are low early on but they exceed those of the corresponding normal rubber concrete at 28 days. Moreover, the self-healing rubber concrete has higher splitting tensile strengths than the plain concrete and a better anti-crack capability. The results of a comparison to the other two representative bacterial carriers indicate that rubber particles have potential to be a widely used bacteria carrier for practical engineering applications in self-healing concrete.


Marine Drugs ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 320
Author(s):  
Arnaud Masselin ◽  
Antoine Rousseau ◽  
Stéphanie Pradeau ◽  
Laure Fort ◽  
Rodolphe Gueret ◽  
...  

Chitin oligosaccharides (COs) hold high promise as organic fertilizers in the ongoing agro-ecological transition. Short- and long-chain COs can contribute to the establishment of symbiotic associations between plants and microorganisms, facilitating the uptake of soil nutrients by host plants. Long-chain COs trigger plant innate immunity. A fine investigation of these different signaling pathways requires improving the access to high-purity COs. Here, we used the response surface methodology to optimize the production of COs by enzymatic hydrolysis of water-soluble chitin (WSC) with hen egg-white lysozyme. The influence of WSC concentration, its acetylation degree, and the reaction time course were modelled using a Box–Behnken design. Under optimized conditions, water-soluble COs up to the nonasaccharide were formed in 51% yield and purified to homogeneity. This straightforward approach opens new avenues to determine the complex roles of COs in plants.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aranee Pleng Teepakakorn ◽  
Makoto Ogawa

Water-induced self-healing materials were prepared by the hybridization of a water-soluble polymer, poly(vinyl alcohol), with a smectite clay by mixing in an aqueous media and subsequent casting. Without using chemical...


1969 ◽  
Vol 112 (5) ◽  
pp. 795-799 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. H. Quarles ◽  
R. M. C. Dawson

1. The activity of phospholipase D (phosphatidylcholine phosphatidohydrolase, EC 3.1.4.4) towards ultrasonically treated phosphatidylcholine or large phosphatidylcholine particles activated with ether was maximal near pH5, and there was little activity above pH6. 2. When the enzyme was activated by the addition of phosphatidic acid to large phosphatidylcholine particles the pH optimum was shifted to pH6·5 irrespective of the amount of activator added. 3. When the enzyme was activated with low concentrations of dodecyl sulphate the pH optimum was 5·5 with little activity above pH6. With higher concentrations of dodecyl sulphate the pH–activity profile was shifted upwards towards a pH optimum of 6·5–6·6, the magnitude of the shift depending on the extent of the hydrolysis. 4. The shifts in the pH–activity profiles cannot be correlated with changes in the ‘surface pH’ of the substrate particles calculated from the measurement of their ζ-potentials (electrophoretic mobilities).


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