Effect of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) modified microbial induced carbonate precipitation on strength and water stability of loess

IF 3.7 2区工程技术 Q3 ENGINEERING, ENVIRONMENTAL Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment Pub Date : 2025-03-11 DOI:10.1007/s10064-025-04200-7

Xingyu Wang, Hong Sun

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Loess exhibits high sensitivity to water, rendering it susceptible to strength loss and structural destruction under hydraulic effects of rainfall, irrigation and groundwater. As an emerging soil improvement technology, microbial induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) stands out for its cost-effectiveness, efficiency, and environmental sustainability. In this study, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) was innovatively introduced into the MICP process to improve the strength and water stability of loess, and a set of unconfined compressive strength (UCS), direct shear, laser particle size analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) tests were conducted. The results show that HPMC-modified MICP is able to generate a novel structural matrix combining organic and inorganic elements, significantly enhancing the strength, stiffness, and ductility of loess. HPMC protects loess from water erosion by forming viscous membranes on the surfaces of soil particles and calcium carbonate crystals. Increasing HPMC content can augment membrane viscosity, which is conducive to stabilizing the loess structure, but it has the negative effect of reducing inter-particle friction through increasing membrane thickness. As the HPMC content increased to 0.6%, the strength loss of loess under high water content decreased. These findings are expected to provide critical support for the engineering application of HPMC-modified MICP in loess improvement.

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来源期刊

Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment 工程技术-地球科学综合

CiteScore

7.10

自引率

11.90%

发文量

445

审稿时长

4.1 months

期刊介绍： Engineering geology is defined in the statutes of the IAEG as the science devoted to the investigation, study and solution of engineering and environmental problems which may arise as the result of the interaction between geology and the works or activities of man, as well as of the prediction of and development of measures for the prevention or remediation of geological hazards. Engineering geology embraces: • the applications/implications of the geomorphology, structural geology, and hydrogeological conditions of geological formations; • the characterisation of the mineralogical, physico-geomechanical, chemical and hydraulic properties of all earth materials involved in construction, resource recovery and environmental change; • the assessment of the mechanical and hydrological behaviour of soil and rock masses; • the prediction of changes to the above properties with time; • the determination of the parameters to be considered in the stability analysis of engineering works and earth masses.