BIO-CEMENTATION OF COASTAL SEDIMENT FEATURES AND ROCK REVETMENTS TO REDUCE EROSION AND FLOOD RISK

Bio-cementation is a process by which microbes within the sediment produce bonds between individual particles through biochemical reactions that can occur naturally under the right conditions or can be induced artificially by supplying microbes and needed nutrition. Bio- cementation effectively increases the erosion resistance of the sediment material. A specific bio-cementation process called microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) is explored via field and laboratory tests to quantify its effect on sediment erodibility and slope stability. MICP, is an environmentally friendly process that utilizes the natural environment to facilitate calcium carbonate formation. The process binds sand grains together through calcite formation at particle-particle contacts (e.g., Montoya, 2012). Two types of coastal protective features are investigated for MICP treatment: (1) beach and dune systems and (2) rock revetments.