Bio-réparation des matériaux cimentaires : les bactéries au service des mortiers fissurés

The goal of this study is to develop a repair system for cementitious materials which features improved properties compared current available systems in terms of long term efficiency and environment friendliness. Thus, a bacteria-based repair system has been developed. The mineral formation mediated by bacterial activity results in the crack healing and the decrease of the porosity. Moreover, thanks to bacteria the repair product can be self-repaired in case of failure. The aim of the present work is to evaluate the bacteria-based system performance in laboratory condition and in real environment on a concrete structure. Results showed that the bacteria-based system is promising both in laboratory condition and outside exposition. Moreover, the presence of mineral inside the crack 4 months after impregnation operation is a promising result relating the efficiency of the system on a real structure. However, additional results are needed to conclude on the real performance of this system. The inner crack filling and the mineral identification should be assessed to relate it with the bacterial activity.Structural EngineeringCivil Engineering and Geoscience