Volume 13, Issue 5 (May 2026), Pages: 157-164

----------------------------------------------

 Original Research Paper

Effect of drying conditions on the shear strength and deformation behavior of MICP-treated soil

 Author(s): 

Assel Tulebekova ¹, Zhanar Kusbergenova ¹, Nargul Saktaganova ^2, *, Gulshat Tleulenova ¹

 Affiliation(s):

¹Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Architecture and Construction, L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Astana, Kazakhstan
²Department of Architecture and Construction Production, Korkyt Ata Kyzylorda State University, Kyzylorda, Kazakhstan

 Full text

    Full Text - PDF

 * Corresponding Author. 

   Corresponding author's ORCID profile:  https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1218-4946

 Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

 
https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2026.05.015

 Abstract

Improving the strength and deformation behavior of soils is an important challenge in civil engineering and requires reliable and sustainable ground improvement methods. Microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) is a bio-mediated soil improvement technique; however, the effect of drying conditions on the mechanical behavior of biocemented soils has not been fully investigated. This study experimentally evaluates the influence of different drying regimes on the strength and deformation response of MICP-treated soil. Soil specimens were biocemented and cured for 0, 7, 14, 28, and 35 days under two drying regimes: mechanical drying and natural drying. Direct shear tests were performed to determine cohesion and internal friction angle at all curing stages, while deformation behavior was evaluated using shear stress–displacement responses. Microstructural characteristics were qualitatively analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for untreated soil and treated specimens cured for 7, 14, and 28 days. SEM results showed the formation of carbonate bridges and partial pore filling, and complementary energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis indicated that the calcium content in MICP-treated specimens was approximately twice that of untreated soil, confirming successful calcite precipitation. The results demonstrate that drying conditions have a stage-dependent effect on the mechanical behavior of MICP-treated soils and mainly influence the rate of strength and deformation development rather than the final stabilized mechanical properties. These findings provide experimental insight into the relationship between curing conditions and biocementation efficiency and support the practical application of MICP in geotechnical ground improvement.

 © 2026 The Authors. Published by IASE.

 This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

 Keywords

Microbially induced calcite precipitation, Biocemented soil behavior, Drying regime effects, Soil strength improvement, Shear deformation response

 Article history

Received 7 January 2026, Received in revised form 10 May 2026, Accepted 14 May 2026

 Acknowledgment

This research has been funded by the Science Committee of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Grant No. AP26195121 «Development of an educational digital platform for future builders with simulation of construction processes and integration with measuring devices via IoT»). 

 Compliance with ethical standards

 Citation:

Tulebekova A, Kusbergenova Z, Saktaganova N, and Tleulenova G (2026). Effect of drying conditions on the shear strength and deformation behavior of MICP-treated soil. International Journal of Advanced and Applied Sciences, 13(5): 157-164

  Permanent Link to this page

---------------------------------------------- 

 References (13)

1. Erdmann N and Strieth D (2023). Influencing factors on ureolytic microbiologically induced calcium carbonate precipitation for biocementation. World Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology, 39: 61. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11274-022-03499-8   [Google Scholar] PMid:36576609 PMCid:PMC9797461
2. Gao Y, Tang X, Chu J, and He J (2019). Microbially induced calcite precipitation for seepage control in sandy soil. Geomicrobiology Journal, 36(4): 366-375. https://doi.org/10.1080/01490451.2018.1556750   [Google Scholar]
3. Hang L, Yang E, Zhou Y, Song W, and He J (2022). Microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) for stabilization of desert sand against the wind-induced erosion: A parametric study. Sustainability, 14(18): 11409. https://doi.org/10.3390/su141811409   [Google Scholar]
4. Hora R, Rahman MM, Karim MR, Dejong J, and Beecham S (2026). Consolidation and shearing behaviour of MICP-treated sand – A critical state approach. Géotechnique, 76(1): 200-214. https://doi.org/10.1680/jgeot.24.01004   [Google Scholar]
5. Jiang B, Wu S, Huang F, Zhou F, and Li X (2025). Effect of microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation on swelling and performance degradation of expansive soil. Applied Sciences, 15(12): 6570. https://doi.org/10.3390/app15126570   [Google Scholar]
6. Khalaj S, Naseri H, Talebi M, Ghale RA, and Tabandeh F (2024). Evaluation of microbial-induced calcite precipitation performance for soil surface improvement and toxicity assessment of the biostabilizer. Heliyon, 10(16): e35813. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e35813   [Google Scholar] PMid:39220909 PMCid:PMC11365395
7. Kou H, He X, Li Z, Fang W, Zhang X, An Z, and Wu Y (2023). Effect of drying-wetting cycles on the durability of calcareous sand reinforced by MICP and recycled shredded coconut coir (RSC). Biogeotechnics, 1(3): 100038. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bgtech.2023.100038   [Google Scholar]
8. Liu S, Wen K, Armwood C, Bu C, Li C, Amini F, and Li L (2019). Enhancement of MICP-treated sandy soils against environmental deterioration. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 31(12): 04019294. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0002959   [Google Scholar]
9. Ren J, Wei B, Zhu Z, and Zhang Q (2026). Study on the performance deterioration mechanism of MICP-treated poorly graded sand: The effect of dry-wet and freeze-thaw cycles. Powder Technology, 468: 121614. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.powtec.2025.121614   [Google Scholar]
10. Sharma M and Satyam N (2021). Strength and durability of biocemented sands: Wetting-drying cycles, ageing effects, and liquefaction resistance. Geoderma, 402: 115359. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2021.115359   [Google Scholar]
11. Soon NW, Lee LM, Khun TC, and Ling HS (2013). Improvements in engineering properties of soils through microbial-induced calcite precipitation. KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering, 17(4): 718-728. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12205-013-0149-8   [Google Scholar]
12. Tang CS, Liu B, Vahedifard F, Jiang NJ, Zhu C, Shen ZT, Pan XH, Cheng Q, and Shi B (2024). Enhancing soil resilience to climatic wetting‐drying cycles through a bio‐mediated approach. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, 129(5): e2023JF007573. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023JF007573   [Google Scholar]
13. Zhang K, Tang CS, Jiang NJ, Pan XH, Liu B, Wang YJ, and Shi B (2023). Microbial‑induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) technology: A review on the fundamentals and engineering applications. Environmental Earth Sciences, 82: 229. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-023-10899-y   [Google Scholar] PMid:37128499 PMCid:PMC10131530