The effect of Bacillus cereus LV-1 on the crystallization and polymorphs of calcium carbonate

Abstract

The study of CaCO₃ polymorphism is of great significance for understanding the mechanism of carbonate mineralization induced by bacteria and the genesis of carbonate rock throughout geological history. To investigate the effect of bacteria and shear force on CaCO₃ precipitation and polymorphs, biomineralization experiments with Bacillus cereus strain LV-1 were conducted under the standing and shaking conditions. The results show that LV-1 induced the formation of calcite and vaterite under the standing and shaking conditions, respectively. However, the results of mineralization in the media and the CaCl₂ solution under both kinetic conditions suggest the shear force does not affect the polymorphs of calcium carbonate in abiotic systems. Further, mineralization experiments with bacterial cells and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) were performed under the standing conditions. The results reveal that bacterial cells, bound EPS (BEPS), and soluble EPS (SEPS) are favorable to the formation of spherical, imperfect rhombohedral, and perfect rhombohedral minerals, respectively. The increase in the pH value and saturation index (SI) caused by LV-1 metabolism under the shear force played key roles in controlling vaterite precipitation, whereas bacterial cells and EPS do not play roles in promoting vaterite formation. Furthermore, we suggest that vaterite formed if pH > 8.5 and SI_ACC > 0.8, while calcite formed if pH was between 8.0–9.0 and SI_ACC < 0.8. Bacterial cells and BEPS are the main factors affecting CaCO₃ morphologies in the mineralization process of LV-1. This may provide a deeper insight into the regulation mechanism of the polymorphs and morphologies during bacterially induced carbonate mineralization.