Elaboración sostenible de ladrillos a partir de biocementación de relaves

Abstract

Abstract: The purpose of this research is to evaluate the technical and environmental efficiency of a sustainable brick compared to a conventional brick. The raw material was two types of mine tailings (filtered tailings and unfiltered tailings) from the Fruta del Norte project of the Canadian company Lundin Gold, located in the Yantzaza canton, Zamora Chinchipe province. To achieve this objective, a chemical, physical, and mechanical characterization of the tailings was performed, and the environmental effectiveness of the biocementation process used in the production of the sustainable brick was evaluated. This process was developed using a biocementation microorganism called Sporosarcina pasteurii, which was previously activated, inoculated, and applied to the tailings along with cement and a source of calcium (calcium chloride). This bacterium has the ability to precipitate calcium carbonate, allowing the cohesion of the tailings particles and their hardening. The resulting bricks were analyzed again and showed that they reached a compressive strength of 15.76 MPa for those made with filtered tailings and 12.53 MPa for those made with unfiltered tailings. They also had a lower carbon footprint (0.01 kg CO2eq/brick) compared to a conventional brick (0.22 kg CO2eq/brick), making them a great alternative as a construction material.