1667
Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy: A Tool to Study the Biomediated Calcification Process By Sporosarcina Pasteurii Biofilm

Wednesday, 1 June 2016: 10:40
Sapphire 410 B (Hilton San Diego Bayfront)
D. Harris (Oregon State University), J. G. Ummadi (oregon state university), and D. Koley (Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA)
Sporosarcina pasteurii, are known to perform CaCO3 precipitation by hydrolyzing urea and increasing the local pH, in presence of the Ca2+ rich brine solution. We have developed a new electrochemical probes for scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) to study this calcification process in real time. We have used the newly developed ultramicrosensors, such as pH, Ca2+, and redox sensors, to monitor a real-time, bacteria-mediated urea hydrolysis process and subsequent changes in morphology due to CaCO3 precipitation. We observed a rapid local (500 μm above the biofilm) pH change from 7.4 to 9.2 within 2 min of addition of urea, whereas the bulk pH remains constant at 7.5.  Similar Ca2+ profile was also recorded locally where the  Ca2+ concentration above the biofilm depleted from 170 mM to 1 mM. Recent developments regarding the real-time live biofilm morphological change correlated with the chemical (Ca2+ and pH) information will be presented in the meeting.