Microbial Diversity and Mineralogical-Mechanical Properties of Calcitic Cave Speleothems in Natural and in Vitro Biomineralization Conditions.

ABSTRACT: Natural mineral formations are a window into important processes leading to carbon storage and mineralized carbonate structures formed through abiotic and biotic processes. In the current study, we made an attempt to undertake a comprehensive approach to characterize the mineralogical, mechanical, and microbial properties of different kinds of speleothems from karstic caves; with an aim to understand the bio-geo-chemical processes in speleothem structures and their impact on nanomechanical properties. We also investigated the biomineralization abilities of speleothem surface associated microbial communities in vitro. Mineralogical profiling using techniques such as X-ray powder Diffraction (XRD) and Tescan Integrated Mineral Analyzer (TIMA) demonstrated that calcite was the dominant

SUBMITTER: Dhami NK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5810276 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature