MANGALURU: A faculty member of National Institute of Technology Karnataka (NITK), Surathkal has received an Indian Patent for producing cement mortar brick with inclusion of bacteria in combination, which claims to be superior than the conventional bricks in terms of strength, life of structure and to possess a ‘self-healing’ property.
The invention is of Dr T Palanisamy, Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering, NITK and his research paper is titled ‘Microbialcreat Composite’. A release from NITK said the patent was filed in 2014 and the same was received in June, 2022. According to Dr Palanisamy, microbialcreat composite is a new-age material with the property of self-healing upon cracking. This action is by the precipitation of lime (calcium carbonate) by the non-pathogenic bacteria used in the composite, upon coming into contact with air and water through the crack. The precipitated lime will cover the crack, thereby improving the stability of the surface.
The non-pathogenicbacteria of genus Enterobacter, Enterococcus and Serratia and its growth solution are the part of this invented composite along with sand and cement. This invention is not limited to this specific system but using the same technique, development of bio cement and bio concrete is feasible, towards which a research group under the faculty is working on.