Intense rainfall is a primary trigger for slope failures and landslides, posing significant challenges to geotechnical stability. While various reinforcement measures have been extensively studied to mitigate rainfall-induced slope failures, innovative approaches are still needed to address these issues effectively. Recently, biomineralization technology has emerged as a promising technique. This approach leverages bacteria or enzyme-induce urea hydrolysis to induce calcium carbonate precipitation, which enhances soil strength and stiffness while reducing permeability, offering a low-carbon and environmentally friendly solution. In this study, the concept of using urease extracted from soybeans to activate biomineralization was proposed for mitigating rainfall-induced slope instability. Simulated rainfall experiments were conducted on slope models with multi-sensor monitoring system. The failure mechanisms and internal moisture migration characteristics of slopes before and after biotreatment under extreme rainfall conditions were studied and compared. The results reveal that rapid increases in moisture content and pore water pressure due to rainwater infiltration are the main causes of slope failure. The biotreatment effectively established a rainwater shielding system, suppressing rainwater infiltration. During simulated rainfall test, the biotreated slope exhibited slower increases in moisture content and pore water pressure compared to the untreated slope. Furthermore, the onset of slope failure was delayed in the biotreated model. This study provides valuable insights into the application of biomineralization technology as a novel strategy to mitigate slope failure under extreme rainfall conditions.
Chen et al. (Thu,) studied this question.