Characterization of ureolytic bacteria isolated from limestone caves of Sarawak and evaluation of their efficiency in biocementation

This thesis presents data from my work exploring the biodiversity of Sarawak, Malaysia by screening for highly active urease-producing bacteria from limestone cave regions for Microbial induced calcite precipitation (MICP) applications. MICP, is a new innovative construction material technique used to bind soil particles together, which require lesser energy for production, low production cost and no contribution to the greenhouse gas emission, making it an environmentally friendly construction material. Prior to this study, there were no records of any urease-producing bacteria with high specific urease activity in Sarawak and having the potential to be used as alternative microbial MICP agents.