A new model for the spectral induced polarization signature of bacterial growth in porous media

The complex conductivity of porous materials and colloidal suspensions comprises two components: an in‐phase conductivity associated with electromigration of the charge carriers and a quadrature conductivity associated with the reversible storage of the charges at some polarization length scales. We...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Water resources research 2012-09, Vol.48 (9), p.np-n/a
Main Authors: Revil, A., Atekwana, E., Zhang, C., Jardani, A., Smith, S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacteria
Cation exchange
complex conductivity
Conductivity
Earth Sciences
electrical double layer
Geophysics
induced polarization
Monod kinetics
Polarization
Polymers
Porous materials
Porous media
Sciences of the Universe
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Summary:The complex conductivity of porous materials and colloidal suspensions comprises two components: an in‐phase conductivity associated with electromigration of the charge carriers and a quadrature conductivity associated with the reversible storage of the charges at some polarization length scales. We developed a quantitative model to investigate the frequency domain induced polarization response of suspensions of bacteria and bacteria growth in porous media. Induced polarization of bacteria (α polarization) is related to the properties of the electrical double layer of the bacteria. Surface conductivity and α polarization are due to the Stern layer of counterions occurring in a brush of polymers coating the surface of the bacteria. These phenomena can be related to their cation exchange capacity. The mobility of the counterions in this Stern layer is found to be very small (4.7 × 10−10 m2 s−1 V−1 at 25°C). This implies a very low relaxation frequency for the αpolarization of the bacteria cells (typically around 0.1–5 Hz), in agreement with experimental observations. This new model can be coupled to reactive transport modeling codes in which the evolution of bacterial populations are usually described by Monod kinetics. We show that the growth rate and endogenous decay coefficients of bacteria in a porous sand can be inferred nonintrusively from time‐lapse frequency domain induced polarization data. Key Points The polarization of bacteria has a distinctive macroscopic electrical signature Induced polarization can be used to assess Monod kinetics parameters This assessment is non‐intrusive
ISSN:0043-1397
1944-7973
DOI:10.1029/2012WR011965