Quantifying adhesion of acidophilic bioleaching bacteria to silica and pyrite by atomic force microscopy with a bacterial probe

• We construct high quality bacterial probes.
• We observe distinct retraction patterns of two strains of bioleaching microbes.
• We obtain true bacteria-mineral adhesion forces and biopolymers snap-off distances.

The adhesion of acidophilic bacteria to mineral surfaces is an important phenomenon in bioleaching processes. In this study, functionalized colloidal probes covered by bioleaching bacterial cells (Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans and Leptospirillum ferrooxidans) were developed and used to sense specific adhesion forces to a silica surface and a pyrite surface in various solutions. Experimentally, recorded retraction curves of A. thiooxidans revealed sawtooth features that were in good agreement with the wormlike chain model, while that of L. ferrooxidans exhibited stair-step separation. The magnitudes of adhesion forces and snap-off distances were strongly influenced by the ionic strength and pH. Macroscopic surface properties including hydrophobicity and surface potential for bacterial cells and substrata were measured by a sessile drop method and microelectrophoresis. The ATR-FTIR spectra indicated the presence of different types of biopolymers on two strains of bacteria.

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