Paenibacillus sp. Strain SB-6 Induces Weathering of Ca-montmorillonite: Illitization and Formation of Calcite

Investigation of the weathering of silicate minerals is helpful to understand the process of soil development, cycling of nutrient elements, and potential applications in fixation of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through carbonate precipitation. In this study, weathering experiments of calcium-montmorillonite were conducted using Paenibacillus sp. strain SB-6 for 70 days. The results indicated that the Si⁴⁺, Al³⁺, Ca²⁺ and Na⁺ concentrations in the medium of the biotic experiments were evidently higher than those of the abiotic experiments, and that Paenibacillus sp. could help the transformation of partial montmorillonite into an illite–montmorillonite mixed-layer. In the process of illitization, K⁺ went into the interlayer of montmorillonite and hydrated Ca²⁺ and Na⁺ released from it. In the late stage of the experiments, the Ca²⁺ released from montmorillonite combined with carbonate ions generated by the bacterial metabolism, forming calcite.