Abstract:Filtration is a prevalent treatment modality in the domain of wastewater management. Depending on the materials and properties of the filtration media, filtration can be classified into four main categories: microfiltration, ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, and reverse osmosis. The present study focuses on the preparation of a novel porous CaCO? microfiltration membrane, which is based on the microbial-induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) biomineralization process. Initially, CaCO3 crystal particles with urease activity are prepared by controlling the MICP mineralization process. Secondary microbial mineralization is used to cement the loose calcium carbonate particles, forming a continuous porous solid CaCO? membrane with certain mechanical strength. Filtration tests on bacterial cells, extracellular proteins, and polysaccharides show that the MICP-driven porous CaCO3 membrane effectively removes Escherichia coli, Brachybacterium sp., and activated sludge, with removal rates of 99.998%, 99.983%, and 99.996%, respectively. Compared to conventional filter paper, this porous CaCO3 membrane demonstrates superior capability in removing extracellular polymers (EPS). Furthermore, the CaCO3 microfiltration membrane prepared using the MICP process also exhibits ideal pore space, non-blocking characteristics, and high permeability.