Beating the bugs: roles of microbial biofilms in corrosion
Source abstract
Abstract
Abstract Microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC) is a complex type of environmentally assisted corrosion. Although poorly understood and challenging to ameliorate, it is increasingly appreciated that MIC accelerates failure of metal alloys, including steel pipeline. Historically, this type of material degradation process has been treated from either an electrochemical materials perspective or a microbiological perspective. Here, we review the current understanding of MIC mechanisms for steel – particularly those in sour environments relevant to fossil fuel recovery and processing – and outline the role of the bacterial biofilm in both corrosion processes and mitigation responses.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline
Research context
OpenAlex topics: Corrosion Behavior and Inhibition · Metal Extraction and Bioleaching · Concrete Corrosion and Durability
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
References (84)
Show source-provided references
1. Abraham G, Kain V, Dey G. MIC failure of type 316l seawater pipeline. Mater Perform 2009; 48: 64–69.10.5006/MP2009_48_1-64 ↗
2. Akid R, Wang H, Smith T, Greenfield D, Earthman J. Biological functionalization of a sol-gel coating for the mitigation of microbial-induced corrosion. Adv Funct Mater 2008; 18: 203–211.10.1002/adfm.200600493 ↗
3. Al-Jaroudi S, Ul-Hamid A, Al-Gahtani M. Failure of crude oil pipeline due to microbiologically induced corrosion. Corros Eng Sci Technol 2011; 46: 568–579.10.1179/147842210X12695149033819 ↗
4. Amann RI, Ludwig W, Schleifer KH. Phylogenetic identification and in situ detection of individual microbial cells without cultivation. Microbiol Rev 1995; 59: 143–169.10.1128/mr.59.1.143-169.1995 ↗
5. Andersson S, Kuttuva Rajarao G, Land C, Dalhammar G. Biofilm formation and interactions of bacterial strains found in wastewater treatment systems. FEMS Microbiol Lett 2008; 283: 83–90.10.1111/j.1574-6968.2008.01149.x ↗
6. Avidan O, Satanower S, Banin E. Iron and bacterial biofilm development. Microbial Mats 2010; 14: 359–383.10.1007/978-90-481-3799-2_19 ↗
7. Barton LL, Fauque GD. Biochemistry, physiology and biotechnology of sulfate-reducing bacteria. Adv Appl Microbiol 2009; 68: 41–98.10.1016/S0065-2164(09)01202-7 ↗
8. Beech I, Cheung CS. Interactions of exopolymers produced by sulphate-reducing bacteria with metal ions. Int Biodeterior Biodegrad 1995; 35: 59–72.10.1016/0964-8305(95)00082-G ↗
9. Beech IB, Gaylarde CC. Recent advances in the study of biocorrosion: an overview. Rev Microbiol 1999; 30: 117–190.10.1590/S0001-37141999000300001 ↗
10. Beech IB, Sunner J. Biocorrosion: towards understanding interactions between biofilms and metals. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2004; 15: 181–186.10.1016/j.copbio.2004.05.001 ↗
11. Booth G, Wormwell F. Corrosion of mild steel by sulphate-reducing bacteria. Effect of different strains of organisms. In: First International Congress on Metallic Corrosion, London, 1961: 341–344.
12. Booth G, Shinn P, Wakerley D. The influence of various strains of actively growing sulphate-reducing bacteria on the anaerobic corrosion of mild steel. In: Congres Int de la Corrosion Marine et des Salissures, Cannes, volume 363, 1964.
13. Booth G, Cooper PM, Wakerley D. Corrosion of mild steel by actively growing cultures of sulphate-reducing bacteria. The influence of ferrous iron. Br Corros J 1966; 1: 345–349.10.1179/000705966798327254 ↗
14. Booth G, Cooper A, Cooper P. Rates of microbial corrosion in continuous culture. Chem Ind 1967; 9: 2084–2085.
15. Bryant RD, Jansen W, Boivin J, Laishley EJ, Costerton JW. Effect of hydrogenase and mixed sulfate-reducing bacterial populations on the corrosion of steel. Appl Environ Microbiol 1991; 57: 2804–2809.10.1128/aem.57.10.2804-2809.1991 ↗
16. Bunker H. Microbiological experiments in anaerobic corrosion. J Soc Chem Ind 1939; 58: 93.
17. Chamritski I, Burns G, Laycock N, Webster B. Effect of iron-oxidizing bacteria on pitting of stainless steel. Corrosion 2004; 60: 658–669.10.5006/1.3287842 ↗
18. Cord-Ruwisch R. MIC in hydrocarbon transportation systems. Corros Australasia 1996; 21: 8–11.
19. Crolet J-L. From biology and corrosion to biocorrosion. Oceanol Acta 1992; 15: 87–94.
20. Cwalina O, Dzierzewicz Z. The influence of sulfur oxy-anions on the rate of biocorrosion of metals. Eur Fed Corros Publ 1999; 29: 47–52.
21. Da Silva S, Basséguy R, Bergel A. The role of hydrogenases in the anaerobic microbiologically influenced corrosion of steels. Bioelectrochemistry 2002; 56: 77–79.10.1016/S1567-5394(02)00034-8 ↗
22. Dexter S, Eashwar M. Relation of bacterial settlement patterns to anodic activity on stainless steel weldments. Corrosion 1999; 99: 1–19.10.5006/C1999-99174 ↗
23. Dong Z, Shi W, Ruan H, Zhang G. Heterogeneous corrosion of mild steel under SRB-biofilm characterised by electrochemical mapping technique. Corros Sci 2011; 53: 2978–2987.10.1016/j.corsci.2011.05.041 ↗
24. Dubiel M, Hsu CH, Chien CC, Mansfeld F, Newman DK. Microbial iron respiration can protect steel from corrosion. Appl Environ Microbiol 2002; 68: 1440–1445.10.1128/AEM.68.3.1440-1445.2002 ↗
25. Dunsmore B, Jacobsen A, Hall-Stoodley L, Bass C, Lappin-Scott H, Stoodley P. The influence of fluid shear on the structure and material properties of sulphate-reducing bacterial biofilms. J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol 2002; 29: 347–353.10.1038/sj/jim/7000302 ↗
26. Edyvean R, Benson I, Thomas C, Beech I, Videla H. Biological influences on hydrogen effects in steel in seawater. Mater Perform 1998; 37: 40–44.
27. Egan M. Internal corrosion suspected as cause of Alaskan pipeline leak. Mater Perform 2011; 50: 14–23.10.5006/MP2011_50_5-14 ↗
28. Fernandez N, Diaz EE, Amils R, Sanz JL. Analysis of microbial community during biofilm development in an anaerobic wastewater treatment reactor. Microb Ecol 2008; 56: 121–132.10.1007/s00248-007-9330-2 ↗
29. Flemming HC. Economical and technical overview. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1996.10.1007/978-3-642-80017-7_2 ↗
30. George R. Current understanding and future approaches for controlling microbially influenced concrete corrosion: a review. Concr Res Lett 2012; 3: 491–506.
31. Haveman SA, Greene EA, Stilwell CP, Voordouw JK, Voordouw G. Physiological and gene expression analysis of inhibition of Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough by nitrite. J Bacteriol 2004; 186: 7944–7950.10.1128/JB.186.23.7944-7950.2004 ↗
32. He Q, He Z, Joyner D, Joachimiak M, Price M, Yang Z, Yen H, Hemme C, Chen W, Fields M. Impact of elevated nitrate on sulfate-reducing bacteria: a comparative study of Desulfovibrio vulgaris. ISME J 2010; 4: 1386–1397.10.1038/ismej.2010.59 ↗
33. Hubert C, Voordouw G. Oil field souring control by nitrate-reducing Sulfurospirillum spp. that outcompete sulfate-reducing bacteria for organic electron donors. Appl Environ Microbiol 2007; 73: 2644–2652.10.1128/AEM.02332-06 ↗
34. Iverson W, Olson G. Anaerobic corrosion by sulfate-reducing bacteria due to a highly-reactive volatile phosphorus compound. Final report. Technical report. Washington, DC: National Bureau of Standards, 1983: 46–53.
35. Jan-Roblero J, Romero J, Amaya M, Le Borgne S. Phylogenetic characterization of a corrosive consortium isolated from a sour gas pipeline. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2004; 64: 862–867.10.1007/s00253-004-1613-7 ↗
36. Javaherdashti R. Impact of sulphate-reducing bacteria on the performance of engineering materials. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2011; 91: 1507–1517.10.1007/s00253-011-3455-4 ↗
37. Johnson MS, Zhulin IB, Gapuzan M, Taylor BL. Oxygen-dependent growth of the obligate anaerobe Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough. J Bacteriol 1997; 179: 5598–5601.10.1128/jb.179.17.5598-5601.1997 ↗
38. King R, Miller J, Smith J. Corrosion of mild steel by iron sulphides. Br Corros J 1973a; 8: 137–141.10.1179/000705973798322251 ↗
39. King R, Miller J, Wakerley D. Corrosion of mild steel in cultures of sulphate-reducing bacteria: effect of changing the soluble iron concentration during growth. Br Corros J 1973b; 8: 89–93.10.1179/000705973798322396 ↗
40. Koch G, Brongers M, Thompson N, Virmani Y, Payer J. Corrosion cost and preventive strategies in the United States. Technical report. McLean, VA: Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center, 2002: E5–E6.
41. Larsen J, Rasmussen K, Pedersen H, Sarensen K, Lundgaard T, Skovhus TL. Consortia of MIC bacteria and archaea causing pitting corrosion in top side oil production facilities. In: Corrosion 2010, March 14–18, 2010, San Antonio, TX, USA. Houston, TX: NACE International, 2010: 10252.10.5006/C2010-10252 ↗
42. Lee W, Characklis W. Corrosion of mild steel under anaerobic biofilm. Corrosion 1993; 49: 186–199.10.5006/1.3316040 ↗
43. Lee A, Buehler M, Newman D. Influence of a dual-species biofilm on the corrosion of mild steel. Corros Sci 2006; 48: 165–178.10.1016/j.corsci.2004.11.013 ↗
44. Lichter JA, Thompson MT, Delgadillo M, Nishikawa T, Rubner MF, Van Vliet KJ. Substrata mechanical stiffness can regulate adhesion of viable bacteria. Biomacromolecules 2008; 9: 1571–1578.10.1021/bm701430y ↗
45. Lichter JA, Van Vliet KJ, Rubner MF. Design of antibacterial surfaces and interfaces: polyelectrolyte multilayers as a multifunctional platform. Macromolecules 2009; 42: 8573.10.1021/ma901356s ↗
46. Little B, Ray R, Wagner P, Jones-Meehan J, Lee C, Mansfeld F. Spatial relationships between marine bacteria and localized corrosion on polymer coated steel. Biofouling 1999; 13: 301–321.10.1080/08927019909378387 ↗
47. Ma H, Cheng X, Li G, Chen S, Quan Z, Zhao S, Niu L. The influence of hydrogen sulfide on corrosion of iron under different conditions. Corros Sci 2000; 42: 1669–1683.10.1016/S0010-938X(00)00003-2 ↗
48. Marques J, Almeida F, Lins U, Seldin L, Korenblum E. Nitrate treatment effects on bacterial community biofilm formed on carbon steel in produced water stirred tank bioreactor. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 2012; 28: 2355–2363.10.1007/s11274-012-1043-0 ↗
49. Maruthamuthu S, Kumar BD, Ramachandran S, Anandkumar B, Palanichamy S, Chandrasekaran M, Subramanian P, Palaniswamy N. Microbial corrosion in petroleum product transporting pipelines. Ind Eng Chem Res 2011; 50: 8006–8015.10.1021/ie1023707 ↗
50. Maxwell S. Predicting microbially influenced corrosion in seawater injection systems. In: SPE International Oilfield Corrosion Symposium, 30 May 2006, Aberdeen, UK. Richardson, TX: Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2006: 100519-MS.10.2118/100519-MS ↗
51. McElhiney J, Burger E, Maxwell S, Davis R, Walsh J. Adoption of a process to prevent souring associated with seawater waterflooding in the Ursa-Princess fields, deepwater Gulf of Mexico. In: SPE International Oilfield Corrosion Conference, 27 May 2008, Aberdeen, UK. Richardson, TX: Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2008: 113317-MS.
52. Miranda E, Bethencourt M, Botana F, Cano M, Sanchez-Amaya J, Corzo A, De Lomas J, Fardeau M, Ollivier B. Biocorrosion of carbon steel alloys by an hydrogenotrophic sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio capillatus isolated from a Mexican oil field separator. Corros Sci 2006; 48: 2417–2431.10.1016/j.corsci.2005.09.005 ↗
53. Mohanakrishnan J, Kofoed M, Barr J, Yuan Z, Schramm A, Meyer R. Dynamic microbial response of sulfidogenic wastewater biofilm to nitrate. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2011; 91: 1647–1657.10.1007/s00253-011-3330-3 ↗
54. Monds RD, O’Toole GA. The developmental model of microbial biofilms: ten years of a paradigm up for review. Trends Microbiol 2009; 17: 73–87.10.1016/j.tim.2008.11.001 ↗
55. Okabe S, Itoh T, Satoh H, Watanabe Y. Analyses of spatial distributions of sulfate-reducing bacteria and their activity in aerobic wastewater biofilms. Appl Environ Microbiol 1999; 65: 5107–5116.10.1128/AEM.65.11.5107-5116.1999 ↗
56. Picioreanu C, van Loosdrecht MC. A mathematical model for initiation of microbiologically influenced corrosion by differential aeration. J Electrochem Soc 2002; 149: B211–B223.10.1149/1.1470657 ↗
57. Rajasekar A, Anandkumar B, Maruthamuthu S, Ting Y-P, Rahman PK. Characterization of corrosive bacterial consortia isolated from petroleum-product-transporting pipelines. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2010; 85: 1175–1188.10.1007/s00253-009-2289-9 ↗
58. Rao T. Microbial fouling and corrosion: fundamentals and mechanisms. In: Operational and environmental consequences of large industrial cooling water systems. New York: Springer US, 2012: 95–126.10.1007/978-1-4614-1698-2_6 ↗
59. Rickard D, Luther III GW. Chemistry of iron sulfides. Chem Rev 2007; 107: 514–562.10.1021/cr0503658 ↗
60. Rochex A, Godon J, Bernet N, Escudie R. Role of shear stress on composition, diversity and dynamics of biofilm bacterial communities. Water Res 2008; 42: 4915–4922.10.1016/j.watres.2008.09.015 ↗
61. Roe F, Lewandowski Z, Funk T. Simulating microbiologically influenced corrosion by depositing extracellular biopolymers on mild steel surfaces. Corrosion 1996; 52: 744–752.10.5006/1.3292067 ↗
62. Rohwerder T, Gehrke T, Kinzler K, Sand W. Bioleaching review. Part A. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2003; 63: 239–248.10.1007/s00253-003-1448-7 ↗
63. Schwermer C, Lavik G, Abed R, Dunsmore B, Ferdelman T, Stoodley P, Gieseke A, De Beer D. Impact of nitrate on the structure and function of bacterial biofilm communities in pipelines used for injection of seawater into oil fields. Appl Environ Microbiol 2008; 74: 2841–2851.10.1128/AEM.02027-07 ↗
64. Sherar B, Power I, Keech P, Mitlin S, Southam G, Shoesmith D. Characterizing the effect of carbon steel exposure in sulfide containing solutions to microbially induced corrosion. Corros Sci 2011; 53: 955–960.10.1016/j.corsci.2010.11.027 ↗
65. Singer PC, Stumm W. Acidic mine drainage: the rate-determining step. Science 1970; 167: 1121.10.1126/science.167.3921.1121 ↗
66. Skovhus T, Holmkvist L, Andersen K, Larsen J, Pedersen H. MIC risk assessment of the Halfdan Oil Export Spool. In: SPE International Conference and Exhibition on Oilfield Corrosion, 28–29 May 2012, Aberdeen, UK. Richardson, TX: Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2012: 155080-MS.10.2118/155080-MS ↗
67. Sreekumari K, Nandakumar K, Kikuchi Y. Bacterial attachment to stainless steel welds: significance of substratum microstructure. Biofouling 2001; 17: 303–316.10.1080/08927010109378490 ↗
68. Stadler R, Wei L, Furbeth W, Grooters M, Kuklinski A. Influence of bacterial exopolymers on cell adhesion of Desulfovibrio vulgaris on high alloyed steel: corrosion inhibition by extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). Mater Corros 2010; 61: 1008–1016.10.1002/maco.201005819 ↗
69. Stoodley P, Jacobsen A, Dunsmore BC, Purevdorj B, Wilson S, Lappin-Scott HM, Costerton JW. The influence of fluid shear and AICI3 on the material properties of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 and Desulfovibrio sp. EX265 biofilms. Water Sci Technol 2001; 43: 113–120.10.2166/wst.2001.0353 ↗
70. Stott J. What progress in the understanding of microbially induced corrosion has been made in the last 25 years? A personal viewpoint. Corros Sci 1993; 35: 667–673.10.1016/0010-938X(93)90202-R ↗
71. Stumper R. La corrosion du fer en presence du sulfure de fer. Compt Rend Acad Sci (Paris) 1923; 176: 1316.
72. Thomas L, Chung Y. Comparison of MIC pit morphology with chloride induced pits in types 304/304l/E308 stainless steel base metal/welds. In: Corrosion 1999, April 25–30, 1999, San Antonio, TX, USA. Houston, TX: NACE International, 1999: 99159.10.5006/C1999-99159 ↗
73. Thomas WE, Trintchina E, Forero M, Vogel V, Sokurenko EV. Bacterial adhesion to target cells enhanced by shear force. Cell 2002; 109: 913–923.10.1016/S0092-8674(02)00796-1 ↗
74. Thorstenson T, Torsvik T, Beeder J, Lillebo B-L, Sunde E, Bodtker G. Biocide replacement by nitrate in sea water injection systems. In: Corrosion 2002, April 7–11, 2002, Denver, CO, USA. Houston, TX: NACE International, 2002: 02033.10.5006/C2002-02033 ↗
75. Videla H, Borgne S, Panter C, Singh Raman R. MIC of steels by iron reducing bacteria. Corrosion 2008, March 16–20, 2008, New Orleans, LA, USA. Houston, TX: NACE International, 2008: 08505.10.5006/C2008-08505 ↗
76. von Wolzogen Kuehr C, Van der Vlugt L. Graphitization of cast iron as an electrobiochemical process in anaerobic soils. Technical report. DTIC document. Fredrick, MD: US Army Biological Laboratories, 1964.
77. Voordouw G, Grigoryan AA, Lambo A, Lin S, Park HS, Jack TR, Coombe D, Clay B, Zhang F, Ertmoed R, Miner K, Arensdorf JJ. Sulfide remediation by pulsed injection of nitrate into a low temperature Canadian heavy oil reservoir. Environ Sci Technol 2009; 43: 9512–9518.10.1021/es902211j ↗
78. Vu B, Chen M, Crawford R, Ivanova E. Bacterial extracellular polysaccharides involved in biofilm formation. Molecules 2009; 14: 2535–2554.10.3390/molecules14072535 ↗
79. Wall J, Arkin A, Balci N, Rapp-Giles B. Genetics and genomics of sulfate respiration in desulfovibrio. In: Dahl C, Friedrich C, editors. Microbial sulfur metabolism. Berlin: Springer, 2008: 1–12.10.1007/978-3-540-72682-1_1 ↗
80. Wen J, Gu T, Nesic S. Investigation of the effects of fluid flow on SRB biofilm. In: Corrosion 2007, March 11–15, 2007, Nashville, TN, USA. Houston, TX: NACE International Corrosion 2007: 07516.10.5006/C2007-07516 ↗
81. Whitfield M, Ghose T, Thomas W. Shear-stabilized rolling behavior of E. coli examined with simulations. Biophys J 2010; 99: 2470–2478.10.1016/j.bpj.2010.08.045 ↗
82. Yuan S, Pehkonen S. AFM study of microbial colonization and its deleterious effect on 304 stainless steel by Pseudomonas NCIMB 2021 and Desulfovibrio desulfuricans in simulated seawater. Corros Sci 2009; 51: 1372–1385.10.1016/j.corsci.2009.03.037 ↗
83. Yu F, Dillon J, Henry T. Identification and control of microbiologically influenced corrosion in a power plant. In: Corrosion 2010, March 14–18, 2010, San Antonio, TX, USA. Houston, TX: NACE International, 2010: 10211.10.5006/C2010-10211 ↗
84. Zuo R. Biofilms: strategies for metal corrosion inhibition employing microorganisms. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2007; 76: 1245–1253.10.1007/s00253-007-1130-6 ↗