Microorganisms influence corrosion by changing the electrochemical conditions at the metal/solution interface. These changes may have different effects, ranging from the induction of localized corrosion to corrosion inhibition. The key to the alteration of conditions at a metal surface and hence, the enhancement or inhibition of corrosion is the formation of a biofilm. On a biologically conditioned metal surface microorganisms can induce corrosion inhibition in several ways: a) by neutralizing the action of a corrosive substance already present in the medium; b) by stabilizing a protective film on a metal surface or c) by inducing a decrease in the medium aggressiveness. Seldomly mentioned in the literature, microbial inhibition of corrosion could be a potentially useful tool to counteract many of the biodeterioration cases encountered in practice.

Subject
Corrosion rate, Metal surfaces, Iron, Biofilms, Corrosion products, Metals, Bacteria, Corrosion inhibitors, Microbial corrosion, Oxygen, Corrosion mechanisms, Aluminum alloys, Microorganisms
Keywords:
microbial corrosion, microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC), biofilms, corrosion inhibition, extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), sulphate-reducing bacteria (SRB), Serratia marcescens
© 1996 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
1996
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
You do not currently have access to this content.