Effect of hydrogenase and mixed sulfate-reducing bacterial populations on the corrosion of steel

Abstract

The importance of hydrogenase activity to corrosion of steel was assessed by using mixed populations of sulfate-reducing bacteria isolated from corroded and noncorroded oil pipelines. Biofilms which developed on the steel studs contained detectable numbers of sulfate-reducing bacteria (104 increasing to 107/0.5 cm2). However, the biofilm with active hydrogenase activity (i.e., corrosion pipeline organisms), as measured by a semiquantitative commercial kit, was associated with a significantly higher corrosion rate (7.79 mm/year) relative to noncorrosive biofilm (0.48 mm/year) with 105 sulfate-reducing bacteria per 0.5 cm2 but no measurable hydrogenase activity. The importance of hydrogenase and the microbial sulfate-reducing bacterial population making up the biofilm are discussed relative to biocorrosion.