Corrosion Control by Bacterial Biofilms- An Overview

Abstract

In earlier days it was believed that the presence of microbes at a slightly higher density (i.e 10^4 CFU) showed that the environment was corrosive. In the year 1995 researchers identified that there are certain groups of microorganisms which can offer protection to the materials. The majority of the research work concentrated on microbiologically influenced corrosion. Only limited research work is available on corrosion control by microorganisms. The present review mainly deals with a brief definition of microbiologically induced corrosion control, types of microorganisms offering corrosion protection, mechanisms of corrosion inhibition, the effect of inhibitive species on ennoblement, the effect of the same species during cathodic protection of metals and the practical applications of corrosion inhibitive species