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AN INTRODUCTION TO MICROBIOLOGICALLY
INFLUENCED CORROSION IN THE
MARINE AND OIL INDUSTRY
Compiled by Stewart Bowker. GloCoating Engineering
Understanding The Effects Of Algae, Bacteria, Fungi, And Other Marine Life On Paint And Cathodic Protection Is
Important To Preventing Microbiologically Influenced Corrosion On Ships And Marine Structures.
Bacteria can rapidly corrode steel under certain conditions, especially in oil storage tanks. Bacteria can destroy
coatings either by using paint resins as nutrients or by generating acidic conditions to which some paints, such as
polyamide epoxies, are not resistant. This paper gives an introduction to microbiologically influenced corrosion
(MIC) of hydrocarbon storage tank structures and the performance of coatings systems used to protect them.
What Is MIC?
MIC is corrosion that is affected by the presence of microscopic, one-celled living organisms, including algae,
fungi, and bacteria. These organisms can initiate corrosion, effect, and the corrosion rate, destroy protective
coatings, and affect cathodic protection.
Corrosive bacteria can thrive in all aqueous environments, from fully aerated to low oxygen to oxygen free
conditions, as long as the environment has a nutrient source for the bacteria. In hydrocarbon storage tanks, bacteria
can thrive in the water layer at the bottom of the tanks, where they eat oil and form slimy black colonies on the
floors and walls of the tank. They seem to particularly thrive at the edge of sediment deposits at the bottom of
tanks. Once these bacteria become established and active, it is difficult to control them. They can perforate steel
rapidly at rates 50 times that of normal corrosion in seawater. Bacteria can also generate poisonous hydrogen
sulfide gas. Which has been known to the part to have killed workers entering Tanks.
Seawater can be looked at as bacteria soup, with about 1,000,000 bacteria living in each millimeter of seawater
under normal conditions. Most of these bacteria are harmless or beneficial, including many kinds that do very
useful things such as eating spilled oil and degrading dead organic matter. But of the bacteria in seawater, there are
also typically about 1,000 - 10,000 bacteria per millimeter that can cause corrosion of steel. Once conditions are
right, these corrosive bacteria thrive and multiply. They can then cause significant damage to steel structure.
CORROCOAT an engineering approach to corrosion problems
Awarded ISO 9002 1992. 1987/EN29002 : 1987/BS5750 : Part 2 1987
A Primer On Bacteria
Traits of Bacteria
Bacteria are tiny, single-celled organisms that live in water and perform a huge variety of functions. They are very
adaptive and tremendous survivors. Most bacteria have relatively short lives 1 to 2 days and reproduce rapidly when
conditions are right. Under good growth conditions, some bacteria can double their populations every 20 minutes,
limited only by the availability of nutrients. Fortunately, the kinds of bacteria that cause corrosion are relatively
slow growers, typically taking up to 16 to 20 hours to double their populations.
Bacteria live in water and utilize organic matter for food. Some corrosion causing bacteria, such as acid-producing
and sulfate-reducing, specialize in consuming oil or other hydrocarbons. If bacteria do not have enough of their
preferred food, they utilize whatever is available but usually at a reduced growth rate. Bacteria colonies have the
appearance of thin, slimy, black deposits on the surface.

The terms thrive and survive are used to describe bacteria as opposed to live and die. They are great
survivors. Some generate spores that can survive in a dormant state for years, only to thrive when conditions are
right.
Bacteria are also very adaptive, adjusting to the conditions of a system. They learn to utilize almost any available
nutrients for food, as illustrated by the discovery of bacteria in the Love Canal, NY, that actually metabolize poly
chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Types of Bacteria that Cause Corrosion
Several types of bacteria are known to create corrosive conditions. The 2 best known types of corrosive bacteria in
the oil industry are sulfate-reducing bacteria and acid-producing bacteria. Other corrosion-causing types are sulfuroxidizing bacteria and iron-precipitating bacteria. These 4 types of bacteria, as well as many other types that are not
so well known, usually live together synergistically in colonies attached to the surface of the steel, where they help
each other grow.
* Acid-producing bacteria (APB) partially oxidize hydrocarbons to form organic acids. APB are usually the first
to colonize the surface of the metal. They are facultative, that is, they thrive under virtually all conditions, from
fully aerated water to waters in which there is only a slight amount of oxygen in the water, typically in the range of
0.1 ppm. These bacteria use oxygen to metabolize hydrocarbons, producing organic acids such as acetic aid
(CH3COOH), formic acid (H-COOH), and propionic acid (C2H5COOH). These bacteria can cause very acidic
conditions to develop beneath the colony. By consuming oxygen as it diffused through the biofilm, APB also create
oxygen flow conditions under the colony, which permit anaerobic sulfate-reducing bacteria to thrive.
* Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) are strict anaerobes: They can thrive only in a completely oxygen-free
environment. They obtain the oxygen they require by extracting it from sulfate ion in the water. SRB also utilize
hydrocarbons as food, but actually prefer to use the organic acids given off by APR. After the bacteria remove the
oxygen from the sulfate ion, they discard the sulfide ion in the form of hydrogen sulfide.
Hydrogen sulfide is a poisonous corrosive gas that is soluble in water. The presence of the hydrogen sulfide and
organic acids under the bacteria colonies creates galvanic concentration cells that cause corrosion. Further, under
aerated conditions, it is possible for the hydrogen sulfide to oxidize to elemental sulfur.
* Sulfur-oxidizing bacteria oxidize elemental sulfur to form sulfuric acid. A strong mineral acid, sulfuric acid can
cause very acidic conditions to develop, leading to very rapid attack of steel. It is thought that once the acidic
conditions develop, bacteria may no longer be required to continue the corrosion process.
* Iron-precipitating bacteria, which are generally considered to be aerobic, characterized by the precipitation of
filamentous iron and manganese hydroxides and by the formation of a hard sheath or coating of iron hydroxide
around the bacterium. When these bacteria become attached to a metal surface, the result is the formation of a
blister-like growth known as a tubercle. One type, Gallionella, further tend to concentrate chlorides in their
deposits, which act as dilute acid, and are uniquely corrosive.
How Bacteria Affect Corrosion.
Bacteria exist in 2 forms as sessile (fixed) colonies attached to the wall of a pipe or tank, and as free-swimming
planktonic bacteria in the water. Sulfate-reducing and acid-producing bacteria actually prefer to live on metal
surfaces, where they can obtain the electrons needed for some of their enzymeactivated metabolic reactions.
Planktonic bacteria settle on the surface of the pipe or tank and develop into sessile colonies, Sessile bacteria are
measured in terms of population density. For instance, there may be 100 or 1,000,000 bacteria living on each square
centimeter of surface. The density of bacteria is important because the colony can be thought of as a bacteria film
of a certain thickness. Typically, if there are more than about 10,000 bacteria per square cm, then the bacteria
colony is thick enough to change the environment beneath the colony so that a galvanic cell develops. The cell, in
turn, leads to corrosion of the steel.

Acid-producing and sulfate-reducing bacteria live together synergistically, meaning that they assist each other so
that the 2 types together do better than either type by itself. The APB seem to colonize the surface initially, forming
sessile colonies. As they consume dissolved oxygen to metabolize organic matter, they create oxygen-free
conditions in which SRB can thrive. The SRB live underneath the acid producers, adjacent to the steel. SRB prefer
to metabolize the organic acids created by the APB. Since the acids are already partially oxidize, the SRB do not
have to expend much energy eating them.
Hydrogen sulfide, given off by the SRB, is also trapped beneath the colony, allowing it to accumulate to higher (and
more corrosive) levels. A biofilm develops over sessile bacteria colonies, protecting them from biocides. This film
must be disrupted for most bacterial control programs to be effective.
Actually, APB and SRB co-exist with numerous other organisms within biofilms, but because they are easily
cultured and because their presence has been identified in numerous corrosion failures, APB and SRB have become
indicator organisms for MIC. They are therefore the focus of the remainder of this article.
MIC in the Oil Industry.
MIC in Crude Oil Tanks, Oil Production Facilities and Pipelines.
The production and pipeline industries have had extensive experience with bacterial corrosion problems and have
therefore developed strategies and techniques to deal with this problem. First, offshore oil and gas wells are
frequently drilled with seawater-based drilling muds. These muds have resulted in producing wells contaminated
with bacteria. The wells subsequently feed bacteria into production piping systems. Serious corrosion problems
occur in these production piping systems. Corrosion can cause leaks and failures in offshore pipelines in as few as 4
years if no control measures are taken. The production piping systems, in turn, often feed the bacteria into the
cargoes of tanks and crude oil tankers, where further corrosion problems arise.
The magnitude of the MIC problem can be illustrated by the damage caused to a ten-year-old oil pipeline, Bacterial
corrosion inside the line has already penetrated 60% through the 0.625 inch (16 millimeter) wall thickness of the
pipe, an average corrosion rate of 35 mils (0.95 mm) per year. The corrosion occurs where water collects at low
points in the line. If control measures using chemical corrosion in-hibitors and biocides are not effective in
preventing further corrosion, de-rating (reduction in allowable operating pressure) of the line will be required,
followed by replacement of the line at a cost that may reach several hundred million dollars.
Bacteria have also been a nemesis of waterfloods used in the secondary recovery of oil. In this process, additional
oil is produced by flooding oil-bearing rock with water. Produced water, seawater, and make-up water from various
sources such as lakes and streams are used to flood the rock. Produced water is the water produced along with the
oil from oil wells. All of the water is deaerated to reduce corrosion, providing an ideal growth medium for SRB.
Bacteria are especially a problem when produced water containing hydrocarbon residuals is used. Many fields have
turned sour, and pipelines and other facilities have been destroyed by the corrosion generated by these bacteria.
Offshore platform drain system sumps have also been a very serious problem, as deck washings containing oil are
drained into sump caissons in the sea. The system becomes stagnant and SRB thrive, reaching concentrations of
1,000,000 to 10,000,000 per ml, with the water turning black. When the oil is recovered and put into pipelines,
serious corrosion problems often result.
MIC In Ships
On ships, MIC occurs in ballast tanks, the bottoms of oil cargo tanks, and the bottoms of bulk carriers. In ballast
tanks, corrosion from aerobic APB occurs on the walls and bottoms of the tanks, especially at the edge of sediment
deposits. In cargo tanks, anaerobic bacteria can thrive in the water layer that collects in the bottoms of the tanks. In
bulk cargo holds, sulfides in such cargoes as coal can air-oxidize to elemental sulfur and then be oxidized by
bacteria to form sulfuric acid.
Rates Of MIC.

MIC rates can be very rapid, in the range of 30 to 120 mils (0.8 to 3 mm) per year. The rates have been measured in
excess of 1,000 mils (25 mm) per year. Munger1, reported pitting corrosion rates of 80 to 160 mils (2 to 4 mm) per
year in an uncoated oil ballast tank of an oil tanker in sour Middle East crude service. Pit densities of 4 to 15/sq ft
(43 to 163/sq m) on horizontal surfaces were observed on uncoated steel, with pit density becoming progressively
greater from the top horizontal to the bottom. He also found that the pattern of pit density was unaffected by the
zinc anodes, with pits found adjacent to the anodes as well as at the points farthest from the anodes. In the cargo
ballast tank of a second ship, he found that on all upper surfaces of horizontal stiffeners, the upper flanges of the
main keel and the longitudinal stiffeners were badly pitted. The pits were found to be growing into each other. The
largest were 6 in. (150 mm) in diameter, and the smallest were in. (13 mm) in diameter. Thus, for some reason
cathodic protection did not effectively prevent corrosion, even right next to the anode, where it should have had
maximum effectiveness.
Munger described the pits as having a bright red oxide upper surface with soft black pasty material between the
surface and the steel. The steel below was bright. The edges of the pits were sharp and distinct, with the area
around the edges covered with a very tightly adherent black scale 2 to 3 mm (80 to 120 mils) thick . Sulfides were
present as evidenced by tarnishing of coin silver. Liquids on both horizontal and vertical surfaces were found to
have pH in the range of 3 to 6. This same corrosion pattern which shows pitting caused by MIC in the internally
coated ballast tank of an oil tanker.
Huang3 reported microbiologically influenced pitting corrosion in the bottom plating of a five-year-old, 150,000
DWT (135,000 DWT) single hull tanker. The average depth of corrosion pits was 2 to 3 mm (80 to 120 mils), with
a density of 200 to 400 pits/sq. m's' (18 to 36 pits/sq. ft). The pitting corrosion rate in the bottom plating was 0.5 to
1.0 mm (20 to 40 mils) per year, 5 times higher than normally predicted.
Inspection of other single hull and double hull vessels showed that MIC problems existed in varying degrees, with 7millimeter-deep (280-mil-deep) pits in a five-year-old vessel and 4-millimeter-deep (160-mil-deep) pits in a twoyear-old vessel.
Controlling MIC
Testing for Bacteria
MIC is not always visually apparent, so to control it, it must first be identified. Monitoring for the presence of APB
and SRB can be done several ways. The most common method is to culture bacteria in special nutrient brutish,
using the API-RP-38 Serial Dilution Method to estimate bacteria population numbers as contained in NACE.
STP-01-94, Standard Test Method for Field Monitoring for Bacterial Growth in Oilfield systems. The nutrient
broth in these bottles is specific to the kind of bacteria tested. Each bottle gives a 10:1 dilution compared to the
previous bottle, giving an order of magnitude estimate of bacteria population. (N.G.C.E this system).
Other methods include use of enzyme tests and classic staining techniques. Electrochemical tests can also be made,
SRB depolarize the cathode by removing electrons from the metal, increasing the corrosion rate. Indirect techniques
include analyzing the corrosion products for sulfides and sniffing for the presence of hydrogen sulfide. Iron sulfide
in the corrosion product is usually a sure sign of SRB.
Biocides
The conventional method of controlling bacteria is with biocides such as chlorine or glutaraldehyde Chlorination can
be easily accomplished by electrolysis of seawater, generating sodium hypochlorite. Approximately 3 to 7 ppm
chlorine is required to meet the chlorine demand of seawater, depending upon the biomass concentration in the
water. Chlorine demand is the amount of chlorine that reacts with the organic and inorganic matter in seawater,
generally interpreted to be a measure of the bacteria content, because most chlorine is consumed while killing
bacteria. The chlorine demand of seawater is easily measured by adding chlorine and measuring the residual.
Approximately 1 to 2 ppm residual is required to ensure that resistant species, including sulfate reducers, are killed.

Huang3 reported on the use of an initial shock biocide treatment of a cargo tank bottom after the tank had been
cleaned and made free of oil residues. Thereafter, the tank-bottom was soaked with a 300-millimeter (12-inch)
depth of water mixed with biocide at a dosage of 500 to 1,000 ppm. Surfactant was also added to help the biocide
penetrate the wax and speed biocide penetration through solids. The biocide was retained for a minimum of 24
hours killing time before being discharge.
Biocides, however, may not be practical in ships, because chlorination makes seawater more corrosive, and the use
of chemical biocides in ballast water that must be discharged overboard may not be permitted. In any case, the best
that can be achieved is a short-term reduction in bacteria. The tanks are quickly re-infected by contact with seawater
of infected crude oils, Ships therefore use coatings or a combination of coatings and cathodic protection to protect
cargo and ballast tanks against corrosion.5 Controlling MIC in Ships with coating and Cathodic Protection
Controlling MIC in Ships And Hydrocarbon Storage Tanks with Coatings and Cathodic Protection
Bacteria are able to utilize some organic compounds in coatings as nutrients and can cause other coatings to
deteriorate when exposed to bacterial by products. Understanding the effects of algae, bacteria, and fungi and other
marine life of paint and cathodic protection is important to preventing MIC in ships or Hydrocarbon storage tanks.
Effective coatings act as a barrier between the steel and the environment, while cathodic protection protects the steel
at imperfections in the coating. The protective barrier that coatings provide against bacteria is the same as the
barrier provided for water and air. That is, the barrier acts to physically separate the bacteria and the steel and
prevent contact between the bacteria-altered electrolyte environment and the steel. Bacteria are about 1 micrometer
(0.04 mils) in size and substantially larger than molecules of water or air (0.001 micrometers). While the bacteria
themselves obviously cannot penetrate the coating, the coating must act to be an effective permeation barrier
(please refer to Corrocoats permeation chart in attached brochure) to the organic acids and hydrogen sulfide
given off by the bacteria, and must resist deterioration by these chemicals or the bacteria that produce them.
Coating Materials
* Soft wax float coats are reported not to have been effective against corrosion, and the thick coating that
results is difficult to inspect. The use of float coats has been discouraged in bulk carriers and tankers by the
American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), which requires annual inspections for tanks treated with float coats compared
to three-year inspection intervals for tanks coated with hard coatings. The ineffectiveness of float coats would not
be surprising to a microbiologist because the wax would provide a hydrocarbon nutrient for the bacteria, so much so
that bacteria are presently being used to remove paraffin deposits from the tubing of producing oil wells. Unless a
biocide were included in the formulation of a float coat, the coating would provide ideal growth conditions for
bacterial by supplying both nutrient and shelter for APB and SRB.
* Alkyd coatings use organic binder resins dissolved in solvent to form a protective film after the solvent
evaporates, usually by reaction with oxygen. They are not used extensively in tanker ballast or cargo holds because
of their poor performance in the presence of cathodic protection and their and their solubility in oils.
Even in the absence of cathodic protection, alkyds can be attacked by bacteria, leading to corrosion of the steel.
* Previously epoxy a chemically cured coating, was the most common type-of coating used in ships tanks and
hydrocarbon storage tanks The resistance of epoxy to bacteria depends upon the type of epoxy and the curing agent
used. The epoxy resin itself is apparently not attacked directly by the bacteria, but rather is degraded by the acid byproducts that collect underneath the bacteria colonies. Commercial epoxies are also sometimes somewhat porous
because of the use of fillers. Porosity would further promote bacterial growth by providing shelter to the bacteria in
the pores.
Except for amino acid-cured epoxies, amine-cured epoxies have the least resistance to acid and, therefore, are the
most susceptible to bacteria acid attack. Epoxy novolac coatings have the best acid resistance of epoxies but are
more expensive to use. Use of the novolac epoxies can be restricted to the areas of the tanks actually in contact with
the bacteria, such as the bottoms of oil tanks and the bottoms of ballast tanks and several feet up their sides.

Addition of coal tar to the epoxy improves acid resistance of the coating because of the properties of the coal tar
pitch. However solvents within the coating will provide the nutrients that are required to sustain S.R.Bs. In
addition coal tar coatings are dark, and are difficult to inspect, in addition there are health concerns relating to this
coating formulation.
Urethanes are also chemically cured coatings. They show good resistance to bacterial attack. Bacteria will grow
on urethane but apparently to not degrade the coating. A single topcoat of urethane can be applied over epoxy in the
bottoms of tanks to provide resistance to MIC.
Cathodic Protection and MIC
Cathodic protection, used to supplement the coating and controls corrosion by electrically preventing the corrosion
reaction on the metal surface. Electric current is supplied by sacrificial anodes made of zinc, aluminum alloys or
magnesium, or impressed current anodes in combination with a transformer rectifier.
In cathodic protection, the cathode half cell reactions cause the pH at the cathodic surface to increase either by
consuming hydrogen ions or by generating hydroxyl ions. The high pH tends to precipitate a calcareous film
containing mixed calcium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide. The calcareous deposit that grows on steel in
natural seawater has a composition that depends on the current density on the surface.
High current densities, in the range of 50 milliamps (ma)/sq ft (540 ma/sq m), result in deposits that are higher in
calcium carbonate and that have greater long-term protective value. In ships, when a combination of cathodic
protection and coatings is used, the small bare area of the coating receives a high current density.
The effect of bacteria on cathodic protection seems to vary somewhat according to conditions. The presence of
bacteria in calcareous films produced by cathodic protection has been confirmed6. Cathodic protection has been
shown in the laboratory not to be able to remove pre-existing biofilms from the surface, but the presence of biofilms
changes the morphology of the calcareous deposit.
Another possible effect of cathodic protection on MIC is that bacteria usually do not thrive at a pH in the range of
10-11, the normal pH on bare steel surfaces under cathodic protection. In natural seawater, the higher pH produced
by cathodic protection seems to result in an initial reduction in bacteria in the calcareous deposit formed on steels,
but in less than half a day the bacteria population goes back to normalize levels6.
In fact, as Little and Wagner note, Dhar demonstrated that cathodic protection retarded bacterial growth when the
potential was more negative than -1.024 V compared to a saturated Calomel (Hg/HgCl) reference electrode.6
Numerous other researches have demonstrated a relationship between marine fouling and calcareous deposits on
cathodically protected surfaces.
Another effect that SRB can have on cathodic protection is that the bacteria can colonize sacrificial anodes and
reduce current output by 75%. This has the impact of reducing the effectiveness of the cathodic protection system
and therefore possibly inadequately protecting a tank.
Despite the evidence that bacteria and calcareous deposits co-exist on cathodically protected surfaces, their
interrelationships are not understood. Microbiological data for cathodically protected surfaces are confusing and
impossible to compare because of differing condition, including the composition and organic content of the
seawater.
Summary
Bacteria can cause corrosion of hydrocarbon storage tank, oil cargo tank bottoms, ballast tanks, and in bulk cargo
holds. Bacteria can damage paint in these tanks, especially float coats, alkyds, and some epoxies, depending upon
the curing system used. Coal tar epoxy, epoxy novolac, and urethane are some what resistant to damage by bacteria.
In the 1990s Vinyl Ester Flake Glass coatings have come of age and have proved to provide excellent resistance to

MIC, as well as having excellent resistant to chemical and abrasive attack. Coats of these materials may be applied
in the bottom of tanks and for several feet up the sides to obtain protection against MIC.
References
1. Charles G. Munger. Deep Pitting Corrosion in sour Crude Oil Tankers, Materials Performance (March 1976),
17-23

2. J.S. Smart, Unpublished field studies.

3. Rong T. Huang. Microbial Influenced Corrosion in Cargo Oil Tanks, Presentation to the NACE T-14B
Marine Vessel Corrosion Committee. Corrosion / 96. Denver, CO, March 1996 (Houston, TX : NACE
International, 1996)
4. API-RP 38, Biological Analysis of Water-flood Injection Waters 3rd edition, (out of print) (Washington, DC)
American Petroleum Instutue, 1975). Also contained in NACE STP-01-94, Standard Test Method for field
Monitoring for Bacterial Growth in Oilfield systems (Houston, TX : NACE International, 1994).
5. Benjamin S. Fuhz, Strategies for Protecting Ballast Tanks in ships. Journal of Protective Coatings & Linings
(September 1984), 24-33.
6. Brenda J. Little and
7. Patricia A. Wagner, Internationship Between Marine Biofouling and Cathodic Protection, Materials
Performance (September 1993). 16-20.
8. George Schick, Corrosion Control in the Presence of Sulfate Reducing Bacteria, Materials Performance (July
1990), 26-32.
Please Note :G.C.E. have test kits which provide field testing to check from the presence of sulfate reducing
bacteria (S.R.B). For more information on MIC and solvent free flaked glass coatings, kindly contact your nearest
Corrocoat office.