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Microbially Influenced Corrosion of 304 Stainless Steel and Titanium by P. variotii and A. niger in Humid Atmosphere

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Abstract

Microbially induced corrosion (MIC) poses significant threats to reliability and safety of engineering materials and structures. While most MIC studies focus on prokaryotic bacteria such as sulfate-reducing bacteria, the influence of fungi on corrosion behaviors of metals has not been adequately reported. In this study, 304 stainless steel and titanium were exposed to two very common fungi, Paecilomyces variotii, Aspergillus niger and their mixtures under highly humid atmosphere. The initial corrosion behaviors within 28 days were studied via scanning Kelvin probe, which showed marked surface ennoblement and increasingly heterogeneous potential distribution upon prolonged fungus exposure. Using stereomicroscopy, fungus growth as well as corrosion morphology of 304 stainless steel and titanium were also evaluated after a long-term exposure for 60 days. The presence of fungi decreased the corrosion resistance for both 304 stainless steel and titanium. Titanium showed higher resistance to fungus growth and the induced corrosion. Exposure to the mixed strains resulted in the highest fungus growth rate but the mildest corrosion, possibly due to the decreased oxygen level by increased fungal activities.

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Acknowledgments

This work is supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51401018), the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program Project, No. 2014CB643300).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Corrosion & Protection Center, University of Science & Technology Beijing, Fushi Bldg., 30 Xueyuan Rd., Haidian District, Beijing, 100083, China

    Dawei Zhang, Feichi Zhou, Kui Xiao, Tianyu Cui, Hongchong Qian & Xiaogang Li

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  1. Dawei Zhang
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  3. Kui Xiao
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Correspondence to Kui Xiao.

Electronic supplementary material

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Figure S1

a) 304 stainless steel and b) titanium surfaces after 28 days of exposure to nutrient solution (TIFF 776 kb)

Figure S2

EDS analyses on a) bare surface and b) corrosion product of 304 stainless steel exposed to P. variotii (TIFF 895 kb)

Figure S3

EDS analyses on a) bare surface and b) corrosion product of 304 stainless steel exposed to A. niger (TIFF 860 kb)

Figure S4

Potential distribution on bare surfaces of a) 304 stainless steel and b) titanium; c) Gaussian fitting curve of potential distribution on bare stainless steel (TIFF 280 kb)

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Zhang, D., Zhou, F., Xiao, K. et al. Microbially Influenced Corrosion of 304 Stainless Steel and Titanium by P. variotii and A. niger in Humid Atmosphere. J. of Materi Eng and Perform 24, 2688–2698 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-015-1558-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-015-1558-2

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