title: Airborne bacteria associated with corrosion of mild steel 1010 and aluminum alloy 1100.
abstract: A novel approach to measure the contribution of airborne bacteria on corrosion effects of mild steel (MS) and aluminum alloy (AA) as a function of their exposure period, and the atmospheric chemical composition was investigated at an urban industrial coastal site, Singapore. The 16S rRNA and phylogenetic analyses showed that Firmicutes are the predominant bacteria detected in AA and MS samples. The dominant bacterial groups identified were Bacillaceae, Staphylococcaceae, and Paenibacillaceae. The growth and proliferation of these bacteria could be due to the presence of humidity and chemical pollutants in the atmosphere, leading to corrosion. Weight loss showed stronger corrosion resistance of AA (1.37 mg/cm2) than MS (26.13 mg/cm2) over the exposure period of 150 days. The higher corrosion rate could be a result of simultaneous action of pollutants and bacterial exopolysaccharides on the metal surfaces. This study demonstrates the significant involvement of airborne bacteria on atmospheric corrosion of engineering materials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering & Minerals, Metals and Materials Technology Centre (M3TC), Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Block EA, 9 Engineering Drive 1, Singapore, 117576, Singapore. rajasekargood@gmail.com.|Environmental Molecular Microbiology Research Laboratory, Department of Biotechnology, Thiruvalluvar University, Serkkadu, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632 115, India. rajasekargood@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Aruliah
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rajasekar
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering & Minerals, Metals and Materials Technology Centre (M3TC), Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Block EA, 9 Engineering Drive 1, Singapore, 117576, Singapore.
authors.forename: Wang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering & Minerals, Metals and Materials Technology Centre (M3TC), Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Block EA, 9 Engineering Drive 1, Singapore, 117576, Singapore.|Biofouling and Biofilm Processing Section, Water and Steam Chemistry Division, BARC Facilities, Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu, 603 102, India.
authors.forename: Manivannan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sethuraman
authors.affiliation: Environmental Molecular Microbiology Research Laboratory, Department of Biotechnology, Thiruvalluvar University, Serkkadu, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632 115, India.
authors.forename: Punniyakotti
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Parthipan
authors.affiliation: Environmental Molecular Microbiology Research Laboratory, Department of Biotechnology, Thiruvalluvar University, Serkkadu, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632 115, India.
authors.forename: Punniyakotti
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Elumalai
mesh_terms: D000391:Air Microbiology; D000497:Alloys / Q000737:chemistry*; D000535:Aluminum / Q000737:chemistry*; D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development; D003343:Corrosion; D010802:Phylogeny; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics; D013232:Steel / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000497:Alloys; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; D013232:Steel; D000535:Aluminum
keywords: 16S rRNA analysis; Aluminum alloy; Atmospheric corrosion; Biofilm; Microbial community; Mild steel