Abstract
In marine environments and water systems, it is easy for many structures to form biofilms on their surfaces and to be deteriorated due to the corrosion caused by biofilm formation by bacteria. The authors have investigated the antibacterial effects of metallic elements in practical steels so far to solve food-related problems, using Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. However, from the viewpoint of material deterioration caused by bacteria and their antifouling measures, we should consider the biofilm behavior as aggregate rather than individual bacterium. Therefore, we picked up Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Pseudoalteromonas carageenovara in this study, since they easily form biofilms in estuarine and marine environments. We investigated what kind of metallic elements could inhibit the biofilm formation at first and then discussed how the thin films of those inhibitory elements on steels could affect biofilm formation. The information would lead to the establishment of effective antifouling measures against corrosion in estuarine and marine environments.
Highlights
The importance of biofilm formation and its inhibition and mitigation technology have been recognized from the industrial viewpoint only gradually, since people have recognized the important role of biofilm to deteriorate the function of materials and their structures [1,2]
The corrosion of materials caused by biofilm formation and the following growth would lead to maintenance and repair of marine structures, water systems etc, and the costs can sometimes be huge
Even though the data and knowledge obtained in the current study were very fundamental at this point, they are expected to be highly applicable to practical inhibition or mitigation techniques against the biofilm formation and development for water systems and marine structures
Summary
The importance of biofilm formation and its inhibition and mitigation technology have been recognized from the industrial viewpoint only gradually, since people have recognized the important role of biofilm to deteriorate the function of materials and their structures [1,2]. The corrosion of materials caused by biofilm formation and the following growth would lead to maintenance and repair of marine structures, water systems etc, and the costs can sometimes be huge It is very important, from a scientific viewpoint, and from an economical one, to clarify the mechanisms of biofilm formation, and to establish techniques for their inhibition and mitigation. Bacteria tend to gather together and form a micro-space at the surface of various materials surrounded by the slime they secrete, as biofilm can make them resist more against some “foreign enemy” such as biocides, or fluid movements which could kill them or forcibly remove them. Even though the data and knowledge obtained in the current study were very fundamental at this point, they are expected to be highly applicable to practical inhibition or mitigation techniques against the biofilm formation and development for water systems and marine structures
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