Deciphering microbial communities involved in marine steel corrosion using high-throughput amplicon sequencing

To characterize the source and effects of bacterial communities on corrosion of intertidal structures, three different UK coastal sites were sampled for corrosion materials, sediment and seawater. Chemical analyses indicate the activity of sulfate-reducing microbes (SRBs) at 2 sites (Shoreham and Newhaven), but not at the third (Southend-on-Sea). Microbial communities in the deep sediment and corrosion samples are similar. The phylum Proteobacteria is dominant (40.4% of the total ASV), followed by Campilobacterota (11.3%), Desulfobacterota and Firmicutes (4%–5%). At lower taxonomic levels, corrosion causing bacteria, such as Shewanella sp. (6%), Colwellia sp. (7%) and Mariprofundus sp. (1%), are present. At Southend-on-sea, the relative abundance of Campilobacterota is higher compared to the other two sites. The mechanism of action of microorganisms at Shoreham and Newhaven involves biogenic sulfuric acid corrosion of iron by the combined action of SRBs and sulfur-oxidizing microbes. However, at Southend-on-sea, sulfur compounds are not implicated in corrosion, but SRBs and other electroactive microbes may play a role in which cathodic reactions (electrical MIC) and microbial enzymes (chemical MIC) are involved. To contribute to diagnosis of accelerated intertidal corrosion types, we developed a rapid identification method for SRBs using quantitative polymerase chain reaction high-resolution melt curve analysis of the dsrB gene.