Iron-Corroding Methanogen Isolated from a Crude-Oil Storage Tank

Microbiologically influenced corrosion of steel in anaerobic environments has been attributed to hydrogenotrophic microorganisms. A sludge sample collected from the bottom plate of a crude-oil storage tank was used to inoculate a medium containing iron (Fe⁰) granules, which was then incubated anaerobically at 37°C under an N₂-CO₂ atmosphere to enrich for microorganisms capable of using iron as the sole source of electrons. A methanogen, designated strain KA1, was isolated from the enrichment culture. An analysis of its 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that strain KA1 is a Methanococcus maripaludis strain. Strain KA1 produced methane and oxidized iron much faster than did the type strain of M. maripaludis, strain JJT, which produced methane at a rate expected from the abiotic H₂ production rate from iron. Scanning electron micrographs of iron coupons that had been immersed in either a KA1 culture, a JJT culture, or an aseptic medium showed that only coupons from the KA1 culture had corroded substantially, and these were covered with crystalline deposits that consisted mainly of FeCO₃.