Acid corrosion mechanism of the sulfate-reducing bacteria and protecting studies in oilfield
油田硫酸盐还原菌酸化腐蚀机制及防治研究进展

Sulfate-reducing bacteria(SRB) are prokaryotic microorganisms that obtain energy by oxidizing organic compounds or molecular hydrogen H2 while reducing sulfates to hydrogen sulfide. SRB occur widely in anaerobic environments (e.g. soils, freshwater, marine sediments, underground pipelines, oil and gas wells, and rust layers and harbours) where the pH values range from 6 to. Desulfovibrio desulfuricans is known as one of the most important members of SRB that are involved in corrosions of metal facilities including alloy oil systems. In practice, sulfate- rich seawater, which is often injected into oil wells for secondary or oil recovery, will favor the growth of SRB, leading to more H2S production, water acidification in oilfields. As a consequence, quality of oil and natural gas may become worsened, and oil blockage may take place. By and large, SRB-caused corrosion represents one of the most serious problems waiting being resolved. So far, More measures has been taken to slow down SRB-caused corrosion, while sustainable approaches with lower cost have to be developed. Among these, Bio-Competitive Inhibition Technology (BCX) is of great potential to controlling growth and metabolism of SRB. The principle of this technology is that specific agents, original or activated microbes are added to the systems, and these players then compete with the SRB for source of nutrition, and produce metabolites to inhibit the growth of SRB. In this article, we review many aspects mentioned above, and highlight the future directions in this research field.