Corrosion-influencing microorganisms in petroliferous regions on a global scale: systematic review, analysis, and scientific synthesis of 16S amplicon metagenomic studies

Abstract

The objective of the current systematic review was to evaluate the taxonomic composition and relative abundance of bacteria and archaea associated with the microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC), and the prediction of their metabolic functions in different sample types from oil production and transport structures worldwide. To accomplish this goal, a total of 552 published studies on the diversity of microbial communities using 16S amplicon metagenomics in oil and gas industry facilities indexed in Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed and OnePetro databases were analyzed on 10th May 2021. The selection of articles was performed following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Only studies that performed amplicon metagenomics to obtain the microbial composition of samples from oil fields were included. Studies that evaluated oil refineries, carried out amplicon metagenomics directly from cultures, and those that used DGGE analysis were removed. Data were thoroughly investigated using multivariate statistics by ordination analysis, bivariate statistics by correlation, and microorganisms’ shareability and uniqueness analysis. Additionally, the full deposited databases of 16S rDNA sequences were obtained to perform functional prediction. A total of 69 eligible articles was included for data analysis. The results showed that the sulfidogenic, methanogenic, acid-producing, and nitrate-reducing functional groups were the most expressive, all of which can be directly involved in MIC processes. There were significant positive correlations between microorganisms in the injection water (IW), produced water (PW), and solid deposits (SD) samples, and negative correlations in the PW and SD samples. Only the PW and SD samples displayed genera common to all petroliferous regions, Desulfotomaculum and Thermovirga (PW), and Marinobacter (SD). There was an inferred high microbial activity in the oil fields, with the highest abundances of (i) cofactor, (ii) carrier, and (iii) vitamin biosynthesis, associated with survival metabolism. Additionally, there was the presence of secondary metabolic pathways and defense mechanisms in extreme conditions. Competitive or inhibitory relationships and metabolic patterns were influenced by the physicochemical characteristics of the environments (mainly sulfate concentration) and by human interference (application of biocides and nutrients). Our worldwide baseline study of microbial communities associated with environments of the oil and gas industry will greatly facilitate the establishment of standardized approaches to control MIC.

Effective Biocorrosive Control in Oil Industry Facilities: 16S rRNA Gene Metabarcoding for Monitoring Microbial Communities in Produced Water

“…However, it is worth noting that the 16S rRNA gene-based metabarcoding approach only provides insights into the taxonomic composition and community structure, not the functionality of the community [72]. While there are bioinformatics techniques that can be used to estimate metabolic activity, these are only predicted based on physicochemical characterization of PW samples and may not represent a true indication of activity [10].…”

“…Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and acid-producing bacteria (APB) produce H 2 S and organic acids, which are highly corrosive products, as an integral part of their metabolism [4,8]. Both ecological groups are classic examples of microorganisms that contribute to MIC in oil industries [4,[8][9][10]. Other bacterial groups that deserve attention in biocorrosion processes are elemental sulfurreducing bacteria (S 0 RB) [11], iron-reducing bacteria (IRB) [12], nitrate-reducing bacteria (NRB) [13], and thiosulfate-reducing bacteria (TRB) [14].…”

“…Metagenomics is based on the large-scale sequencing of DNA molecules directly extracted from environmental samples [34], which allows for a genomic investigation of microbial communities without the need for prior cultivation in the laboratory [35]. Thus, Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology associated with the development of massively parallelized sequencing platforms and bioinformatic programs to analyze generated data have promoted an exponential increase in the number of genomes and metagenomes sequenced at low cost, contributing to the dissemination and improvement of metagenomics [10,36,37]. Furthermore, metagenomics can employ a pre-amplification step followed by large-scale sequencing of genomic regions of biomarkers, an approach called amplicon metagenomics or metabarcoding [21].…”

Bacteria in the produced water and wastewater samples from the oil industry

“…Biocorrosion is affected by the presence and activity of various microorganisms on the surface of the corroding material [4,5]. Despite the relatively long history of microbial corrosion research, there are still many unresolved problems in this area.…”

“…The effective operation of metal structures and product pipelines (water, gas, and oil pipelines) directly depends on the identification of microbial agents that cause biocorrosion. In this regard, it is necessary to study the mechanisms of both abiotic and biotic damage to metal and develop effective methods to combat them [5].…”