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Spectroscopic and Microscopic Characterization of Microbial Biofouling on Aircraft Fuel Tanks
,
Yon Ju-Nam ,
Steven F. Thornton,
Stephen A. Rolfe ,
Jesus Ojeda Ledo
Langmuir, Volume: 40, Issue: 7, Pages: 3429 - 3439
Swansea University Authors:
Jaime Gomez Bolivar, Martin Warburton, Adam Mumford, Yon Ju-Nam , Jesus Ojeda Ledo
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DOI (Published version): 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c02803
Abstract
Avoiding microbial contamination and biofilm formation on the surfaces of aircraft fuel tanks is a major challenge in the aviation industry. The inevitable presence of water in fuel systems, and nutrients provided by the fuel, makes an ideal environment for bacteria, fungi, and yeast to grow. Unders...
| Published in: | Langmuir |
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| ISSN: | 0743-7463 1520-5827 |
| Published: |
American Chemical Society (ACS)
2024
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| Online Access: |
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa65456 |
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| Abstract: |
Avoiding microbial contamination and biofilm formation on the surfaces of aircraft fuel tanks is a major challenge in the aviation industry. The inevitable presence of water in fuel systems, and nutrients provided by the fuel, makes an ideal environment for bacteria, fungi, and yeast to grow. Understanding how microbes grow on different fuel tank materials is the first step to control biofilm formation in aviation fuel systems. In this study, biofilms of Pseudomonas putida, a model Gram-negative bacterium previously found in aircraft fuel tanks, were characterised on aluminium 7075-T6 surfaces, which is an alloy used by the aviation industry due to favourable properties including high strength and fatigue resistance. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) coupled with Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) showed that extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) produced by P. putida were important components of biofilms with a likely role in biofilm stability and adhesion to the surfaces. EDX analysis showed that the proportion of phosphorus with respect to nitrogen is higher in the EPS than in the bacterial cells. Additionally, different morphologies in biofilm formation were observed in the fuel phase compared to the water phase. Micro-Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (micro-FTIR) analysis suggested that phosphoryl and carboxyl functional groups are fundamental for the irreversible attachment between the EPS of bacteria and the aluminium surface, by the formation of hydrogen bonds and inner-sphere complexes between the macromolecules and the aluminium surface. Based on the hypothesis that nucleic acids (particularly DNA) are an important component of EPS in P. putida biofilms, the impact of degrading extracellular DNA was tested. Treatment with the enzyme DNase I affected both water and fuel phase biofilms – with the cell structure disrupted in the aqueous phase, but cells remained attached to the aluminium coupons. |
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| Keywords: |
Aluminum, Bacteria, Biofilms, Fuels, Genetics |
| College: |
Faculty of Science and Engineering |
| Funders: |
This work was funded by InnovateUK and Airbus Operations Ltd., within the project “Fuel Architecture and Systems Technology (FAST)”, Project reference 113161 (TS/R008132/1). Adam Mumford acknowledges funding from the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) DTP scholarship (project reference: 2748843). |
| Issue: |
7 |
| Start Page: |
3429 |
| End Page: |
3439 |