Microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC)
Definition
Corrosion that operates under local conditions created and continuously maintained by biological activity, rather than a separate corrosion mechanism.
MIC does not replace the electrochemical cell of anode, cathode, electrolyte, and metallic path; it supercharges the local conditions that make that cell aggressive. Biofilms create oxygen differentials, falling pH, and metabolic byproducts that drive localized attack while the surrounding system appears stable. It persists because the biofilm continuously regenerates the conditions that destabilize protective films, making it a design, operation, and monitoring problem more than a microbiology one.
Related concepts
Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) · Iron-related bacteria (IRB) · Acid-producing bacteria (APB)
How it connects
Part of The Blueprint of Water · ⚡ electrochemistry