Methanogens influenced corrosion mechanisms of metallic components in the natural gas network

This project aims to understand, within a logic of power-to-gas, the corrosion mechanism of metallic components used for the natural gas network in the perspective of hydrogen storage. The presence of hydrogenothrophic microorganisms (methanogens) in natural gas deposits, where electrochemically produced hydrogen is stored, can strongly affect both the fuel stability and the degradation rate of metallic pipelines, leading to strong economic losses. This corrosion mechanism is strongly related to the methanogenesis process, which is still not well documented. With the proposed experiment we intend to evaluate the oxidative states and degree of crystallinity of corrosion products formed on the surface of four alloys (carbon steel, duplex stainless steel, electrolytic copper and duplex brass), exposed to both a methanogens-rich solution (from a biogas plant) and a sterile condition to elucidate on the methanogenesis/corrosion mechanism and to evaluate the severity of the corrosive attack.