National team works to curb costly infrastructure corrosion

The University of Florida is part of a multi-university, interdisciplinary research team that will tackle the global challenge of halting corrosion of infrastructure, like bridges.

Mitigating corrosion is a global challenge that costs the United States nearly half a trillion dollars annually.

Current corrosion mitigation measures require costly chemical coatings, such as primers and top-coat layers, that cause human and environmental health risks. This project seeks to develop a coating system that uses naturally existing microbial biofilms growing on metal surfaces that appear to slow down or inhibit corrosion.

In phase 2 of this project, researchers will establish manufacturing requirements to effectively apply the biological coating system for corrosion control by either spraying or 3D bioprinting.

Led by Kaoru Ikuma, associate professor with the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering at Iowa State University, the team is investigating this biological solution.

At the University of Florida, efforts led by Iris Rivero, Paul and Heidi Brown Preeminent Chair and Department Chair of Industrial and Systems Engineering, emphasize defining application of the biological coating via 3D printing. Although 3D bioprinting is not new, using the technology at a large scale to strategically combat corrosion is a groundbreaking application.

"Our goal is to revolutionize how we think about infrastructure maintenance, moving from reactive, chemical-based methods to proactive, biologically inspired systems," said Rivero. "This kind of interdisciplinary innovation is exactly what's needed to solve complex challenges like corrosion on a global scale."

Ikuma is focused on the broader societal impact.

"If you can come up with a sustainable and self-healing system for corrosion control, it can become more accessible to disadvantaged communities. A biological process that maintains the safety of the structures in those communities is what I'm hoping to do," said Ikuma.

Aside from UF and ISU, the other research institutions are the University of Rochester and Rochester Institute of Technology.

Provided by University of Florida