What is biofilm fouling?

Biofouling or biological fouling is the accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, or small animals where it is not wanted on surfaces such as ship and submarine hulls, devices such as water inlets, pipework, grates, ponds, and rivers that cause degradation to the primary purpose of that item.

What is bacterial fouling?

Bacteria are attracted to surfaces. In this way the fouling of a surface by bacterial biofilm development facilitates focal attack on that surface. This pit formation is characteristic of bacterial surface activities as diverse as dental decay and metal corrosion.

What is also known as biofilm?

A biofilm may also be considered a hydrogel, which is a complex polymer that contains many times its dry weight in water. Biofilms are not just bacterial slime layers but biological systems; the bacteria organize themselves into a coordinated functional community.

What is the best definition of a biofilm?

[ bī′ō-fĭlm′ ] A complex structure adhering to surfaces that are regularly in contact with water, consisting of colonies of bacteria and usually other microorganisms such as yeasts, fungi, and protozoa that secrete a mucilaginous protective coating in which they are encased.

What are fouling organisms?

Fouling is the process by which organisms attach themselves to underwater objects, such as ship hulls. Hull fouling organisms include sessile biota, organisms that attach and stay fixed in one place (such as barnacles).

What is biofilm formation?

Biofilm formation is a process whereby microorganisms irreversibly attach to and grow on a surface and produce extracellular polymers that facilitate attachment and matrix formation, resulting in an alteration in the phenotype of the organisms with respect to growth rate and gene transcription.

Is biofilm good or bad?

Biofilms form in virtually every imaginable environment on Earth; they can be harmful or beneficial to humans. In fact, the human body has biofilms in the mouth and intestinal track that can protect our health or harm it. Dental plaque is a common example of a biofilm that forms on tooth surfaces.

Are biofilms real?

Biofilms are a collective of one or more types of microorganisms that can grow on many different surfaces. Microorganisms that form biofilms include bacteria, fungi and protists. One common example of a biofilm dental plaque, a slimy buildup of bacteria that forms on the surfaces of teeth.

Why do biofilms form?

A biofilm forms when certain microorganisms (for example, some types of bacteria) adhere to the surface of some object in a moist environment and begin to reproduce. The microorganisms form an attachment to the surface of the object by secreting a slimy, glue-like substance.

What is biofilm made of?

A biofilm is composed of attached microbial cells encased within a matrix of extracellular polymeric secretions (EPS), which surround and protect cells. The EPS matrix is typically composed of polysaccharides, proteins, lipids, and extracellular DNA (eDNA).

What is human biofilm?

Biofilm is a community of bacteria where they aquire antibiotic resistance and communicate with each other by quorum sensing molecules. Image Credit: Kateryna Kon / Shutterstock. In the human body, bacterial biofilms can be found on many surfaces such as the skin, teeth, and mucosa.

What is biofilm and how does it form?

Biological and microbial foulants tend to thrive in warm environments with low flow rates, where they are able attach to the membrane and multiply, while releasing a protective substance known as extracellular polymetric substance (EPS). Collectively, the microorganisms and EPS form a slimy gel layer known as biofilm.

What are the different types of membrane fouling?

Types of membrane fouling are often defined according to the type of foulants present in the feed stream, which can include particulate/colloidal fouling, biological/microbial fouling, scaling/precipitation fouling, and organic fouling, as detailed below.

What is organic fouling in water filtration?

Organic fouling is defined as the collection of carbon-based material on a filtration membrane. Natural organic matter consists of carbon-based compounds commonly found in soil, ground and surface water, resulting from decomposition of plant and animal material.

Can membrane fouling be reversed?

Each of these types of fouling can be either reversible, as when a simple cleaning is able to dislodge the foulants and return a membrane to its full function, or irreversible, such as when foulants chemically bind with the membrane material, and permanently compromise its performance. Major types of membrane foulants include: