Influence of copper-alloying of austenitic stainless steel on multi-species biofilm development.
Kielemoes,; Verstraete,
[Article] Letters in Applied Microbiology. 33(2):148-152, August 2001.

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Aims: To investigate the bactericidal influence of copper-alloying of stainless steel on microbial colonization.

Methods and Results: Inhibition of bacterial adherence was investigated by monitoring (192 h) the development of a multi-species biofilm on Cu-alloyed (3[middle dot]72 wt%) stainless steel in a natural surface water. During the first 120 h of exposure, lower numbers of viable bacteria in the water in contact with copper-containing steel relative to ordinary stainless steel were observed. Moreover, during the first 48 h of exposure, lower colony counts were found in the biofilm adhering to the Cu-alloyed steel. No lower colony or viable counts were found throughout the remainder of the experimental period.

Conclusions: The presence of Cu in the steel matrix impedes the adhesion of micro-organisms during an initial period (48 h), while this bactericidal effect disappears after longer incubation periods.

Significance and Impact of the Study: The application of Cu-alloyed stainless steels for bactericidal purposes should be restricted to regularly-cleaned surfaces.

(C) 2001 Blackwell Science Ltd.