Investigators:
Dr. Denis Roy Cullimore (left)
President, Droycon Bioconcepts, Inc.
Professor, Microbiology, University of Regina, Canada

Dr. Lori Johnston
Microbiologist, Droycon Bioconcepts, Inc.

Description of Project:
Microbiologists from Droycon Bioconcepts, Inc. were asked by representatives of the Discovery Channel in 1996 to investigate the potential of microbial causes for deterioration of RMS Titanic. This request was associated with production of the 1997 documentary, Titanic, Anatomy of a Disaster, which focused on scientific interpretation of the cause of sinking and the present condition of RMS Titanic on the ocean floor. Microbes are organisms that are not visible to the naked eye, and include bacteria, viruses, certain algae, fungi, and protozoans. Microbiology is the study of these organisms.

The scientists of Droycon Bioconcepts, Inc. accepted the challenge by conducting a series of experiments on the site of RMS Titanic during 1996 and 1998 as well as at their laboratory in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. They discovered that the concrete-like appendages observed on the Titanic's hull and other locations on the vessel were in fact the homes of complex communities of bacteria and fungi. These microbes work cooperatively in forming and maintaining their homes and are termed "rusticles," because of the physical similarity to icicles.

In essence, the microbial communities within the rusticles are consuming iron, and to a lesser degree, other elements from the steel that forms RMS Titanic. The scientists found that the iron content of rusticles "ranged from 24 - 36% consisting mostly of complex ferric oxides and hydroxides," which are by-products of an oxidation process. Oxidation is a chemical process involving the loss of electrons by one reactant and a corresponding gain (reduction) by another. The "rusting" of iron products is a familiar example of an oxidative process that requires oxygen from the atmosphere. In the case of rusticles, microorganisms retrieve the oxygen from the ocean waters surrounding RMS Titanic.

Based on the results of these experiments, scientists from Droycon Bioconcepts, Inc. have been able to make preliminary estimates for the loss of iron from the steel bow section of RMS Titanic. The 1996 experiments and related survey of the site indicated "there was approximately 650 tons (dry weight) of rusticles on the outside of the bow section of the wreck. From this, it can be extrapolated that a daily loss of iron, as red dust and yellow biocolloids, of between 0.13 and 0.20 tons per day could be occurring from the wreck. Further extrapolation reveals that iron in the bow section, assuming 20,000 tons of iron, and that the rusticles were removing the iron at a constant rate, could be totally exported into the environment as red dust and biocolloids in approximately 280 to 420 years." Colloids are substances composed of relatively large particles of matter (in this case, biological "slimes") dispersed into another substance. The red "dust" is composed primarily of iron. Surprisingly, the "mass of rusticles has increased on the outside of the bow section by at least 30% between 1996 and 1998," indicating that other factors are at work in determining the rate at which these microbial communities are "recycling" RMS Titanic.

This research has also enabled some predictions about the deterioration of RMS Titanic. The microbiologists believe at this time there is "evidence not of a catastrophic structural failure about to occur in the near future, but rather of a gradual collapse that would follow a somewhat predicable pattern." The rate and patterning of deterioration, however, is dependent on other factors not yet well understood. As an example, increases in dissolved organic matter (a potential food source) in the marine environment surrounding RMS Titanic could accelerate the rate of deterioration. Further experiments as well as a better understanding of the microenvironments of RMS Titanic are necessary to develop predictions about deterioration of the site with a higher level of certainty.  To that end, Dr. Cullimore and Dr. Johnston continue to visit the wreck site.  Click here to read an excerpt from Dr. Cullimore's 2003 research.

Future Research Interests:
In general, Dr. Cullimore and Dr. Johnston are interested in continued research relating to the general process of biodeterioration, including the estimation of rates of deterioration for the vessel and predictions about the future condition of the site. The scientists believe continued monitoring of the site using test platforms first placed around RMS Titanic in 1998 can refine these estimates and predictions. Rusticle growth on these test platforms will assist in determining the current rate of iron loss. In addition, Dr. Cullimore and Dr. Johnston are interested in nutritional factors, reductive-oxidation potentials, and other environmental factors that may influence the growth of rusticles. Other research topics of potential benefit include the deep water iron cycle, and conjecture that bacteria presently colonizing RMS Titanic are "offspring" of bacteria aboard the vessel during its tragic shipwreck.

Information Sources:
Droycon Bioconcepts, Inc. - Research on the Rusticles and the Life Span of RMS Titanic