Long-Term Corrosion Processes of Iron and Steel Shipwrecks in the Marine Environment: A Review of Current Knowledge

Methodologies for examining the corrosion behavior of iron and steel shipwrecks have steadily progressed since the 1970s, but the analytical techniques utilized since then are comparatively site-specific, and the overall quantity of data available for independent review is seemingly limited. Laudable advancements in the fields of maritime archaeology, oceanography, and corrosion science support the determination that microbiologically-influenced corrosion primarily controls the degradation rates of iron and steel shipwrecks over archaeological timescales. Future in situ analyses performed on these shipwreck sites need to consider the overreaching impacts that microbiological metabolism have on long-term corrosion rates. The corrosion behavior of an iron or steel archaeological shipwreck site should also not be readily applied to similar sites or to other wrecked vessels that are in close proximity.