Diesel fuel storage tanks are not hostile environments for microorganisms and tend to form sludges in the water deposited at the bottom of the tanks. The lack of nutrient, carbon and energy limitations within these habitats boost the abundance and the metabolic activity of microorganisms providing microbial hotspots with high growing rates of diesel degradation (0.10 ± 0.021 d-1). Five different Phyla (Thermotogae, Spirochaetes, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes Proteobacteria) were identified within the aqueous/sludge phase from in situ diesel storage tanks, by cultured independent molecular surveys using the 16S rDNA gene fragment. The identified dominant strains were Geotoga aestuarianus, Flavobacterium ceti, Spirochaeta thermophila, Propionispira arboris, Sporobacterium olearium and Dysgonomonas genera. The altitude where the storage tanks are located and the organic carbon concentration within the aqueous/sludge phases affected the bacterial diversity. Therefore, the more diverse the microbial communities are, the more probability of the presence of bacteria with capacity to metabolized diesel and eliminate organic matter. Despite, only phosphate showed an effect on the bacterial distribution within the storage tanks, there was an apparent lack of deterministic process in structuring microbial communities. Consequently, preventative protocols are a priority to avoid the microbial growth within diesel fuel storage tanks. A new focus of this worldwide problem within the oil industry would be to explore deeply the wide range of metabolic and adaptive capacities of these microorganisms. These microbial consortia are potential tools with new specific services to apply in bioremediation among others.

中文翻译：

---

柴油燃料储罐内水相/污泥相中的细菌多样性

柴油燃料储罐不是微生物的恶劣环境，往往会在储罐底部沉积的水中形成污泥。这些栖息地缺乏养分、碳和能量限制，增加了微生物的丰度和代谢活动，从而提供了柴油降解率高 (0.10 ± 0.021 d-1) 的微生物热点。通过使用 16S rDNA 基因片段进行培养的独立分子调查，在原位柴油储罐的水相/污泥相中鉴定了五种不同的门（Thermotogae、Spirochaetes、Firmicutes、Bacteroidetes Proteobacteria）。确定的优势菌株为 Geotoga aestuarianus、鲸鱼黄杆菌、Spirochaeta thermophila、Propionispira arboris、Sporobacterium olearium 和 Dysgonomonas 属。储罐所在的海拔高度和水相/污泥相内的有机碳浓度会影响细菌多样性。因此，微生物群落越多样化，具有代谢柴油和消除有机物能力的细菌存在的可能性就越大。尽管只有磷酸盐对储罐内的细菌分布有影响，但在构建微生物群落方面明显缺乏确定性过程。因此，预防性协议是避免柴油燃料储罐内微生物生长的优先事项。石油工业中这一全球性问题的新焦点将是深入探索这些微生物的广泛代谢和适应能力。