Iwona Boguslawa Beech, Visiting Professor

Department of Botany and Microbiology

University of Oklahoma; Norman, OK 73019
Phone: (405) 325-7613; Email: ibeech@ou.edu

HOME INSTITUTION:
Reader in Microbiology
School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences
University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth P01 2DT, UK
Email:  iwona.beech@port.ac.uk

RESEARCH:
Dr. Iwona Beech is an internationally recognized expert in the field of biofilm-influenced corrosion and biofouling.  She has over 24 years of research experience in studying fundamental and applied aspects of biocorrosion of metallic and biodeteriotration of non-metallic materials in both freshwater and marine environments and an extensive history of collaborations with Academia and Industry worldwide, including oil, gas and shipping industries and the navy.

She is an authority on a variety of advanced microscopy, including atomic force microscopy, and surface science techniques for characterizing biofilm/substratum interactions.  Her current research focuses on the use of immuno and molecular biology techniques and advanced mass spectrometry methods to understand the importance of biofilm community structure and involvement of bacterial metabolites, including extracellular polymeric substances, in microbially- influenced corrosion (MIC).  In addition to funding received through the OU Biocorrosion Center, current research efforts are sponsored by ONR Global/ONR, the European Union Marie Curie Network, Saudi-Aramco Oil Company and the Royal Navy through QinetiQ Ltd.

SELECT PUBLICATIONS:
Beech, I.B., & Campbell, A.A. Corrosion of steel in the presence of marine biofilms harbouring sulphur oxidising and sulphate-reducing bacteria. Electrochemica Acta (2008), 5, 14-21. (Am-Humam, NACE 2010)

Sunner J.; Beech, I. B., & Hiraoka, K. On the distribution of ion/neutral molecule clusters in electrospray and laser spray – a cluster division model for the electrospray process, Journal of American Society of Mass Spectrometry (2006), 17, 151-162.

Shiea, J.; Huang, M-Z.; Hsu, H-J.; Lee, C-Y.; Yuan, C-H.; Beech, I., & Sunner, J. Electrospray-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry for direct ambient analysis of solids. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry (2005), 19(24), 3701-3704.

Beech, I. B.; Sunner, J.A., & Hiraoka, K. Microbe-surface interactions in biofouling and biocorrosion processes. International Microbiology (2005), 8, 157-168.

Beech, I. B., & Sunner, J.A. Biocorrosion: towards understanding interactions between biofilms and metals. Current Opinions in Biotechnology (2004), 15(3), 181-186.

Menezes-Bento, F.; Beech, I. B.; Gaylarde, C. C.; Englert, G. E., & Lourdes-Muller, I. Degradation and corrosive activities of fungi in a diesel-mild steel aqueous system. World Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology (2005), 21(2), 135-142.