ASTM D6469-11 - 1.1.2011
 
Significance and Use

This guide provides information addressing the conditions that lead to fuel microbial contamination and biodegradation and the general characteristics of and strategies for controlling microbial contamination. It compliments and amplifies information provided in Practice D4418 on handling gas-turbine fuels. More detailed information may be found in the IP Guidelines and in ASTM Manual 47.

This guide focuses on microbial contamination in refined petroleum products and product handling systems. Uncontrolled microbial contamination in fuels and fuel systems remains a largely unrecognized but costly problem at all stages of the petroleum industry from crude oil production through fleet operations and consumer use. This guide introduces the fundamental concepts of fuel microbiology and biodeterioration control.

This guide provides personnel who are responsible for fuel and fuel system stewardship with the background necessary to make informed decisions regarding the possible economic or safety, or both, impact of microbial contamination in their products or systems.

 
1. Scope

1.1 This guide provides personnel who have a limited microbiological background with an understanding of the symptoms, occurrence, and consequences of chronic microbial contamination. The guide also suggests means for detection and control of microbial contamination in fuels and fuel systems. This guide applies primarily to gasoline, aviation, boiler, industrial gas turbine, diesel, marine, furnace fuels and blend stocks (see Specifications D396, D910, D975, D1655, D2069, D2880, D3699, D4814, D6227, and D6751), and fuel systems. However, the principles discussed herein also apply generally to crude oil and all liquid petroleum fuels. ASTM Manual 47 provides a more detailed treatment of the concepts introduced in this guide; it also provides a compilation of all of the standards referenced herein that are not found in the Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Section Five on Petroleum Products and Lubricants.

1.2 This guide is not a compilation of all of the concepts and terminology used by microbiologists, but it does provide a general understanding of microbial fuel contamination.

1.3 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as standard. No other units of measurement are included in this standard.

1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

 
2. Referenced Documents

D888-18(2026)

Standard Test Methods for Dissolved Oxygen in Water

D910-26

Standard Specification for Leaded Aviation Gasolines

D974-22

Standard Test Method for Acid and Base Number by Color-Indicator Titration

D1293-18

Standard Test Methods for pH of Water

D975-26c

Standard Specification for Diesel Fuel (Includes all amendments and changes 7/20/2026).

D130-26

Standard Test Method for Corrosiveness to Copper from Petroleum Products by Copper Strip Test

D396-26a

Standard Specification for Fuel Oils (Includes all amendments and changes 4/14/2026).

IP?385

Determination of the viable aerobic microbial content of fuels and fuel components boiling below 390C - Filtration and culture method

D6974-25

Standard Practice for Enumeration of Viable Bacteria and Fungi in Liquid Fuels—Filtration and Culture Procedures

D7463-25

Standard Test Method for Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) Content of Microorganisms in Fuel, Fuel/Water Mixtures, and Fuel Associated Water

D445-26

Standard Test Method for Kinematic Viscosity of Transparent and Opaque Liquids (and Calculation of Dynamic Viscosity)

D515-88

Test Methods for Phosphorus in Water (Withdrawn 1997)

D6227-24a

Standard Specification for Unleaded Aviation Gasoline Containing a Non-hydrocarbon Component (Includes all amendments and changes 12/11/2024).

D4840-99(2018)e1

Standard Guide for Sample Chain-of-Custody Procedures (Includes all amendments and changes 8/22/2018).

E1326-25

Standard Guide for Evaluating Non-culture Microbiological Tests

98/8/EC

Biocidal Products Directive Official Journal of the European Communities, 24.4.98, L123/1-63(1998).

TPC Publication No. 3

The role of bacteria in the corrosion of oil field equipment Available from NACE International (NACE), 1440 South Creek Dr., Houston, TX 77084-4906, http://www.nace.org.

Test Method 2540D

Total Suspended Solids Dried at 103-105C Available from American Public Health Association, 800 I Street, NW Washington, DC 20001.

D6217-21e1

Standard Test Method for Particulate Contamination in Middle Distillate Fuels by Laboratory Filtration (Includes all amendments and changes 1/7/2026).

D4418-22

Standard Practice for Receipt, Storage, and Handling of Fuels for Gas Turbines

D4454-85(1997)

Standard Test Method for Simultaneous Enumeration of Total and Respiring Bacteria in Aquatic Systems by Microscopy

D4814-26

Standard Specification for Automotive Spark-Ignition Engine Fuel

D4860-22

Standard Test Method for Free Water and Particulate Contamination in Middle Distillate Fuels (Clear and Bright Numerical Rating)

D4870-22

Standard Test Method for Determination of Total Sediment in Residual Fuels

D4952-23

Standard Test Method for Qualitative Analysis for Active Sulfur Species in Fuels and Solvents (Doctor Test)

D5304-20

Standard Test Method for Assessing Middle Distillate Fuel Storage Stability by Oxygen Overpressure

D5452-23

Standard Test Method for Particulate Contamination in Aviation Fuels by Laboratory Filtration

D4057-22

Standard Practice for Manual Sampling of Petroleum and Petroleum Products

D4176-22e1

Standard Test Method for Free Water and Particulate Contamination in Distillate Fuels (Visual Inspection Procedures) (Includes all amendments and changes 6/30/2025).

D3867-16(2021)e1

Standard Test Methods for Nitrite-Nitrate in Water (Includes all amendments and changes 12/23/2021).

D3870-91

Standard Practice for Establishing Performance Characteristics for Colony Counting Methods in Microbiology (Withdrawn 2000)

D4012-23a

Standard Test Method for Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) Content of Microorganisms in Water (Includes all amendments and changes 11/9/2023).

D4412-19(2024)

Standard Test Methods for Sulfate-Reducing Bacteria in Water and Water-Formed Deposits

IP?472

Determination of fungal fragment content of fuels boiling below 390C

D3241-26

Standard Test Method for Thermal Oxidation Stability of Aviation Turbine Fuels

D3242-23

Standard Test Method for Acidity in Aviation Turbine Fuel

D3325-90(2020)

Standard Practice for Preservation of Waterborne Oil Samples

D3326-07(2024)

Standard Practice for Preparation of Samples for Identification of Waterborne Oils

D3328-06(2020)

Standard Test Methods for Comparison of Waterborne Petroleum Oils by Gas Chromatography

D3414-98

Standard Test Method for Comparison of Waterborne Petroleum Oils by Infrared Spectroscopy

D3699-25

Standard Specification for Kerosine

D2274-14(2019)

Standard Test Method for Oxidation Stability of Distillate Fuel Oil (Accelerated Method)

D2276-22

Standard Test Method for Particulate Contaminant in Aviation Fuel by Line Sampling

D2880-23

Standard Specification for Gas Turbine Fuel Oils

D2069-91(1998)

Standard Specification for Marine Fuels (Withdrawn 2003)

D3240-25

Standard Test Method for Undissolved Water In Aviation Turbine Fuels

D1298-24

Standard Test Method for Density, Relative Density, or API Gravity of Crude Petroleum and Liquid Petroleum Products by Hydrometer Method

D1331-20(2024)

Standard Test Methods for Surface and Interfacial Tension of Solutions of Paints, Solvents, Solutions of Surface-Active Agents, and Related Materials

D1426-15(2021)e1

Standard Test Methods for Ammonia Nitrogen In Water (Includes all amendments and changes 12/22/2021).

D1655-26

Standard Specification for Aviation Turbine Fuels

D1744-13

Standard Test Method for Determination of Water in Liquid Petroleum Products by Karl Fischer Reagent (Withdrawn 2016)

D1976-20

Standard Test Method for Elements in Water by Inductively-Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy

D1126-17(2025)

Standard Test Method for Hardness in Water

D2068-24a

Standard Test Method for Determining Filter Blocking Tendency (Includes all amendments and changes 1/22/2025).

D1067-16(2024)

Standard Test Methods for Acidity or Alkalinity of Water

D664-24

Standard Test Method for Acid Number of Petroleum Products by Potentiometric Titration

E1259-23

Standard Practice for Evaluation of Antimicrobials in Liquid Fuels Boiling Below 390 ?C

D6426-22

Standard Test Method for Determining Filterability of Middle Distillate Fuel Oils

D6751-24

Standard Specification for Biodiesel Fuel Blendstock (B100) for Middle Distillate Fuels

D7464-25

Standard Practice for Manual Sampling of Liquid Fuels, Associated Materials and Fuel System Components for Microbiological Testing

E177-26a

Standard Practice for Use of the Terms Precision and Bias in ASTM Test Methods (Includes all amendments and changes 5/14/2026).

40 CFR 152

Pesticide Registration and Classification Procedures