Prediction of ultrasonic cavitation with a dimensionless number, towards higher reproducibility

Abstract

Ultrasonic cavitation is the formation of vapour cavities within a liquid due to the action of an ultrasound source. It is widely used for homogenization, dispersion, deagglomeration, erosion, cleaning, milling, emulsification, extraction, disintegration and sonochemistry. On the other hand, the so-called cavitation number is used to assess the likelihood of cavitation in fluid flows within a conduit or around a hydrofoil but it is not valid in ultrasonic cavitation since there is no fluid flow. A recently formulated number predicts the cavitation in case of sudden accelerations. The tip surface of an ultrasonic probe is subjected to a continuous repetition of alternating accelerations at high frequency. Therefore, the use of the recently formulated number in ultrasonic cavitation is explored here. Simulations of the ultrasonic probe in water just at the condition of cavitation onset have been performed for a combination of probe diameters from 0.2 to 100 mm and frequencies 20, 30, 40, 100 and 1000 KHz. The recently formulated number is applied to these combinations and it is found that can be used to predict ultrasonic cavitation. Consequently, the dimensionless number can be used to decide the conditions to avoid or generate cavitation when a fluid is sonicated and to increase reproducibility in such conditions.