The effect of liquid temperature on bubble-size distribution in the presence of power ultrasound and carbon tetrachloride

Acoustic cavitation-induced sonochemistry is employed for a variety of industrial and laboratory-scale physical and chemical applications, including cleaning, nanomaterial synthesis, and destruction of water contaminants. In acoustic bubbles, CCl4 pyrolysis can totally alter the bubble sonochemistry as well as the active bubble-size population. The present theoretical work provides the unique study on the effect of liquid temperature on the size distribution of acoustically active bubbles in the presence of CCl4 (i.e., precursor of reactive chlorine species, RCS, and scavenger of hydrogen atom in pyrolytic reactions) in the bulk liquid. An updated reaction scheme for CCl4 sonopyrolysis is used. It was found that the sonopyrolysis of CCl4 within the bubble reduces its maximal temperature, but it notably increases its maximal molar yield. For lower CCl4 concentrations (<= 0.1 mM), the broadness of active bubbles range for the total oxidants yield increased proportionally with the rise of liquid temperature from 20 to 50 degrees C. Nevertheless, the increase of CCl4 concentration amortizes this width increase over the same range of liquid temperature (20-50 degrees C). At higher concentrations of CCl4 (> 0.1 mM), the broadness of the active bubbles range becomes approximately constant and independent of the liquid temperature and CCl4 concentration.

Automated summary

This study investigates the impact of liquid temperature on the size distribution of acoustically active bubbles in the presence of CCl4. It was found that at lower CCl4 concentrations, increasing liquid temperature results in a broader range of active bubbles, while higher concentrations of CCl4 lead to a relatively constant range of active bubbles regardless of liquid temperature.