High-speed observation of acoustic cavitation erosion in multibubble systems

Cleaning and erosion of objects by ultrasound in liquids are caused by the action of acoustic cavitation bubbles. Experiments have been performed with respect to the erosive effect of multibubble structures on painted glass surfaces and on aluminium foils in an ultrasonic standing wave field at 40 kHz. High-speed imaging techniques have been employed to investigate the mechanisms at work, in particular bubble interaction and cluster formation near and at the object surfaces. It was found that different prototype bubble structures can contribute to the erosion process. Some are bound to the surface, which seems to act as a bubble source in this case, while others also exist independently from the object. Cleaning and erosion effects at the pressure antinodes can vary strongly as they depend on the emerging bubble structures. These, in turn, seem to be substantially influenced by properties and the history of the surface. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.