Cavitation Erosion of Aluminum at Elevated Pressure

Abstract

An experimental investigation of the effect of hydrostatic pressure on cavitation erosion is described. A focusing acoustic system enclosed in a pressure chamber permitted the sound pressure and the hydrostatic pressure to be varied independently over the range of 1–20 atm. The intensity of cavitation, as measured by the erosion rate of aluminum, was found to grow at an increasing rate with hydrostatic pressure. Experimental results obtained in this pressure range correlate with published Russian data taken at pressures up to 75 atm. A correspondence between cavitation erosion and electromagnetic radiation is postulated. The agreement between experimental results and those predicted by this correspondence is quite good.

Discussion: “Cavitation Erosion in a Thin Film as Affected by the Liquid Properties” (Tao, F. F., and Appledoorn, J. K., 1971, ASME J. Lubr. Technol., 93, pp. 470–477)

“…9 and 10 of the paper agree with the same. The ex]3eriments of Angona [2] with an ultrasonic cavitation device also indicate the same exponent up to a pressure of 20 atmospheres.…”

“…Veerabhadra Rao 2 and B. C. Syamala Rao. 2 The equipment used by the authors simulates the cavitation damage problem in lubricants of various bearings better than equipment used by previous investigators for similar studies. The section of vacuum and subatomospheric testing is of considerable interest in understanding the problems related to the intensity and mechanism of damage (in the absence and very low hydrostatic pressures), luminescence, etc.…”

Cavitation erosion on different metallic materials under high hydrostatic pressure evaluated with the spatially confined sonoluminescence

“…Previous studies have shown that with the increase of hydrostatic pressure, cavitation can contribute to a higher local temperature and pressure during bubble collapsing [21] . The effects of cavitation erosion under high hydrostatic pressure must have some unique features [22] , and the mechanism of cavitation erosion on different materials under high hydrostatic pressure should be paid special attention to. These corresponding researches are important and can help to lay a theoretical basis for deep-sea applications.…”

“…A more concentrated bubble cloud under higher hydrostatic pressure collapse on the solid surface was considered as the possible mechanism for the faster material breaking rate. Angona et al [22] studied the effect of hydrostatic pressure on cavitation erosion and characterized the cavitation intensity by the erosion rate of aluminum, and they found that the erosion rate is proportional to the cube of hydrostatic pressure. S. H. Yeo et al also found that mass loss on different kinds of metal can be increased by increasing hydrostatic pressure [30] .…”