Predicting laser-induced cavitation near a solid substrate

Abstract

The asymmetric collapse of cavitation bubbles near a solid substrate generates large wall shear stresses, the precise magnitude of which is still not known with certainty. By comparing numerical simulations and experiments of a laser-induced cavitation bubble near a solid substrate, we demonstrate that an accurate measurement of the pressure pulse emitted during bubble inception and of the maximum bubble radius allow a unique initialisation of the simulation. This allows an accurate reproduction of the asymmetric collapse, with reliable predictions of the shear stress and pressure generated at the substrate.