Numerical study of pressure loads generated by a shock-induced bubble collapse

Abstract

This paper presents a numerical study of the strong loads caused by the collapse of an air bubble immersed in water in the vicinity of a wall and impacted by a normal shock wave. Simulations are performed using an efficient parallel fully compressible two-phase solver based on a homogeneous mixture model. Different configurations are investigated by varying the distance of the initial bubble to the wall. Comparisons are done with exiting results and with two-dimensional simulations highlighting large discrepancies on the computed pressure peaks. The computations show that the stand-off distance has significant effects on the collapse dynamics and the maximum wall pressure leading to potential wall damage. A power-law is proposed for the evolution of the maximum pressure peak as a function of the stand-off distance. Finally, a twin-bubble collapse is computed illustrating collective effects and the amplification of pressure peak at the wall.