On the thermodynamic behaviors and interactions between bubble pairs: A numerical approach

Abstract

Thermodynamic behaviors and interactions between bubble pairs are important to better understand the cavitation phenomena. In this study, a compressible two-phase model, accounting for thermal effects to investigate the thermodynamic behaviors and interactions between bubble pairs, is developed in OpenFOAM. The volume of fluid (VOF) method is adopted to capture the interface. Validations are performed by comparing the simulation results of a single bubble and bubble pairs with corresponding experimental data. The dynamical behaviors of bubble pairs and their thermodynamic effect at different relative distances γ are investigated and discussed, which help reveal the bubble cloud dynamics. The quantitative analysis of γ effects on the maximum temperature during bubble collapse is performed with three distinct stages identified. For a single bubble collapsing near the rigid surface, the thermodynamic characteristics at different relative distances are similar to that of the bubble pairs, but the maximum temperature is higher since the single bubble can collapse to a smaller volume.