Quantitative evaluation of erosive cavitation pressure field from pits in material: fact or myth?

Abstract

Material pitting in a cavitating flow has been used for a long time as an indicator of the vague ‘cavitation intensity’ concept. Periodically, some researchers suggest pitting tests as a “simple” means to provide quantitative measurements of the amplitude of the impulsive pressures in the cavitation field, especially when combined with Tabor's formula or with simple finite element computations with static loads. This paper examines the viability of such a method using fully coupled bubble dynamics and material response, and strongly concludes that the commonly accepted idea is a myth, as different loading scenarios with the same amplitude of the cavitation impulsive pressure result in different pit aspect ratios.