Bubble Collapse and Jet Formation in Corner Geometries

Abstract

The collapse of a vapor bubble near a flat solid boundary results in the formation of a jet that is directed towards the boundary. In more complex geometries such as corners, predictions of the collapse cannot be made in a straightforward manner due to the loss of axial symmetry. We experimentally investigate the bubble collapse and jet formation in corners formed of two flat solid boundaries with different opening angles. Using potential flow analysis, we accurately predict the direction of the jet and bubble displacement. We further show that for a corner with an opening angle $α$, there exist analytic solutions that predict the jet direction for all the cases $α=π/n$, where $n$ is a natural number. These solutions cover, in discrete steps, the full range of corners from the limiting case of a bubble near a single wall ($n=1$) up to a bubble in between parallel walls ($n\rightarrow\infty$).