Effects of surfactant and liquid surface stabilization on the initial growth of cavitation bubbles

Abstract Experiments were conducted to clarify the effects of the surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and liquid surface stabilization on the initial growth of cavitation bubbles. The samples were degassed in Ar-saturated water with and without SDS. Ultrasonic irradiation was performed on the free liquid surface and the stabilized liquid surface, and the sonoluminescence (SL) intensity and acoustic emission (AE) were measured. Bubble growth was suppressed by SDS and liquid surface stabilization effects. The differences in the SL intensity and AE measurements between white light and Na emissions also indicated that liquid surface stabilization suppressed bubble growth. These results suggest that, during the initial growth stage, cavitation bubble growth is governed primarily by coalescence rather than by rectified diffusion.