June 22, 2015

Discovery about the destructive power of bubbles could lead to new industrial applications




(June 22, 2015)  Virginia Tech engineers have shed light on what happens to a nearby particle when bubbles burst.

Sunghwan Jung, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering and mechanics in the College of Engineering, has discovered new information about a phenomenon called cavitation, the process of bubble formation in a fluid like water.

These bubbles eventually collapse under the pressure of the surrounding fluid, sending out pressure waves that can affect anything nearby. For example, shrimp use cavitation bubbles to hunt because the waves can kill small fish.

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