On the transient dynamics of shock wave–bubble interaction near a solid boundary in viscoelastic fluids: A numerical study

Cavitation bubbles in viscoelastic fluids appear in various fields, such as chemical processing and biomedical engineering. In this study, we investigated the interaction between the shock wave and a single bubble near a solid boundary in viscoelastic liquid via a numerical approach. Two viscoelastic models, including the Oldroyd-B and Finite Extensible Nonlinear Elastic-Peterlin models, are mainly considered. The shock wave–bubble interaction in a Newtonian fluid is also augmented for comparison. Several unique features are observed from simulation results. With the existence of the incident shock wave, the bubble shape is found to be highly relevant to the dimensionless standoff distance γ. Due to the viscoelastic effect, the bubble collapse is further prolonged compared to the Newtonian fluid. Under the same γ, the bubble shrinkage is dampened, and the speed of the jet tip (Uj) differs apparently for the two viscoelastic models compared with the Newtonian fluid. The peak value of jet velocity and wall pressure during the bubble collapse marginally exceeds Newtonian fluid. This slight change is mainly due to the competing effect of the incident shock wave and the viscoelasticity of liquid. Furthermore, due to the viscoelastic relaxation effect, the wall pressure spans a larger radial range Δrhp and has a longer duration Δthp than in the Newtonian fluid. Overall, the main findings in this study are believed to benefit the field related to cavitation in viscoelastic fluids, such as interstitial fluid, chemical products, and wastewater.