Collective Effects on the Growth of Vapor Bubbles in a Superheated Liquid

Abstract

The problem of the growth of a spherical isolated bubble in a superheated liquid has been extensively studied. However, very little work has been done for the case of a cloud of bubbles. The collective behavior of the bubbles departs considerably from that of a single isolated bubble, due to the cumulative modification of the pressure field from all other bubbles. This paper presents a theoretical study on bubble interaction in a superheated liquid during the growth stage. The solution is sought in terms of matched asymptotic expansions in powers of ε, the ratio between rb0 , a characteristic bubble radius and l0 , the interbubble distance. Numerical results show a significant inhibition of the bubble growth rate due to the presence of interacting bubbles. In addition, the temperature at the bubble wall decreases at a slower rate. Consequently, the overall heat exchange during the bubble growth is reduced.