THE MEASUREMENT OF

CAVITATION
by A. E. C R A W F O R D

:'~

N o w that renewed interest is being shown in t h e efficiency o f ultrasonic cleaners, some

means of measuring the cavitation in a cleaning bath has b e co m e essential. The author is
chairman o f t h e u l t r a s o n i c c o m m i t t e e o f t h e Scientific I n s t r u m e n t Manufacturers Association, w h o are investigating possible methods of measurement. In this a r t i c l e he describes a
m e t h o d o f measuring cavitation which, despite certain disadvantages, does m a k e it possible
t o compare different cleaners and the performance o f t h e same cleaner under different
c o n d i t i o n s and on different types o f w o r k

The increasing

use of ultrasonic energy in industry and

research has stimulated the investigation of methods for
measurement of ultrasonic power. Under linear conditions
the classic method is the use of a radiation balance and this
can be applied for measurement in both liquids and gases.
Ultrasonic propagation in liquids, however, can produce
cavitation at finite power levels and the relation between
power and radiation pressure becomes non-linear. The
radiation balance no longer gives a true indication of power
density and other methods of measurement must be used.
Power level indication above the cavitation threshold has
recently become important owing to the rapidly increasing
use of industrial ultrasonic cleaners. Variations in efficiency
of operation cannot be easily recognized and it is difficult
to compare the efficiency of one equipment with another.
The distribution of ultrasonic energy within a tank requires
to be known if full advantage is to be taken of the tank
capacity. Damage may result to delicate structures if the
energy level is too high, while a low energy level may not
produce efficient cleaning.
Many methods have been proposed for measuring power
under these conditions but very few can be applied as
practical tests. The procedure outlined does not satisfy all
requirements, but it is a simple rapid method of assessing
the efficiency of a cleaning bath.

ULTRASONIC CAVITATION

It is now generally accepted that the major contributing

factor in ultrasonic cleaning is active cavitation within the
cleaning fluid. It should be realized that the intensity of the
cavitation is of greater importance than its distribution.

120

Isl:rRASONWS/July-Septemher 1964

For example, it is comparatively easy to obtain widespread

cavitation with quite low power densities at low pressures or
in liquids of low surface tension. The individual energy of
each cavitation burst is then too low to produce a vapid
cleaning action. The threshold conditions for cavitation
have been summarized in a number of papers, ~-3 and it is
not proposed to consider them in any detail. For use in
ultrasonic cleaning the major factor must be the ability of
the cavitation energy to produce a break-up of boundary
layers at solid/liquid and liquid/liquid interfaces, or to
produce a micro-erosion of solid surfaces suspended in
a liquid.
Practical methods of assessing cavitation can be divided
into two basic classes:
The direct measurement of ultrasonic energy producing
cavitation within a finite volume.
The indirect measurement of cavitation energy by
observing the effects of cavitation. This can be either
within a finite volume or over a finite area.
The first class is not ideally suited to routine testing.
for although measurement is made of energy under nonlinear propagation this can only be related to cavitation
efficiency if environmental conditions are fully known.
Development has been scarce in this field of nleasurement
and almost all proposals are based on calorimetric methods
whose essence is that an absorbing material is placed within
the acoustic field and the temperature rise noted after a
given time interval. A recently described method uses an
absorbing liquid contained in an insulated cell possessing
* Sonics Division, EllioU Bros. (London) Lid.

EVEL

L..
nON

oon

TRANSDUCER

Fig. 1. Erosion of aluminium foil in an

ultrasonic cleaning bath. 20 kc/s frequency
at 1.4 W/cm 2 acoustic dissipation. Transducer is below the tank floor projecting
sound upwards. At a quarter wavelength
below the surface the incident and reflected
sound waves reinforce one another and
erode the foil more violently than in the
body of the liquid

an acoustically transparent diaphragm. The cell is immersed in the ultrasonic bath and the absorbed energy
produces an expansion in the liquid which is indicated by
the level in a capillary tube. 4 (See also p.129).
The second class offers greater scope for procedure but in
all proposed methods the result is irreversible and an
instantaneous reading is not possible. Two methods are at
present used, one based on a stimulated chemical reaction
and the other using the erosion effect of cavitation.
The stimulation of chemical reactions in a cavitating
ultrasonic field has been known for some time and is well
documented. Despite the considerable experimental work
carried out the mechanism of the effect is still in doubt and
will not be fully resolved until there is a complete understanding of catastrophic cavitation. There would appear to
be a correlation between the release of nascent oxygen
within the cavitating void and the stimulation, as most
effects require the presence of water. A typical sono-

chemical reaction is the liberation of chlorine From carbon

tetrachloride dissolved in water. This is easily indicated by
the use of orthotolidine reagent and the intensity of the
yellow colouring can give a quantitative result of the yield.
Erosion of metal surfaces by ultrasonic cavitation is well
known and has been used over the past few years as a
rapid method of assessing ultrasonic intensity at low
frequencies. The weight of metal eroded from a lead block,
determined by weighing before and after treatment, can
give an indication of cavitation activity. Similarly, the
erosion of metal foil is used to determine zones of cavitation
within a given volume of liquid. Fig. I shows a typical
erosion pattern on a strip of aluminium foil immersed
vertically in an undisturbed ultrasonic cleaning bath. The
nodes and antinodes of the standing wave pattern are
clearly defined by the erosion bands.
In the specific case of cleaning tanks an obvious approach
is to use a standard degree of soiling on a surface and
measure the time for complete cleaning. Radioactive tracers
in the soil can be employed to determine the instant at
which the surface is completely clean, but the problem of
producing a standard soil has not been fully solved.
Graphite pencil lines on a ground glass strip provide an
easily produced soiling, but results depend largely on the
grade of graphite, the pressure used to form the line, and the
constancy of roughness of the glass surface.
If it is assumed that cavitation is the largest contributor
to the cleaning effect it is possible to define cleaning ability
in terms of cavitation. Weissler 5 has expressed this
relationship as
Z i a~ rti

where each i represents a class of cavitation events, each n

is the number of events of this class per second per unit
volume under a specific set of conditions, and each a is a
coefficient which expresses the relative cleaning effectiveness
of this class of cavitation. The n's will be functions of such
factors as temperature, frequency, dissolved gas content,
treatment time, location within the cleaning tank and many
others. If several classes of cavitation are present the number
of variables in this expression is considerably increased.
For example, while gaseous cavitation can produce an
eroding action, the occurrence of vapour cavitation will
increase this action by a factor of at least 100. Vapour
cavitation occurs under conditions of high ultrasonic
intensity but is statistically erratic by nature. The single
cavitating vapour void is only a minor contributor to the
erosion produced because the radiating shock wave from
the vibrating void stimulates active gaseous cavitation over
a wide volume around it. Weissler points out that the
double integral of Z'~ a, n~ over the time of treatment and
over a specified volume would give a more accurate
expression of cleaning effectiveness.
For the sonochemical or mechanical effects it is possible
by analogy to substitute a constant bi in the previous
expression. This becomes L'~ bin, where each b, is the
coefficient of relative sonochemical or erosion effectiveness
for its class of cavitation. It would be convenient to obtain
a valid measure of cleaning ability produced by cavitation
in terms of erosion or chemical change, if it could be
assumed that there was a constant ratio between each a
and its corresponding b. It is not known if this condition is
fully satisfied, but in the absence of contrary evidence it
appears a reasonable supposition to consider the ratio
ai/b~ as a constant, at least for a given set of operational
conditions.

ULTRASONiCS~July-September 1964

121

Fig. 2. Appearance of foil discs with

progressive increase in destruction.
20 kc/s frequency at 1.4 W/cm ~-.
The percentages below the photographs are percentages of area of
foil eroded and are measured by the
amount of light they allow to pass
through on to a photographic film.
When the transducer is switched on
a shock wave is propagated across
the tank after which normal cavitation is set up. Halting the cavitation
at set intervals to measure how much
the foil has been eroded is not
accurate. The shock wave when the
cleaner is re-started is likely to tear
off pieces of foil which would have
withstood ordinary cavitation.
Therefore a fresh foil was used for
each experiment and after being
exposed for a given time was removed and its eroded area measured

1%

40

10%

17~!i>

26<!;,

35%

EROSION MEASUREMENT
W h i l e s o n o c h e m i c a l m e t h o d s a p p e a r p r o m i s i n g it was
c o n s i d e r e d t h a t since these are b a s e d on a s e c o n d a r y effect
o f c a v i t a t i o n r a t h e r t h a n a p r i m a r y one it w o u l d be b e t t e r
t o c o n c e n t r a t e on t h e d i r e c t p r o d u c t i o n o f e r o s i o n . W i t h
s o n o c h e m i c a l m e t h o d s a cell c o n t a i n i n g the r e a c t i n g l i q u i d
m u s t be i n t r o d u c e d i n t o the u l t r a s o n i c field a n d the o c c u p a t i o n o f a finite v o l u m e o f space w i t h i n this field m u s t
d i s t u r b the field.
Weight measurement
as an i n d i c a t i o n o f e r o s i o n
effectiveness is a s o m e w h a t l a b o r i o u s p r o c e d u r e .
The
a m o u n t o f m a t e r i a l r e m o v e d is e x t r e m e l y small, a figure o f
400 m g / h with l e a d surfaces b e i n g g i v e n in one p a p e r as a
m a x i m u m . (~ T h e difficulty o f o b t a i n i n g surfaces on lead
plates t h a t are c o n s t a n t o v e r m a n y tests m u s t also be
c o n s i d e r e d if the m e t h o d is to be a p p l i e d in p r a c t i c e . It was.
t h e r e f o r e , d e c i d e d to use a l u m i n i u m foils as the m a t e r i a l
s u b j e c t e d to e r o s i o n , a n d to m e a s u r e the d e g r e e o f e r o s i o n
by m e a s u r i n g the e r o d e d areas.
A l u m i n i u m foil was c h o s e n as it is readily a v a i l a b l e in
high p u r i t y f o r m , w i t h a c c u r a t e thicknesses a n d p o l i s h e d
surfaces.
W h e n t h i n foil is i m m e r s e d in an u l t r a s o n i c a l l y c a v i t a t i n g
l i q u i d the stages o f e r o s i o n f o l l o w a r e p e a t a b l e p a t t e r n . T h e
initial stage is a d i m p l i n g o f the foil surface o c c u r r i n g o v e r
m o s t o f the area, the d i m p l e s being a b o u t 100 izm in d i a m e t e r
a n d closely p a c k e d . T h e s e c o n d stage is for the d i m p l e s to
b e c o m e p i n h o l e s a n d also for e r o s i o n to c o m m e n c e at
ragged edges a n d o t h e r d i s c o n t i n u i t i e s . T h e third stage
o c c u r s with the o p e n i n g o f the p i n h o l e s and their possible
c o a l e s c e n c e into larger areas o f d e s t r u c t i o n .
Finally, if
e r o s i o n is a l l o w e d to c o n t i n u e , a stage will be r e a c h e d w h e r e
c o a l e s c e n c e o f d e s t r o y e d areas causes pieces o f foil to
b e c o m e d e t a c h e d f r o m the m a i n b o d y . In an active ultras o n i c c l e a n i n g b a t h this s e q u e n c e can be q u i t e rapid. W i t h

i 22

UH'RASONICS/July-September 1964

foil 0.0004 in t h i c k the t i m e for the t h i r d stage to be r e a c h e d

is b e t w e e n 15 sec a n d 20 sec.
Fig. 2 s h o w s the p r o g r e s s i v e d e s t r u c t i o n o f foil discs.
T h e foils were o b t a i n e d by c e m e n t i n g a l u m i n i u m foil to thin
brass rings a n d s u b j e c t i n g t h e m to different t r e a t m e n t times.
T h e p h o t o g r a p h s were p r o d u c e d by p r i n t i n g t h r o u g h o n t o
a photographic paper,
A 5 0 0 W u l t r a s o n i c c l e a n i n g b a t h was used in all tests, thc

Fig. 3. Relationship of area of foil destro3,ed to timc of immersion. Rcadings are averaged over man?, tests

c4-

i ..........

12

15

P~C~SS f o r
ferru[~
-

Diffusing
disc
/

L~ns

Lamp
bulb

butter

Se[enlum
photocell
Fig. 5. Meter for measuring eroded area

Fig. 4. Arrangement of optical components of measuring cell

generator output being carefully controlled to ensure

constancy of activity. Deionized water was used in the
bath, initial degassing of the liquid being carried out by
running the bath for an hour before the commencement of
tests. A jig was employed to position the discs accurately
in the bath and the complete series of tests was conducted
over the shortest possible time.
The relationship of destroyed area to time is given in
Fig. 3. A considerable number of tests shows that up to
35 % of the total area will be destroyed before coalescence
produces a break-up of large pieces of foil. Generally, with
a constant set of conditions, these results are repeatable to
within 1% of area or 2 % of the time.
The measurement of destroyed area was made with a
light source and photocell. To enable rapid measurements
to be carried out a system was devised consisting of the
measuring cell shown in Fig. 4. 7 A carefully aged selenium
cell is mounted at one end of a tube with a light source and
lens system at the other end. A spring-loaded shutter
prevents light from reaching the photocell and a recess in
the upper part of the slide enables a ferrule mounted foil to
interrupt the light beam when the shutter is depressed. The
photocell output is calibrated by means of a series of discs
with accurately drilled holes of calculated areas. A simple
ferrule is used to mount foil discs, the ferrule having an
aperture of lin diameter. Fig. 5 illustrates the complete
instrument. For basic comparison it is convenient to use the
relationship
C--

AK
t

where A is the eroded area expressed as a percentage of the

total area of the original foil, Kis a constant for the thickness
and type of foil and t is the time of immersion. C can be
considered as units of cavitation expressed in terms of
erosion.
While the diameter of the disc is somewhat less than half
a wavelength at the usual cleaning bath frequency, it still

represents an interference of the sound field with a consequent build up of complex standing waves and areas of
high activity. Although many equipments employ frequency
modulated power supplies to overcome large standing
waves, such waves are bound to occur under certain
circumstances. By taking two measurements with the foil
discs at 90 to each other a mean figure for destruction can
be obtained.
It is obvious that the work done in eroding a metal
surface can be calculated and in turn related to the cavitation energy received at the disc face. This relationship will
be the subject of future work.

CONCLUSIONS

The proposed method provides a simple and rapid means

of comparison where constant conditions can be applied.
It can be used in most cleaning fluids and is a direct
measure of cleaning efficiency in terms of cavitation erosion.
While not ideal from many points of view it represents a
practical attempt to solve a basic problem in ultrasonic
cleaning and enables a rapid comparison to be made
between competitive equipments or the day-to-day efficiency
of cleaning baths to be monitored.

REFERENCES

1.
2.
3.
4.

EISENBURG,P., Applied Mechanics Review, 10, No. 3, 85 (1957).

STRASBERG,M., J. Acoustical Society of America, 32, 283 (1960).
WEBSTER,B. S., Ultrasonics, 1, 39 (1963).
MIKHAmOV,I. G. and SHUTtLOV,V. A., Soviet Physics-Acoustics,
3, 410 (1957).
5. WEISSLER,A., Paper presented at Institute of Radio Engineers'
Symposium on Sonics and Ultrasonics (1962).
6. BROWN, B., British Communications and Electronics, 918 (December 1962).
7. Patents pending.

ULTRASONlCs/.hdy-September 1964

123