Regular Article

Effect of cavity parameters on the propagation of shock wave generated by underwater pulsed discharge

¹ State Key Laboratory of Advanced Electromagnetic Engineering and Technology, School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, P.R. China
² Key Laboratory of Pulsed Power Technology (Huazhong University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Wuhan 430074, P.R. China

^* e-mail: hzh@hust.edu.cn

Received: 12 October 2020
Received in final form: 17 December 2020
Accepted: 4 January 2021
Published online: 18 February 2021

Abstract

In order to optimize the shock wave generated by underwater pulsed discharge, the relationship between cavity parameters and shock wave propagation is further studied by three-dimensional numerical simulation. According to the sound pressure field distribution obtained by the simulation, the reflection of the shock wave by the reactor wall can be clearly observed. The reflected pressure wave will reach its maximum value and then gradually attenuate. The study also found that when the deposition energy is constant, when the initial radius of the arc channel increases from 0.1 mm to 2.5 mm, the maximum amplitude of the shock wave will increase from 0.22 × 10⁵ Pa to 1.70 × 10⁵ Pa. When the initial radius of the arc channel is constant, as the deposition energy increases, the time to radiate the shock wave becomes earlier, and the maximum amplitude of the shock wave will increase. This means that a higher pressure can be generated by increasing the input of the deposition energy. When the deposition energy is constant, a higher-pressure level can be obtained by increasing the initial radius of the channel. The excitation frequency also affects the shock wave amplitude. Higher excitation frequency can obtain higher pressure amplitude. These methods will increase the efficiency of underwater pulse discharge treatment of bacteria.