Analysis of the flow field characterization on the cavitation water jet applied to planar and curved surfaces

Cavitation water jet technology offers a sustainable alternative to traditional high-energy, high-pollution production or cleaning methods in the biodiesel, injector, and turbine industries. Although widely applied, the dynamics of cavitation cloud evolution and erosion patterns on various surface constraints require further investigation. This paper examines how planar and differently curved surface constraints affect the spatiotemporal evolution of the cavitation cloud under submerged conditions. The flow field is experimentally observed by using a high-speed camera. Proper orthogonal decomposition is employed to analyze the characteristics of the cavitation flow field across these surface constraints. Additionally, large eddy simulation is used to explore the internal flow dynamics and progression of the cavitation cloud under varying target surface constraints. The findings provide deeper insight into the spatiotemporal evolution patterns of cavitation clouds against planar and curved surfaces, expanding the application of cavitation jet technology in diverse energy generation and conversion fields.