UC Berkeley

Bubbly shocks act as the dominant mechanism of shedding of partial cavities under certain conditions. The compressible nature of low void fraction regions in a partial cavity can provide conditions necessary for the existence of such bubbly shocks. Using X-ray densitometry as a flow visualisation mechanism, the dynamics of bubbly shock fronts with and without the presence of an obstacle are presented. Different flow features associated with the shock dynamics are identified and the associated flow physics explained.