Taming acoustic cavitation

This thesis shows that through microfabrication techniques, an improved efficiency of sono-reactors can be achieved by the control of the nucleation sites of bubble streamers. It has been proofed that one order of magnitude improvement compared to the equivalent conventional sonoreactor is feasible. The characteristics of the light emitted (SL and SCL) from the reactor can give useful information on the type of bubbles generated. When more sophisticated techniques are available, more details on the nucleation of bubble streamers and its complex behavior can be addressed. The practical uses of these bubble streamers is shown for removing various types of layers and in different liquids other than water. The negative effects of cavitation erosion were studied for different types of silicon with important insight into future reactors design strategies. Nevertheless, the complexity of sonochemical reactors still remains, as bubbles generated in this way do not behave in a simpler way than in conventional reactors. What is clear is that there is enough room for improvement and challenging and new applications are around the corner to further tame acoustic cavitation.