Effect of Initial Air Content on the Dynamics of Bubbles in Liquids [Letter to the Editor]

Initiation and collapse of cavitation bubbles are strongly influenced by the gas content of the liquid. Degassed liquids can withstand large tensions without bubble formation : Harvey
¹
subjected air-saturated water to pressures of 10
⁴
psi for several minutes, forcing the air nuclei into solution; upon depressurization, the solution did not cavitate under conditions which produced cavitation before pressurization. In this note, we analyze the effect of initial air partial pressure on the growth rate and dynamic stability of a bubble.