Numerical Simulation of Sonoreactors (Green Technology, Sonochemistry)
Mentor: Christian Vanhille
Email: christian.vanhille@urjc.es
Phone: (+34) 916647482
University: Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
Partner Host Institution:
Keywords: Nonlinear acoustics, Numerical methods, High-power ultrasound, Sonochemistry (green technology), Numerical simulation, Sonoreactors

Numerical Simulation of Sonoreactors (Green Technology, Sonochemistry)

Numerical Simulation of Sonoreactors (Green Technology, Sonochemistry). Acoustic cavitation can be used to enhance some industrial processes (chemistry, biomedical applications, nanotechnology, food technology, water treatment, cleaning). The propagation of an intense ultrasonic wave in a liquid leads to the formation, oscillation, growth, and collapse of bubbles. Huge temperatures and pressures are reached in the bubbles. These extremely high values increase the chemical activity locally, where bubbles exist. This process, namely sonochemistry (green technology), requires high-amplitude ultrasound that propagates nonlinearly in the bubbly-liquid medium. In this framework, our group develops numerical tools to study the time-dependent and nonlinear interaction of ultrasound and bubble oscillations, which is a key point to enhance the efficiency of sonochemistry. The complexity of the entire problem (nonlinear phenomena, dissipation, dispersion, physical effects, three-dimensional geometry, wall vibrations) makes it very challenging and difficult to solve. In particular, since the region in which cavitation takes place is restricted to a localized volume of liquid close to the ultrasonic source (sonotrode), one of our objectives for the next few years is the study of sonoreactors through numerical simulations with the purpose of increasing the volume treated by cavitation.

Departament: Applied Mathematics, Materials Science and Engineering and Electronic Technology
Research Group: Numerical Analysis in Nonlinear Acoustics (NANLA)
More Information:
Relevants projects on the area: "Non-linear interaction of ultrasounds and gas bubbles in liquids: characterization and detection by numerical models and experimental studies", Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities, National Agency for Research (DPI2017-84758-P), 2018-2021, PI : Christian Vanhille.
Relevants publications on the area: 1.- C. Vanhille and C. Campos-Pozuelo, “Numerical simulations of three-dimensional nonlinear acoustic waves in bubbly liquids”, Ultrasonics Sonochemistry 20, 963-969, 2013.
2.- M.T. Tejedor Sastre and C. Vanhille, “A numerical model for the study of the difference frequency generated from nonlinear mixing of standing ultrasonic waves in bubbly liquids”, Ultrasonics Sonochemistry 34, 881-888, 2017.