Nucleation and stabilization of cavitation nuclei in liquids

The presence of cavitation nuclei are normally required in order to induce cavitation in water-based fluids, as the homogeneous nucleation threshold is beyond the range of most acoustic-pressure generation systems (a notable exception is the “intrinsic threshold” achieved by some histotripsy devices). There are a number of potential models for these nuclei, but one that continues to receive favor is the “crevice model,” in which a pocket of gas is contained in a crack or crevice in a contaminating particle and then stabilized against diffusion by the geometry of the crevice. This presentation will describe this model in some detail, present some (old) data that support the model, and some new data that imply that such activatable nuclei exist in mammalian tissue.