On the possibility of shock-induced cavitation in submerged cylindrical shell systems

A circular cylindrical shell loaded by one or two fluids and responding to an external shock wave is analyzed in the context of the possible inception of shock-induced cavitation. Several scenarios of fluid contact are considered including a submerged evacuated shell and a submerged fluid-filled shell for three different combinations of the parameters of the internal and external fluids. A semi-analytical shell-shock interaction model is employed in order to predict the regions of the fluids where cavitation is likely to occur, and the respective cavitation development is hypothesized about. The most interesting and practically important finding is that when fluid is present both inside and outside the shell, there exist conditions when cavitation is expected to occur in both the internal and external fluid, resulting in a particularly complex and violent structural re-loading occurring upon the collapse of the respective cavitation regions. The inception of cavitation in the internal fluid alone and in the external fluid alone is also possible. The findings are summarized in a manner that is suitable for use at the pre-design stage as a guide for preliminary assessment of the possibility of shock-induced cavitation in fluid-interacting industrial systems.