Study of Some Features of Explosive Fragmentation of Liquid Bismuth during Its Contact with Water

The results of experimental study on the explosive interaction of 3 and 10 g droplets and jets of molten bismuth with water within a range of the initial melt temperatures $${{T}_{0}}$$ = 600–800°C are given. High-speed video recording revealed that explosive (duration of the process less than 1 ms) breakup of liquid bismuth droplets occurs both in contact with the free surface of the coolant under the conditions of partial submersion in water, as well as within the water bulk volume. An analysis of measured pressure oscillations in the water medium showed that there is no dependence of their amplitude on the initial temperature or the droplet mass. Numerical simulations and experimental results indicate the higher values of the pressure and acoustic energy generated during underwater explosions of bismuth droplets as compared to explosions on the surface.