Numerical Investigation of Bubble Cloud Dynamics in Shock Wave Lithotripsy

To provide greater understanding of some of the phenomena in Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy (ESWL), we implemented a two-phase continuum model for cavitating flow and applied it to the simulation of bubble cloud dynamics in an electro-hydraulic lithotripter. Through the combination of a WENO shock capturing scheme, curvilinear coordinates system and ensemble averaged mixture model, we computed the evolution of the lithotripsy shock wave and the concomitant cavitation field. In this paper, we present the results for three different configurations: a single-pulse lithotripter (free field), a single-pulse lithotripter with rigid artificial kidney stone at the focal point, and a dual-pulse lithotripter. Qualitative and quantitative comparisons of the numerical results to experimental observations are also included.