Pressure waves in a gas–liquid medium with a stratified liquid–bubbly mixture structure

Evolution and decay of pressure waves of moderate amplitude in a vertical shock tube filled by a gas–liquid medium with a nonuniform (stepwise) distribution of bubbles over the tube cross section are studied experimentally. The gas–liquid layer has the form of a ring located near the tube wall or the form of a gas–liquid column located in the center of the tube. It is shown that the nonuniformity of bubble distribution over the tube cross section increases the attenuation rate of pressure waves.