Effect of low-speed waterjet pressure on the rock-breaking performance of unsubmerged cavitating abrasive waterjet

Unsubmerged cavitating abrasive waterjet (UCAWJ) has been shown to artificially create a submerged environment that produces shear cavitation, which effectively enhances rock-breaking performance. The shear cavitation generation and collapse intensity depend on the pressure difference between the intermediate high-speed abrasive waterjet and the coaxial low-speed waterjet. However, the effect of the pressure of the coaxial low-speed waterjet is pending. For this purpose, the effect of low-speed waterjet pressure on rock-breaking performance at different standoff distances was experimentally investigated, and the effects of erosion time and ruby nozzle diameter on erosion performance were discussed. Finally, the micromorphology of the sandstone was observed at different locations. The results show that increased erosion time and ruby nozzle diameter can significantly improve the rock-breaking performance. At different standoff distances, the mass loss increases first and then decreases with the increase of low-speed waterjet pressure, the maximum mass loss is 10.4 g at a low-speed waterjet pressure of 0.09 MPa. The surface morphology of cavitation erosion was measured using a 3D profiler, the increase in both erosion depth and surface roughness indicated a significant increase in the intensity of the shear cavitation collapse. At a low-speed waterjet pressure of 0.18 MPa, the cavitation erosion surface depth can reach 600 μm with a roughness of 127 μm.