Bubbles in air are ephemeral because of gravity-induced drainage and liquid evaporation, which severely limits their applications, especially as intriguing bio/chemical reactors. In this work, a new approach using acoustic levitation combined with controlled liquid compensation to stabilize bubbles is proposed. Due to the suppression of drainage by sound field and prevention of capillary waves by liquid compensation, the bubbles can remain stable and intact permanently. It has been found that the acoustically levitated bubble shows a significantly enhanced particle adsorption ability because of the oscillation of the bubble and the presence of internal acoustic streaming. The results shed light on the development of novel air-purification techniques without consuming any solid filters.
Keywords: acoustic levitation; bubble; bubble stability; liquid interfaces; particle adsorption.
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