Sonochemistry refers to ultrasound-initiated chemical processes in liquids. The interaction between bubbles and sound energy in liquids results in acoustic cavitation. This review presents the fundamental aspects of acoustic cavitation and theoretical aspects behind sonochemistry such as dynamics of bubble oscillation, the rectified diffusion process that is responsible for the growth of cavitation bubbles, near adiabatic collapse of cavitation bubbles resulting in extreme reaction conditions and several chemical species generated within collapsing bubbles that are responsible for various redox reactions. Specifically, a detailed discussion on single bubble sonochemistry is provided.
Keywords: Acoustic cavitation; Single bubble dynamics; Sonochemistry; Sonoluminescence.