This article provides an overview of cavitation erosion with a specific focus on the estimation of mass loss. It describes the mechanisms of cavitation erosion and the types of laboratory devices to evaluate the resistance to cavitation erosion of materials. The laboratory devices include rotating disks, vibratory devices, cavitating liquid jets, and high-speed cavitation tunnels. The article discusses materials selection and surface protection to prevent cavitation erosion. It reviews the fluid-structure interaction that plays a role in cavitation erosion particularly for compliant materials. The article provides information on the numerical prediction of cavitation erosion damage by the finite element method (FEM).

This article considers two mechanisms of cavitation failure: those for ductile materials and those for brittle materials. It examines the different stages of cavitation erosion. The article explains various cavitation failures including cavitation in bearings, centrifugal pumps, and gearboxes. It provides information on the cavitation resistance of materials and other prevention parameters. The article describes two American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standards for the evaluation of erosion and cavitation, namely, ASTM Standard G 32 and ASTM Standard G 73. It concludes with a discussion on correlations between laboratory results and service.