The safety of cavitation cleaning lies in precise pressure thresholds. While traditional high-pressure washing uses direct kinetic impact (150-300 bar) that mechanically shears the paint, cavitation operates via micro-jet energy from collapsing vapor bubbles. This implosion generates localized pressure that easily exceeds the tensile strength of barnacle cement (>10 MPa), yet remains far below the shear threshold of cured epoxy anti-fouling coatings. By tuning the nozzle standoff distance, the acoustic field targets only the biofouling, shearing the attachment layer without micro-abrasion to the underlying matrix.
