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The problem of establishing the state of the technology is approached by first identifying the various characteristics of rotor noise and then assessing the state of technology in understanding and predicting the most important of these rotor noise characteristics in a real-world environment.
Distributive loading rotational theory for helicopter rotor noise generation, considering steady and fluctuating force radiation and impulsive blade slap
The influence of tunnel turbulence on turbofan rotor noise was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of the NASA Ames 40 by 80 foot tunnel in simulating flight levels of fan noise. A previously developed theory for predicting rotor/turbulence interaction noise was refined and extended to include first-order effects of inlet turbulence anisotropy. This theory was then verified by carrying out extensive data/theory comparisons. The resulting model computer program was then employed to carry out a parametric study of the effects of fan size, blade number, and operating line on rotor/turbulence noise for outdoor test stand. NASA Ames wind tunnel, and flight inlet turbulence conditions. A major result of this study is that although wind tunnel rotor/turbulence noise levels are not as low as flight levels they are substantially lower than the outdoor test stand levels and do not mask other sources of fan noise.
This paper compares two methods for predicting transonic rotor noise for helicopters in hover and forward flight. Both methods rely on a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solution as input to predict the acoustic near and far fields. For this work, the same full-potential rotor code has been used to compute the CFD solution for both acoustic methods. The first method employs the acoustic analogy as embodied in the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings (FW-H) equation, including the quadrupole term. The second method uses a rotating Kirchhoff formulation. Computed results from both methods are compared with one other and with experimental data for both hover and advancing rotor cases. The results are quite good for all cases tested. The sensitivity of both methods to CFD grid resolution and to the choice of the integration surface/volume is investigated. The computational requirements of both methods are comparable; in both cases these requirements are much less than the requirements for the CFD solution.
This paper presents an analysis of open rotor noise shielding by Blended Wing Body (BWB) aircraft by using model scale test data acquired in the Boeing Low Speed Aeroacoustic Facility (LSAF) with a legacy F7/A7 rotor model and a simplified BWB platform. The objective of the analysis is the understanding of the shielding features of the BWB and the method of application of the shielding data for noise studies of BWB aircraft with open rotor propulsion. By studying the directivity patterns of individual tones, it is shown that though the tonal energy distribution and the spectral content of the wind tunnel test model, and thus its total noise, may differ from those of more advanced rotor designs, the individual tones follow directivity patterns that characterize far field radiations of modern open rotors, ensuring the validity of the use of this shielding data. Thus, open rotor tonal noise shielding should be categorized into front rotor tones, aft rotor tones and interaction tones, not only because of the different directivities of the three groups of tones, but also due to the differences in their source locations and coherence features, which make the respective shielding characteristics of the three groups of tones distinctly different from each other. To reveal the parametric trends of the BWB shielding effects, results are presented with variations in frequency, far field emission angle, rotor operational condition, engine installation geometry, and local airframe features. These results prepare the way for the development of parametric models for the shielding effects in prediction tools.
A ray acoustics approach to fuselage scattering of rotor noise is considered. The method is based on a combination of classical geometrical acoustics and the paraxial ray approximation. The method can handle scattering by objects of arbitrary shapes and can be applied in an inhomogeneous moving medium. Applications to aeroacoustics include the scattering of blade vortex interaction (BVI) pulses by rigid scattering objects. The BVI is modeled by a rotating impulsive point force. It has been found that scattering effects of rotating sources cannot be ignored. Flow has also been found to cause a modification and displacement of the directivity pattern and the shadow zones behind scatterers.
A new method of separating the contributions of helicopter main and tail rotor noise sources is presented, making use of ground-based acoustic measurements. The method employs time-domain de-Dopplerization to transform the acoustic pressure time-history data collected from an array of ground-based microphones to the equivalent time-history signals observed by an array of virtual inflight microphones traveling with the helicopter. The now-stationary signals observed by the virtual microphones are then periodically averaged with the main and tail rotor once per revolution triggers. The averaging process suppresses noise which is not periodic with the respective rotor, allowing for the separation of main and tail rotor pressure time-histories. The averaged measurements are then interpolated across the range of directivity angles captured by the microphone array in order to generate separate acoustic hemispheres for the main and tail rotor noise sources. The new method is successfully applied to ground-based microphone measurements of a Bell 206B3 helicopter and demonstrates the strong directivity characteristics of harmonic noise radiation from both the main and tail rotors of that helicopter.
In this paper we discuss the problem of high speed rotor noise prediction. In particular, we propose that from the point of view of the acoustic analogy, shocks around rotating blades are sources of sound. We show that, although for a wing at uniform steady rectilinear motion with shocks the volume quadrupole and shock sources cancel in the far field to the order of 1/r, this cannot happen for rotating blades. In this case, some cancellation between volume quadrupoles and shock sources occurs, yet the remaining shock noise contribution is still potent. A formula for shock noise prediction is presented based on mapping the deformable shock surface to a time independent region. The resulting equation is similar to Formulation 1A of Langley. Shock noise prediction for a hovering model rotor for which experimental noise data exist is presented. The comparison of measured and predicted acoustic data shows good agreement.
For low speed rotors, it is shown that unsteady load models are only partially successful in predicting experimental levels. A theoretical model is presented which leads to the concept of unsteady thickness noise. This gives better agreement with test results. For high speed rotors, it is argued that present models are incomplete and that other mechanisms are at work. Some possibilities are briefly discussed.
Vortex shedding effects on helicopter rotor noise with and without blade slap, noting far and near field noise
The two most serious tilt rotor external noise problems, hover noise and blade-vortex interaction noise, are studied. The results of flow visualization and inflow velocity measurements document a complex, recirculating highly unsteady and turbulent flow due to the rotor-wing-body interactions characteristic of tilt rotors. The wing under the rotor is found to obstruct the inflow, causing a deficit in the inflow velocities over the inboard region of the rotor. Discrete frequency harmonic thickness and loading noise mechanisms in hover are examined by first modeling tilt rotor hover aerodynamics and then applying various noise prediction methods using the WOPWOP code. The analysis indicates that the partial ground plane created by the wing below the rotor results in a primary sound source for hover.
Owing to their inherent fuel burn efficiency advantage compared with the current generation high bypass ratio turbofan engines, there is resurgent interest in developing open rotor propulsion systems for powering the next generation commercial aircraft. However, to make open rotor systems truly competitive, they must be made to be acoustically acceptable too. To address this challenge, NASA in collaboration with industry is exploring the design space for low-noise open rotor propulsion systems. The focus is on the system level assessment of the open rotors compared with other candidate concepts like the ultra high bypass ratio cycle engines. To that end there is an extensive research effort at NASA focused on component testing and diagnostics of the open rotor acoustic performance as well as assessment and improvement of open rotor noise prediction tools. In this presentation and overview of the current NASA research on open rotor noise will be provided. Two NASA projects, the Environmentally Responsible Aviation Project and the Subsonic Fixed Wing Project, have been funding this research effort.
A theoretical study was conducted to develop an analytical prediction method for helicopter main rotor noise due to the ingestion of atmospheric turbulence. This study incorporates an atmospheric turbulence model, a rotor mean flow contraction model and a rapid distortion turbulence model which together determine the statistics of the non-isotropic turbulence at the rotor plane. Inputs to the combined mean inflow and turbulence models are controlled by atmospheric wind characteristics and helicopter operating conditions. A generalized acoustic source model was used to predict the far field noise generated by the non-isotropic flow incident on the rotor. Absolute levels for acoustic spectra and directivity patterns were calculated for full scale helicopters, without the use of empirical or adjustable constants. Comparisons between isotropic and non-isotropic turbulence at the rotor face demonstrated pronounced differences in acoustic spectra. Turning and contraction of the flow for hover and low speed vertical ascent cases result in a 3 dB increase in the acoustic spectrum energy and a 10 dB increase in tone levels. Compared to trailing edge noise, turbulence ingestion noise is the dominant noise mechanism below approximately 30 rotor harmonics, while above 100 harmonics, trailing edge noise levels exceed turbulence ingestion noise by 25 dB.
An analytical study of the effects of wind tunnel turbulence on turbofan rotor noise was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of the NASA Ames 40 by 80-foot wind tunnel in simulating flight levels of fan noise. A previously developed theory for predicting rotor/turbulence interaction noise, refined and extended to include first-order effects of inlet turbulence anisotropy, was employed to carry out a parametric study of the effects of fan size, blade number, and operating line for outdoor test stand, NASA Ames wind tunnel, and flight inlet turbulence conditions. A major result of this study is that although wind tunnel rotor/turbulence noise levels are not as low as flight levels, they are substantially lower than the outdoor test stand levels and do not mask other sources of fan noise.
Two complementary methods of describing the high speed rotor noise problem are discussed. The first method uses the second order transonic potential equation to define and characterize the nature of the aerodynamic and acoustic fields and to explain the appearance of radiating shock waves. The second employs the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings equation to successfully calculate the acoustic far field. Good agreement between theoretical and experimental waveforms is shown for transonic hover tip Mach numbers from 0.8 to 0.9.
It is pointed out that an accurate prediction of the high-speed impulsive rotor noise is very difficult since the noise field depends on many complex factors. Schmitz and Yu (1981) have conducted a study with the aim to include local aerodynamic nonlinearities in a calculation regarding the acoustic shock. In the present investigation, the hover case of the model rotor studied by Schmitz and Yu was recomputed without certain implicit assumptions made in the earlier calculation. The obtained results show that the Schmitz-Yu computations are very much base-support area dependent. Attention is given to the quadrupole integral, and the pressure-time curves for the model rotor in hover.
Experimental study of helicopter rotor noise
Annoyance judgements were obtained for computer generated stimuli simulative of helicopter impulsive rotor noise to investigate effects of repetition rate and impulsiveness. Each of the 82 different stimuli was judged at 3 sound pressure levels by 48 subjects. Impulse repetition rates covered a range from 10 Hz to 115 Hz; crest factors covered a range from 3.2 dB to 19.3 dB. Increases in annoyance with increases in repetition rate were found which were not predicted by common loudness or annoyance metrics and which were independent of noise level. The ability to predict effects of impulsiveness varied between the noise metrics and was found to be dependent on noise level. The ability to predict the effects of impulsiveness was not generally improved by any of several proposed impulsiveness corrections. Instead, the effects of impulsiveness were found to be systematically related to the frequency content of the stimuli. A modified frequency weighting was developed which offers improved annoyance prediction.