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At least 613 records · Page 34

ONERA-NASA Cooperative Effort on Liner Impedance Eduction

As part of a cooperation between ONERA and NASA, the liner impedance eduction methods developed by the two research centers are compared. The NASA technique relies on an objective function built on acoustic pressure measurements located on the wall opposite the test liner, and the propagation code solves the convected Helmholtz equation in uniform ow using a finite element method that implements a continuous Galerkin discretization. The ONERA method uses an objective function based either on wall acoustic pressure or on acoustic velocity acquired above the liner by Laser Doppler Anemometry, and the propagation code solves the linearized Euler equations by a discontinuous Galerkin discretization. Two acoustic liners are tested in both ONERA and NASA ow ducts and the measured data are treated with the corresponding impedance eduction method. The first liner is a wire mesh facesheet mounted onto a honeycomb core, designed to be linear with respect to incident sound pressure level and to grazing ow velocity. The second one is a conventional, nonlinear, perforate-over-honeycomb single layer liner. Configurations without and with ow are considered. For the nonlinear liner, the comparison of liner impedance educed by NASA and ONERA shows a sensitivity to the experimental conditions, namely to the nature of the source and to the sample width.

Primus, Julien↗

Broadband Noise Prediction of Two Small Hovering Rotors using FUN3D-ANOPP2

A computational study was performed on two small hovering rotors, the ideally twisted rotor and the optimum hovering 2-bladed rotor, using FUN3D-ANOPP2. The effects of different inviscid upwinding techniques and temporal resolutions on aerodynamic performance and acoustic prediction were compared against experimental data obtained in the Small Hover Anechoic Chamber facility at the NASA Langley Research Center. Decreasing the numerical dissipation with 𝜅 tuning or by using a higher-order inviscid flux reconstruction scheme was shown to improve aerodynamic performance predictions when compared to measured data for most cases. The effect of dissipation on the vorticity field was also seen to influence the amount of turbulence surrounding the vortex core of the first blade-vortex interaction (BVI), the coherence of the second and higher BVI vortex cores, and the downstream breakdown of the rotor wake for both rotor geometries. Tonal and broadband noise predictions from simulation cases with lower dissipation were seen to agree better with the experiment for the ideally twisted rotor, whereas temporal resolution differences had negligible impact on the broadband noise results. Similar fundamental BPF directivity patterns were obtained by all simulation cases for the optimum hovering 2-bladed rotor, while the most accurate 2*BPF directivity trend, compared to the experiment, was predicted by the lower-dissipation case at the coarse temporal resolution, albeit with an amplitude underprediction. Broadband noise spectral roll-off behavior was seen to occur at a higher frequency when using a finer temporal resolution for the optimum hovering 2-bladed rotor, unlike for the ideally twisted rotor geometry. The broadband noise prediction for the optimum hovering 2-bladed rotor from the higher-dissipation case at the coarse temporal resolution was also seen to predict a tone centered around approximately 8.5 kHz, which was similar in amplitude to the measured tone around 16.5 kHz.

Christopher S. Thurman↗

Applying Acoustic Emission to Large Format Additive Manufacturing

Large format additive manufacturing (AM) is being adapted as a method of producing large structures in a short lead time and cost-effective way. With the growing advancement in AM techniques and application, machine monitoring and part qualification is highly needed. There has been leading research focused on the manufacturing development and feedstock material but minimum research on the structural health monitoring (SHM), defect detection, and nondestructive evaluation (NDE) for large format AM. Scanning large structure using conventional nondestructive testing (NDT) techniques, such as ultrasound or X-ray, and searching for potential defects can be very time consuming, challenging and cost prohibitive. Acoustic emission (AE) is a passive technique that can be used to monitor and locate defect progression in large structures by distributing group of sensors around the part. This research outlines the necessary procedure for implementing AE to AM as a reliability method. The topics this research will display are: (a) Wave propagation/velocity evaluation, (b) an AE attenuation characterization for the anisotropic printed structure and material, (c) background noise measurements of the extruder and gantry system, and (d) assist in optimal sensor selection and placement for monitoring large AM structures with demonstration. This work establishes the foundation for scaling up the SHM-AE system for the large additive platform.

Spencer, Ryan↗

Multi-Level Structural Damage Characterization Using Sparse Acoustic Sensor Networks and Knowledge Transferred Deep Learning

Standard structural health monitoring techniques face well-known difficulties for comprehensive defect diagnosis in real-world structures that have structural, material, or geometric complexity. This motivates the exploration of machine-learning-based structural health monitoring methods in complex structures. However, creating sufficient training data sets with various defects is an ongoing challenge for data-driven machine (deep) learning algorithms. The ability to transfer the knowledge of a trained neural network from one component to another or to other sections of the same component would drastically reduce the required training data set. Also, it would facilitate computationally inexpensive machine learning based inspection systems. In this work, a machine-learning-based multi-level damage characterization is demonstrated with the ability to transfer trained knowledge within the sparse sensor network. A novel network spatial assistance and an adaptive convolution technique are proposed for efficient knowledge transfer within the deep learning algorithm. Proposed structural health monitoring method is experimentally evaluated on an aluminum plate with artificially induced defects. It was observed that the method improves the performance of knowledge transferred damage characterization by 50% during localization and 24% during severity assessment. Further, experiments using time windows with and without multiple edge reflections are studied. Results reveal that multiply scattered waves contain rich and deterministic defect signatures that can be mined using deep learning neural networks, improving the accuracy of both identification and quantification. In the case of a fixed sensor network, using multiply scattered waves shows 100% prediction accuracy at all levels of damage characterization.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Near field to far field transformations and multiple beam forming and steering

The feasibility of acoustic verification of microwave near field to far field transformation algorithms using the Phased Array Sonic Simulation System was studied. Existing electromagnetic near field measurement techniques and transformation algorithms (equations) were investigated. It was analytically determined that acoustic verification is valid. Acoustic simulation of electromagnetic near field to far field transformations is emphasized. The acoustic simulation of electromagnetic near field to far field transformation is verified for the modal expansion method. In the modal expansion method, data from antenna near field measurements are converted to a summation or spectrum of modes corresponding to wave numbers in the measurement coordinate system. Fourier transformation of those measurements preserves the far field information in a spectral form that is then readily extractable.

Source record↗

A Background Noise Reduction Technique Using Adaptive Noise Cancellation for Microphone Arrays

Background noise in wind tunnel environments poses a challenge to acoustic measurements due to possible low or negative Signal to Noise Ratios (SNRs) present in the testing environment. This paper overviews the application of time domain Adaptive Noise Cancellation (ANC) to microphone array signals with an intended application of background noise reduction in wind tunnels. An experiment was conducted to simulate background noise from a wind tunnel circuit measured by an out-of-flow microphone array in the tunnel test section. A reference microphone was used to acquire a background noise signal which interfered with the desired primary noise source signal at the array. The technique s efficacy was investigated using frequency spectra from the array microphones, array beamforming of the point source region, and subsequent deconvolution using the Deconvolution Approach for the Mapping of Acoustic Sources (DAMAS) algorithm. Comparisons were made with the conventional techniques for improving SNR of spectral and Cross-Spectral Matrix subtraction. The method was seen to recover the primary signal level in SNRs as low as -29 dB and outperform the conventional methods. A second processing approach using the center array microphone as the noise reference was investigated for more general applicability of the ANC technique. It outperformed the conventional methods at the -29 dB SNR but yielded less accurate results when coherence over the array dropped. This approach could possibly improve conventional testing methodology but must be investigated further under more realistic testing conditions.

Spalt, Taylor B.↗

A series expansion of the acoustic power radiated from planar sources

A series expansion in ascending powers of the wavenumber k is derived for the acoustic power delivered by baffled or unbaffled planar sources. This series provides a relatively simple means of derving expressions for the power radiated by a baffled source with a known velocity distribution and can be used for unbaffled plates when the velocity field outside the plate is also known. The terms in the series are calculated from the moments of this velocity distribution in the plane containing the source. If these moments are written as derivaties in wavenumber space, it is shown that a MacLaurin expansion of the Fourier transformed velocity provides an easy technique for computing the first few terms of the acoustic power. Examples are provided for baffled, rectangular plates with various boundary conditions. The arbirarily shaped plate with free boundaries is particularly interesting. It is proven that the volume flow across it surface must be zero and as a result corner and edge mode radiation cannot exist for this kind of source.

Willams, E. G.↗

Improved Water Sound Synthesis using Coupled Bubbles

We introduce a practical framework for synthesizing bubble-based water sounds that captures the rich inter-bubble coupling effects responsible for low-frequency acoustic emissions from bubble clouds. We propose coupled-bubble oscillator models with regularized singularities, and techniques to reduce the computational cost of time stepping with dense, time-varying mass matrices. Airborne acoustic emissions are estimated using finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) methods. We propose a simple, analytical surface-acceleration model, and a sample-and-hold GPU wavesolver that is simple and faster than prior CPU wavesolvers. Sound synthesis results are demonstrated using bubbly flows from incompressible, two-phase simulations, as well as procedurally generated examples using single-phase FLIP fluid animations. Our results demonstrate sound simulations with hundreds of thousands of bubbles, and perceptually significant frequency transformations with fuller low-frequency content.

Computer Science↗

Rotorcraft Aeromechanics Branch Home Page on the World Wide Web

The tilt rotor aircraft holds great promise for improving air travel in the future. It's benefits include vertical take off and landing combined with airspeeds comparable to propeller driven aircraft. However, the noise from a tilt rotor during approach to a landing is potentially a significant barrier to widespread acceptance of these aircraft. This approach noise is primarily caused by Blade Vortex Interactions (BVI), which are created when the blade passes near or through the vortex trailed by preceding blades. The XV- 15 Aeroacoustic test will measure the noise from a tilt rotor during descent conditions and demonstrate several possible techniques to reduce the noise. The XV- 15 Aeroacoustic test at NASA Ames Research Center will measure acoustics and performance for a full-scale XV-15 rotor. A single XV-15 rotor will be mounted on the Ames Rotor Test Apparatus (RTA) in the 80- by 120-Foot Wind Tunnel. The test will be conducted in helicopter mode with forward flight speeds up to 100 knots and tip path plane angles up to +/- 15 degrees. These operating conditions correspond to a wide range of tilt rotor descent and transition to forward flight cases. Rotor performance measurements will be made with the RTA rotor balance, while acoustic measurements will be made using an acoustic traverse and four fixed microphones. The acoustic traverse will provide limited directionality measurements on the advancing side of the rotor, where BVI noise is expected to be the highest. Baseline acoustics and performance measurements for the three-bladed rotor will be obtained over the entire test envelope. Acoustic measurements will also be obtained for correlation with the XV-15 aircraft Inflight Rotor Aeroacoustic Program (IRAP) recently conducted by Ames. Several techniques will be studied in an attempt to reduce the highest measured BVI noise conditions. The first of these techniques will use sub-wings mounted on the blade tips. These subwings are expected to alter the size, strength, and location of the tip vortex, therefore changing the BVI acoustics of the rotor. The subwings are approximately 20% of the blade chord and increase the rotor radius by about 3 percent. Four different subwing configurations will be tested, including square tipped subwings with different angles of incidence. The ability of active controls to reduce BVI acoustics will also be assessed. The dynamic control system of the RTA will be used to implement open- and closed-loop active control techniques, including individual blade control. Open-loop testing will be conducted using a personal computer based, automated, real-time data acquisition system. This system features combined automated output of open loop control signals and automated data acquisition of the resulting test data. A final technique to alter the noise of the rotor will be examined. This will involve changing the number of blades from three to four. A four-bladed rotor hub has been fabricated on which the XV-15 blades will be mounted. While the solidity of the rotor will increase, much useful information can be gained by examining the changes in the thrust and RPM with four blades.

Peterson, Randall L.↗

In-Situ Nondestructive Evaluation of Kevlar(Registered Trademark)and Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composite Micromechanics for Improved Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel Health Monitoring

NASA has been faced with recertification and life extension issues for epoxy-impregnated Kevlar 49 (K/Ep) and carbon (C/Ep) composite overwrapped pressure vessels (COPVs) used in various systems on the Space Shuttle and International Space Station, respectively. Each COPV has varying criticality, damage and repair histories, time at pressure, and pressure cycles. COPVs are of particular concern due to the insidious and catastrophic burst-before-leak failure mode caused by stress rupture (SR) of the composite overwrap. SR life has been defined [1] as the minimum time during which the composite maintains structural integrity considering the combined effects of stress level(s), time at stress level(s), and associated environment. SR has none of the features of predictability associated with metal pressure vessels, such as crack geometry, growth rate and size, or other features that lend themselves to nondestructive evaluation (NDE). In essence, the variability or surprise factor associated with SR cannot be eliminated. C/Ep COPVs are also susceptible to impact damage that can lead to reduced burst pressure even when the amount of damage to the COPV is below the visual detection threshold [2], thus necessitating implementation of a mechanical damage control plan [1]. Last, COPVs can also fail prematurely due to material or design noncompliance. In each case (SR, impact or noncompliance), out-of-family behavior is expected leading to a higher probability of failure at a given stress, hence, greater uncertainty in performance. For these reasons, NASA has been actively engaged in research to develop NDE methods that can be used during post-manufacture qualification, in-service inspection, and in-situ structural health monitoring. Acoustic emission (AE) is one of the more promising NDE techniques for detecting and monitoring, in real-time, the strain energy release and corresponding stress-wave propagation produced by actively growing flaws and defects in composite materials [3,4,5,6,7,8]. To gain further insight into the mechanisms responsible for composite rupture, broadband modal acoustic emission analysis was used. Also, since AE data reduction proved to be very time consuming, specialized data reduction software was written to automate the process.

Waller, Jess↗

Application of computational aeroacoustic methodologies to advanced propeller configurations - A review

Current research in the area of advanced propeller configurations for performance and acoustics are briefly reviewed. Particular attention is given to the techniques of Lock and Theodorsen modified for use in the design of counterrotating propeller configurations; a numerical method known as SSTAGE, which is a Euler solver for the unducted fan concept; the NASPROP-E numerical analysis also based on a Euler solver and used to study the near acoustic fields for the SR series propfan configurations; and a counterrotating propeller test rig designed to obtain an experimental performance/acoustic data base for various propeller configurations.

Korkan, Kenneth D.↗

The use of large cylindrical enclosures as a cost effective approach to reverberant acoustic testing

The feasibility of using existing cylindrical enclosures as cost effective substitutes for reverberant acoustic test chambers is investigated. In particular the performance of two large cylindrical environmental chambers, 1400 and 14,000 cu m in volume, is evaluated in detail. Reverberant acoustic chamber characteristics are predicted using classical acoustic theory and are compared to results obtained from actual chamber measurements. A method of scaling low level test results to predict the performance of a particular driver/horn/chamber configuration is also discussed. This prediction technique is confirmed by actual test data using a 200 kilowatt acoustic generator.

On, F. J.↗

Vibroacoustic Response of the NASA ACTS Spacecraft Antenna to Launch Acoustic Excitation

The Advanced Communications Technology Satellite was an experimental NASA satellite launched from the Space Shuttle Discovery. As part of the ground test program, the satellite s large, parabolic reflector antennas were exposed to a reverberant acoustic loading to simulate the launch acoustics in the Shuttle payload bay. This paper describes the modelling and analysis of the dynamic response of these large, composite spacecraft antenna structure subjected to a diffuse acoustic field excitation. Due to the broad frequency range of the excitation, different models were created to make predictions in the various frequency regimes of interest: a statistical energy analysis (SEA) model to capture the high frequency response and a hybrid finite element-statistical energy (hybrid FE-SEA) model for the low to mid-frequency responses. The strengths and limitations of each of the analytical techniques are discussed. The predictions are then compared to the measured acoustic test data and to a boundary element (BEM) model to evaluate the performance of the hybrid techniques.

Larko, Jeffrey M.↗

Determining Damping Trends from a Range of Cable Harness Assemblies on a Launch Vehicle Panel from Test Measurements

The team of authors at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has been investigating estimating techniques for the vibration response of launch vehicle panels excited by acoustics and/or aero-fluctuating pressures. Validation of the approaches used to estimate these environments based on ground tests of flight like hardware is of major importance to new vehicle programs. The team at MSFC has recently expanded upon the first series of ground test cases completed in December 2010. The follow on tests recently completed are intended to illustrate differences in damping that might be expected when cable harnesses are added to the configurations under test. This validation study examines the effect on vibroacoustic response resulting from the installation of cable bundles on a curved orthogrid panel. Of interest is the level of damping provided by the installation of the cable bundles and whether this damping could be potentially leveraged in launch vehicle design. The results of this test are compared with baseline acoustic response tests without cables. Damping estimates from the measured response data are made using a new software tool that employs a finite element model (FEM) of the panel in conjunction with advanced optimization techniques. This paper will report on the \damping trend differences. observed from response measurements for several different configurations of cable harnesses. The data should assist vibroacoustics engineers to make more informed damping assumptions when calculating vibration response estimates when using model based analysis approach. Achieving conservative estimates that have more flight like accuracy is desired. The paper may also assist analysts in determining how ground test data may relate to expected flight response levels. Empirical response estimates may also need to be adjusted if the measured response used as an input to the study came from a test article without flight like cable harnesses.

Smith, Andrew↗

Generation and Radiation of Acoustic Waves from a 2-D Shear Layer

A parallel numerical simulation of the radiation of sound from an acoustic source inside a 2-D jet is presented in this paper. This basic benchmark problem is used as a test case for scattering problems that are presently being solved by using the Impedance Mismatch Method (IMM). In this technique, a solid body in the domain is represented by setting the acoustic impedance of each medium, encountered by a wave, to a different value. This impedance discrepancy results in reflected and scattered waves with appropriate amplitudes. The great advantage of the use of this method is that no modifications to a simple Cartesian grid need to be made for complicated geometry bodies. Thus, high order finite difference schemes may be applied simply to all parts of the domain. In the IMM, the total perturbation field is split into incident and scattered fields. The incident pressure is assumed to be known and the equivalent sources for the scattered field are associated with the presence of the scattering body (through the impedance mismatch) and the propagation of the incident field through a non-uniform flow. An earlier version of the technique could only handle uniform flow in the vicinity of the source and at the outflow boundary. Scattering problems in non-uniform mean flow are of great practical importance (for example, scattering from a high lift device in a non-uniform mean flow or the effects of a fuselage boundary layer). The solution to this benchmark problem, which has an acoustic wave propagating through a non-uniform mean flow, serves as a test case for the extensions of the IMM technique.

Agarwal, Anurag↗

Contact thermal shock test of ceramics

A novel quantitative thermal shock test of ceramics is described. The technique employs contact between a metal-cooling rod and hot disk-shaped specimen. In contrast with traditional techniques, the well-defined thermal boundary condition allows for accurate analyses of heat transfer, stress, and fracture. Uniform equibiaxial tensile stresses are induced in the center of the test specimen. Transient specimen temperature and acoustic emission are monitored continuously during the thermal stress cycle. The technique is demonstrated with soda-lime glass specimens. Experimental results are compared with theoretical predictions based on a finite-element method thermal stress analysis combined with a statistical model of fracture. Material strength parameters are determined using concentric ring flexure tests. Good agreement is found between experimental results and theoretical predictions of failure probability as a function of time and initial specimen temperature.

Rogers, W. P.↗

An Introduction to 3-D Sound

This talk will overview the basic technologies related to the creation of virtual acoustic images, and the potential of including spatial auditory displays in human-machine interfaces. Research into the perceptual error inherent in both natural and virtual spatial hearing is reviewed, since the formation of improved technologies is tied to psychoacoustic research. This includes a discussion of Head Related Transfer Function (HRTF) measurement techniques (the HRTF provides important perceptual cues within a virtual acoustic display). Many commercial applications of virtual acoustics have so far focused on games and entertainment ; in this review, other types of applications are examined, including aeronautic safety, voice communications, virtual reality, and room acoustic simulation. In particular, the notion that realistic simulation is optimized within a virtual acoustic display when head motion and reverberation cues are included within a perceptual model.

Begault, Durand R.↗

Identifications and classifications of human locomotion using Rayleigh-enhanced distributed fiber acoustic sensors with deep neural networks

Abstract This paper reports on the use of machine learning to delineate data harnessed by fiber-optic distributed acoustic sensors (DAS) using fiber with enhanced Rayleigh backscattering to recognize vibration events induced by human locomotion. The DAS used in this work is based on homodyne phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometry (φ-OTDR). The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the DAS was enhanced using femtosecond laser-induced artificial Rayleigh scattering centers in single-mode fiber cores. Both supervised and unsupervised machine-learning algorithms were explored to identify people and specific events that produce acoustic signals. Using convolutional deep neural networks, the supervised machine learning scheme achieved over 76.25% accuracy in recognizing human identities. Conversely, the unsupervised machine learning scheme achieved over 77.65% accuracy in recognizing events and human identities through acoustic signals. Through integrated efforts on both sensor device innovation and machine learning data analytics, this paper shows that the DAS technique can be an effective security technology to detect and to identify highly similar acoustic events with high spatial resolution and high accuracies.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗