Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of acoustic liners for jet aircraft engine nacelles, and more particularly to a process for designing an acoustic liner using a multi-dimensional physical model that is based upon the conservation of mass and momentum.
2. Background Art
Jet engine noise surrounding airports in congested areas has increasingly plagued aircraft and aircraft-engine manufacturers. Sound measuring equipment is present at many of the world's large airports, and fines are assessed for planes that exceed national and international noise regulations. Accordingly, optimizing the sound absorption of acoustic liners in jet engine nacelles is imperative for a new jet engine design to be commercially viable.
Acoustic liners typically comprise a honeycombed sheet with a rigid back plate and bounded by a top plate containing orifices—a resistive layer—that define a plurality of Helmholtz resonators within each honeycomb section. Existing processes for designing acoustic liners comprise costly and lengthy wind tunnel tests of various Helmholtz resonator designs to obtain data for extrapolation to generate empirical formulas to approximate liner resistance and reactance, or impedance. Liners are then designed in accordance with this extrapolated data, which are in turn tested again via trial and error by further costly and lengthy wind-tunnel tests.
While much of the specifics for the extrapolation techniques remain closely held trade secrets by nacelle manufacturers, the general process step of extrapolating data—along with severe accuracy limitations—has been outlined in some references. For example, one publication, Seing-Hyun Lee and Jeong-Guon, “Empirical Model of the Acoustic Impedance of a Circular Orifice in Grazing Mean Flow,” J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 144(1), p. 98, July 2003, states that “there are many analytical and empirical models for orifice impedance,” then presents a model that seeks to overcome “a large discrepancy with the measured result” in prior art processes. The reference continues to describe various parameters on which to focus in order to yield an “empirical impedance model by using nonlinear regression analysis of the various results of the parametric tests.” Id.
Another publication, Cecile Malmary and Serge Carbonne, “Acoustic Impedance Measurement with Grazing Flow,” American Institute of Aeronautics and Aeronautics Paper 2001-2993, 2001, p. 1-9, describes prior-art systems in which “[a]coustic impedance properties are mainly quantified by semi or totally empirical formulas, which depend on the experiment set-up used and are specific for each type of tested layer.” Id. at 1. An empirical model is then presented that includes the parameter of the boundary conditions at the treated wall.
To my knowledge, all but one model are empirical using regression analysis or some other extrapolation technique, typically using based upon the mean grazing flow in the duct. These models present an approximation for Helmholtz resonators, but require additional wind tunnel testing to optimize the design for a particular impedance goal. And any change to any parameters in the jet engine or nacelle requires retesting using a wind tunnel on various Helmholtz resonator designs. These models invariably incorporate a mean grazing flow within the duct.
In addition, these models are highly affected by the particular wind tunnel and resonator parameters such that different configurations and empirical models yield resonators that can vary in sound absorption efficiency.
One model—by the present inventor—employs a one-dimensional physical model based on conservation of mass and momentum. Hersh, A. and Walker, B, “Acoustic Behavior of Helmholtz Resonators. Part 1. Non-Linear Behavior,” AIAA Journal, Vol. 41, No. 5, May, 2003, pp. 795-808. The model is based upon a column of air that that moves into and out the resonator orifice and cavity with a non-linear spring-damping geometry. This model has the advantage that it is based on physics and physical characteristics, not merely extrapolation of data. That means that once calibrated, it may be used to calculate the impedance of a Helmholtz resonator without the need for costly and lengthy wind tunnel testing. However, this model is not practical for use in designing acoustic liners because the model is not sufficiently accurate.
More particularly, the one-dimensional model—along with the data extrapolation models—fails to account for mean-flow velocity gradients. These omissions cause the resonator designs to be less than optimal.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to develop a physical model that incorporates the physical properties of conservation of mass and momentum and is sufficiently accurate to avoid the need to conduct further wind tunnel testing required by models based on extrapolating data.
The present invention solves this problem by employing a model based on a three-dimensional wedge-shaped volume that pumps fluid into and out of the cavity of the Helmholtz resonator. The model—based on conservation of mass and momentum—suggests that resonator impedance may be dependent upon the local velocity gradients near the nacelle wall (i.e., the resistant layer comprising the orifices).
It is an object of the preferred embodiment of the present invention to simplify the physics and mathematics involved by limiting the model to the in-flow half cycle. This restriction is not unduly limiting because both the particle volume flow and energy pumped into and out of the resonator volume must be constant over a dynamically steady-state sound period. The success of this approach is dependent upon proper calibration of the model-derived empirical parameters with test data. The model further assumes that all resonator dimensions are small relative to the wavelength of the incident sound field to distinguish Helmholtz resonators from quarter-wave tube resonators.
It is a further object of the preferred embodiment of the present invention to use the local velocity gradients near the nacelle wall to improve upon prior-art models that use mean velocity flow in the duct. The velocity gradients very near the nacelle wall—not only the mean flow—play an important role in predicting liner impedance. Accordingly, this physical model is incorporated in a process for designing and for manufacturing acoustic liners in jet aircraft engines. It is well known in the art to begin the process of designing an acoustic liner by conducting a numerical study to determine the optimal impedance in an engine nacelle using a convective-sound propagation code.
It is another object of the invention to employ four empirical parameters of the wedge model to define the wedge volume. These parameters are the location of the far-field driving acoustic pressure; the location wherein the acoustic-mean-flow is pumped into and out of the resonator volume; the location of the maximum polar angle; and the location of the maximum azimuthal angle that define the wedge volume.
The first step in the model development is to measure the impedances of a suitable number of resonator liner configurations under a suitable number of grazing flow velocities.
The second step is to use the wedge model software to determine the four parameters that match the impedances of the test resonator liner configurations.
The third step is to derive curve-fits of the wedge model four parameters in terms of the resonator liner geometries.
The fourth step is to input the four parameter curve-fits into the wedge model software to predict resonator liner impedance as a function of liner geometry, sound pressure level and grazing flow. The validity of the software will be verified by comparing model predicted impedance to the original impedance test data. In the embodiment used for the present invention, Matlab code was employed. However, a Fortran code could be used instead, which has the advantage of being much faster than Matlab.
The fifth step is to use the wedge model software to determine liner geometry that yields the optimal, desired liner impedance. The resulting liner may be manufactured using techniques well known in the art.
The several features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood with a reading of the following detailed description in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:
Identical reference numerals in the drawings denote the same elements throughout the various drawings. However, the various drawings are not drawn to scale, but for illustrative purposes of the basic relative configurations.
The process for designing and building an acoustic liner of the present invention is shown in
Second step 420 is to use the calibration data from first step 410 in conjunction with the wedge model software to numerically compute the four empirical parameters of the wedge model that define the wedge volume: the location of the far-field driving acoustic pressure; the location wherein the acoustic-mean-flow is pumped into and out of the resonator volume; the location of the maximum polar angle; and the location of the maximum azimuthal angle that define the wedge volume.
The following procedure is used to calculate the four parameters from measured values of resistance and reactance for a particular liner configuration:
where Rm represents the measured liner resistance and Xm the measured liner reactance.
Third step 430 is to derive curve fits of the four parameters from second step 420 of the wedge model that were used to determine the impedances of the liners. These curve steps connect the four parameters to all of the liner geometries used in step 410. Those skilled in the art will know how to perform this step 430.
Fourth step 440 is to input the third step 430 curve fits into the wedge model to develop software capable of accurately predicting resonator liner impedance as a function of liner geometry, sound-pressure level and grazing flow velocity. The resulting software is validated by predicting the impedances of first step 410 test resonators and comparing it to measured values. Because this model is based on physics—that is, the conservation of spherical mass and momentum, not merely an extrapolation of data—accurate predictions of impedance may be obtained without the costly and lengthy need to test a suitable number of liner configurations within a wind tunnel. In the embodiment tested, MatLab code is employed, which is shown below. Alternately, Fortran code may be used to obtain faster processing time.
At this point the nacelle manufacturer has identified the optimum impedance. Fifth step 450 is to use the calibrated wedge model software to determine the resonator geometry that matches the desired optimum resonator liner configurations and to measure the impedance of a selected resonator to confirm that it achieves the desired optimum impedance.
The heart of the preferred embodiment of the present invention is second step 420 to fourth step 440 in the designing process.
The physical model addresses the effect of grazing flow on resonator impedance (i.e., cavity 20 bounded by face plate 100 and rigid back plate 10). The in-flow model is valid only during the half-cycle when the incident steady-state and acoustic velocities enter the resonator cavity 20—it is not valid during the other half-cycle when the acoustic flow exits the resonator cavity 20. The restriction of the model to the in-flow half-cycle is not unduly limiting because both the volume flow and energy pumped into and out of the volume of resonator cavity 20 must be constant over a dynamically steady-state sound period. Thus an approximate solution over the in-flow half-cycle should result in an approximate solution over the entire cycle. The model assumes that all resonator cavity 20 dimensions are small compared to the wavelength of the incident sound field to distinguish Helmholtz resonators from quarter-wave tube resonators, which is the case for acoustic liners in jet engines.
Here, z is the height above resonator face plate 100.
The spherical wedge is defined by inner and outer radii denoted, respectively, as Hend and Hfar and arc lengths Δθ and Δφ. The outer radial distance, Hfar, represents the location that the model empirically predicts of the far-field acoustic pressure, which drives the grazing flow and acoustic velocities into resonator cavity 20 during the in-flow half-cycle. The inner radial distance, Hend, represents the effective spherical model location where the acoustic volume in-flow is pumped into the resonator cavity 20 over a dynamically steady-state acoustic period. Physically, Hend represents the total mass excited by the incident sound pressure. This includes the mass within resonator orifice 30 thickness, τ, and the end correction mass exterior to resonator orifice 30 thickness. The wedge model is dependent upon calibration of the above four model-derived empirical parameters, Hend, Hfar, Δθ and Δφ, using test data.
Assuming incident periodic sound, the impedance Zres of resonator cavity 30 is:
where the various terms are defined below:
cm speed of sound
dori resonator orifice 30 diameter
f(ξ) polar function that calculates the radial acoustic velocity, qr
f sound frequency
Hend spherical model location defined in
Hfar spherical model location defined in
Hmid spherical model location defined as 0.5(Hfar+Hend)
Lcav resonator cavity depth
κvis orifice 30 frictional loss parameter
ρm fluid density
cm fluid speed of sound
σ ratio of orifice to cavity area
vm fluid kinematic viscosity
The expression {circumflex over (l)}v0 is defined as:
The polar function is space-averaged over the radial distance and is defined as:
and the expression {circumflex over (f)}end is defined as;
The polar function fend(ξ), evaluated at r=Hend, is defined as:
Finally, the end correction coefficient, Cend, represents the ratio of the end correction area, Send, to the orifice area, Sori, is defined as:
In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, resonator impedance of cavity 20 is calculated using the following Matlab code:
Various other modifications may be made to that depicted in the various drawings of the preferred embodiment of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited by the preferred embodiment shown in the various drawings, the MatLab code, and otherwise described herein, but by the scope of the claims.
The U.S. Government has limited rights in this invention as provided by the terms of NASA Cooperative Agreement No. NNX10CB30C as it applies to Hersh Acoustical Engineering, Inc. This contract was awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).