FEM-BEM Modeling and Experimental Verification of the Vibro-Acoustic Behaviour of a Section of Aircraft Fuselage

The aerodynamics of an aircraft in flight impose significant stresses upon the structure. Specifically, the mechanics of fluid flow are highly turbulent and, the layer around the aircraft, is referred to the turbulent boundary layer (TBL). The TBL incites a gradient of pressure fluctuations across the fuselage skin resulting in its vibration, and in turn, the generation of noise inside the passenger cabin. The investigation herein proposes a hybrid FEM-BEM modeling technique to predict the aforementioned vibro-acoustic response and an experimental methodology to verify the results (following ASTM and ANSI international testing standards). The described expectations required construction of an acoustic facility consisting of a reverberation chamber and a semi-anechoic room, the development of DAQ software using LabVIEW, an assembly of DAQ hardware using National Instruments products, and the post-processing of test data using Microsoft Excel. The principal quantity of interest is transmission loss (though insertion loss, absorption and other metrics are also calculated). Two panels (0.04in (40thou) and 0.09in (90thou) in thickness) were simulated and tested (0.01in = 1thou). The calculated error of the proposed methodology is within a maximum of 5dB, with an average of 1dB. Ongoing work is investigating complex constructions and the use of damping materials.