Variable Amplitude Passive Aircraft Vibration and Noise Reduction Navy SBIR FY2016.1 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2016.1 Topic No.: N161-021 Topic Title: Variable Amplitude Passive Aircraft Vibration and Noise Reduction Proposal No.: N161-021-0574 Firm: Technical Data Analysis, Inc. 3190 Fairview Park Drive Suite 650 Falls Church, Virginia 22042 Contact: Luca Airoldi Phone: (703) 226-4079 Web Site: http://www.tda-i.com Abstract: Over the last decade, considerable research efforts using Active and Passive techniques have been directed towards understanding and mitigating the propeller aircraft interior noise problem. Active techniques, especially those employing piezoelectric materials have proved to be very effective because of low weight and ease of integration, while passive techniques are pursued because of their simplicity and their adaptability. However, these techniques have only been explored at the fundamental level; but their structural integration with aircraft platforms have not been addressed to date. In this effort, TDA has teamed up with Professor Massimo Ruzzene, Director of the Vibration and Wave Propagation Laboratory at Georgia Tech, to develop a passive Tunable Vibration Absorber (TVA) where mechanically resonating elements and piezoelectric shunts are integrated to the load-carrying structural components to attenuate noise and vibrations over a desired broad range of frequencies, while avoiding performance reductions at high amplitudes. Both piezoelectric shunts and internally resonating mechanisms have shown great potentials for providing materials and structures with unusual mechanical properties and superior dynamic performance. This computational and experimental effort will build upon existing configurations, to develop a noise and vibration attenuation technology that will be effective, durable and applicable to both new and legacy aircraft. Benefits: TDA envisions that a design approach that fully integrates the aircraft structure with the vibration and noise attenuation system here proposed will enable, in future efforts, the development of configurations with damping as the primary objective, supplemented by functionalities such as superior stiffness-to-weight ratios, energy harvesting, and embedded sensing. In such vision, it is expected that the technology here proposed will enable unprecedented multifunctional structural concepts to be deployed as part of future high-performance structural components of US Navy relevance. These include for example acoustic liners for noise reduction in turbo engines, wings and vertical tail control surfaces undergoing reduced aero-induced vibrations, weapons bays affected by acoustic loading, and exhaust-washed structures with reduced sensitivity to thermal and acoustic loads. The broad range of application of the developed concepts will maximize opportunities for technological transfer, and commercialization potentials of this concept. Return