A coupled finite difference model for n fluid‐loaded, free‐flooded, thickness‐polarized, piezoelectric cylindrical shell transducer

Abstract

This paper presents a coupled finite difference model for a fluid‐loaded, free‐flooded, thickness‐polarized, piezoelectric cylindrical transducer. In order to find the vibration response of this shell when subjected to a sinusoidal voltage drive, the Donnel's thin shell equations of axisymmetric free vibration of a circular cylinder are coupled with the piezoelectric canonical equations and a surface Helmholtz integral model for the acoustic radiation reaction. The acoustic loading and the piezoelectric effects are thus considered to be external loading factors in the vibration equations. Solutions for the velocities are then used as the inputs to a previously developed farfield radiation program (SHIP) to get the source levels over the frequency range, which depends on the specifications of the transducer under consideration. The validity of this model is verified by comparing the computed source levels with the experimental data for transducers of two different materials and four different geometrical dimensions.