A passive damping device for suppressing acoustic pressure pulsations: The infinity tube.

Abstract

Acoustic pressure pulsations in piping systems can cause detrimental damage and failure of industrial components. Both the acoustic resonance and the traveling wave phenomena are of concern for industrial piping systems and there is a need to study passive damping devices and their implementation into these systems. However, there is a challenge associated with manufacturing and installation of such devices as they may be cumbersome. Therefore, the infinity tube (IT) damping device has been presented here to provide a simplified device geometry which can be easily manufactured and implemented into piping systems. A theoretical equation for the transmission loss spectra of the IT device and the frequencies of resonance have been derived as a tool for designers. Additionally, the experimental investigation has shown a considerable increase in acoustic attenuation in comparison to the conventional Herschel-Quincke device due to the significantly shorter length which the IT device can be constructed from. Acoustic pressure and phase angle measurements have elucidated that the fundamental acoustic mode of an open-open pipe can be formed within the IT device. Moreover, a parametric study is presented which has clarified practical considerations required for implementation of the IT device into piping systems for suppressing pressure pulsation.