Radial Mode Analysis of Broadband Noise in Flow Ducts Using Azimuthal Sensor Array

Abstract

For the evaluation and improvement of fan noise reduction notions and the verification of broadband sound power measurement in flow ducts, special interest was given to the analysis of the broadband noise fields in duct. Two axial sensor arrays were wall-flush mounted upstream of a single-stage axial fan in the circular duct section of the fan inlet, staggered by 180° in the circumferential direction. During the tests, the rotating drum was rotated by step of 6 degrees to give a total 840 measurement points. There are two static reference microphones mounted upstream of rotating measurement section. Time-series of 12 seconds duration were recorded at each of the 30 azimuthal positions of the rotating duct in order to allow for a statistically accurate cross-correlation data analysis. This method is able to discriminate the sound waves propagating in upstream and downstream directions. Special attention was given to the blade passing frequencies of the axial fan. Rotor-stator interaction mode dominates the incident sound field, while modes with low azimuthal order play an important role in the reflected sound field. The reflected broadband sound power is almost 10dB lower than the transmitted sound field in a broad-frequency range. On the whole, this method behaves robustly in decomposition of broadband noise in flow duct and delivers physically meaningful broadband mode amplitudes.