The Prediction of Structure-borne Noise Transmission in Ships Using Statistical Energy Analysis

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the transmission of noise and vibration in ship structures, and in particular, naval ship structures. The first part of the paper presents a review of different methods for ship noise prediction. It then introduces the method of Statistical Energy Analysis (SEA) for the investigation of ship noise and vibration in the high frequency regions. Previous studies have shown that SEA is a useful tool for the analysis of vibration transmission in structures which consist mainly of plate elements. However, naval ship structures often involve more complex elements such as shells and beam stiffened plates. In the second part of the paper, two types of structure which are considered to be characteristic of naval ship constructions are identified. They are: a cylindrical shell coupled to an end plate; and a plate with periodic stiffeners coupled at right angles to a uniform plate. The Coupling Loss Factors (CLFs) of these two structures are evaluated, using travelling wave analysis, for SEA studies. Results from an experimental program confirm the validity of the formulation of CLFs.