SBIR Phase II: An Innovative Composite Support for Machinery Noise Isolation

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II project will develop and demonstrate an innovative light-weight damping treatment for noise isolation and vibration control. The research will focus on an innovative composite stiffness gradient damping concept which has the potential for a significant performance improvement over conventional constrained layer damping treatments. Major sources of noise contamination in industrial environments include rotating high speed machinery, motors, engines and gearboxes with vibrations in the 100Hz. to 10 Khz. frequency range. This high-level noise is a contributory factor in operator fatigue and discomfort. The research is designed to fully define the interactions between controlled constraining layer property variations and the damping performance of the structure. This understanding will be used to optimize the damping performance against structural requirements and manufacturing considerations for application in the high noise environment of a gas turbine engine gearbox mount. On completion of these optimization studies, a demonstration article will be manufactured and tested to validate the damping performance and demonstrate structural reliability under typical operation.