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This work is based on a current project related to auxiliary power unit (APU) exhaust silencing technology development, specifically an active exhaust noise cancellation technology. The overriding technical challenge is identified as development of a frequency and amplitude controllable noise source that can survive in a hot and corrosive exhaust environment. Installation of an APU enables vehicle platforms to turn off the main engine and still utilize auxiliary equipment that requires electrical power. An APU with a small engine potentially consumes much less fuel than a main engine at low power levels. However, past APU integrations have resulted in unacceptable noise levels, often times louder than the main engine at the equivalent operating point. Exhaust tones created by combustion pose a unique challenge to external acoustic reduction because they generally occur at low frequency, often less than 100 Hz.

A reactive aftermarket automotive style muffler was considered for development and validation of a procedure to numerically predict and experimentally validate acoustic performance. A CAD model of the silencer was created and meshed. The silencer interior included two sections of perforated pipe, which were included in the cavity mesh. A hybrid FE-SEA (Statistical Energy Analysis) numerical model consisting of a finite element acoustic cavity excited by a diffuse acoustic field at the inlet and coupled via hybrid junctions to SEA semi-infinite fluids on both the inlet and outlet. The hybrid FE-SEA model solves very rapidly on a desktop PC making iterative numerical design a realistic option. To validate the predictions, an experimental setup was created to directly measure the muffler insertion loss. This was done by using a broadband acoustic source piped into a hemi-anechoic chamber.