Optimal design of a 3D printed composite micro-perforated silencer for engine intake noise control

Abstract

Micro-perforated panel (MPP) is a new sound-absorbing material with wide frequency band and high absorption characteristics. In this paper, to reduce medium-high frequency intake noise of a car engine under accelerating working conditions, a composite MPP silencer with a serial-parallel coupling mode is presented. Moreover, based on the numerical calculation method of the presented MPP silencer, the Isight software is utilized to integrate relevant simulation software, and then the multi-island genetic algorithm (MIGA) is adopted to optimize the average transmission loss of the silencer. Finally, the optimized silencer is 3D printed for impedance tube testing and vehicle testing. The results demonstrate that the optimization design process of the proposed composite MPP silencer is reasonable; and after adopting the optimized silencer, the objective wideband intake noise is effectively attenuated and the sound pressure level is reduced by 8 dB(A) when the engine is at 3525 r/min, providing a promising way of vehicle noise control.