Additively Manufactured Acoustic Liner With Non-Cylindrical Perforations
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing acoustic liners for gas turbine engines face challenges in designing perforations that are most desired and are difficult to manufacture, particularly those comprising polymeric cell structures with a metal perforated sheath, which complicates the manufacturing process.
Innovation Solution
The development of a monolithic acoustic liner with a sheath and cell structures formed by filaments of different materials, creating non-cylindrical perforations with linear edges, using additive manufacturing techniques such as material extrusion, allowing for precise control over perforation size and shape, and incorporating infill materials for added strength and functionality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If acoustic liners comprise polymeric cell structures with a metal perforated sheath, then acoustic performance is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the polymeric cell structure and metal perforated sheath into a single monolithic component manufactured by additive manufacturing. This merging eliminates the need for separate manufacturing and assembly processes for the two components, reducing device complexity while maintaining the acoustic performance benefits of both materials working together.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite materials by integrating polymeric and metal filaments within the same additive manufacturing process. The sheath is formed by filaments of a first material (polymer) and filaments of a second material (metal) that cross the first filaments, creating a composite structure that provides both acoustic performance and structural integrity in a single component.
2Strength
If traditional acoustic liners use separate polymeric cell structures and metal sheaths, then material properties are optimized, but ease of manufacture deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the manufacturing process for polymeric cell structures and metal sheaths into a single additive manufacturing operation. This allows both materials to be processed simultaneously in one build, eliminating the need for separate manufacturing steps and assembly operations, thereby significantly improving ease of manufacture while maintaining optimized material properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the manufacturing parameter from traditional subtractive or formative methods to additive manufacturing with multi-material capability. This parameter change enables the direct deposition of both polymeric and metal filaments in their final configurations, allowing complex geometries to be manufactured as monolithic components without requiring post-processing assembly.
3Reliability
If acoustic liners are designed with desired perforation patterns, then acoustic performance is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the manufacturing approach from traditional methods requiring high precision drilling or punching to additive manufacturing. This parameter change allows perforations to be formed by the deposition pattern of filaments during the printing process, enabling complex perforation patterns to be created with adequate precision through the inherent resolution of the additive manufacturing system rather than requiring post-manufacturing precision operations.
Data Source
AI summary
An acoustic treatment for use in an acoustic treatment for a gas turbine engine includes a sheath having a plurality of perforations. A plurality of cell structures extends from the sheath such that the sheath and the cell structures are a monolithic component. The plurality of perforations of the sheath are formed by filaments of a first material that define a first dimension of the perforations having a linear edge and filaments of a second material crossing the filaments of the first material that define a second dimension of the perforations having a linear edge. Such perforations have a non-cylindrical shape defined by the linear edges of the filaments of the first material and the filaments of the second material. A gas turbine engine is also disclosed.