On the Use of the Finite Element Method on Some Acoustical Problems

Abstract

In a project carried out in 1974-1975, financially supported by the National Swedish Council for Building Research, the finite element method was applied on some acoustical problems to illustrate the possibilities of the method. Calculations have been made for the following examples; sound attenuation of a lined right angle bend, a lined straight duct, and expansion chamber and the sound reduction of a resilient skin. The FEM has its power for small geometries particularly at low frequencies, that is, when analytical methods usually are weak. The more complicated geometry and boundary conditions of the studied problem may be the more powerful the FEM is compared to analytical methods.