Sound, Structures, and Their Interaction

This text originated from the need to provide classroom material for courses combining acoustics with vibrations and shock response of structures. It is the only text that describes in detail the interface between structural vibrations and acoustics. The emphasis is on structure-fluid interactions in both radiation and scattering problems. Although the mathematical treatment is not restricted to any particular acoustic medium, the physical interpretations developed are weighed on the side of those fluids (such as water) that exert radiation loading of sufficient magnitude to alter the response of the radiating structure. With the exception of the mathematical techniques, the development is relatively self-contained, the required knowledge of acoustic and theory of structures being derived in the text. It can therefore be used as a classroom or reference book by students and research workers interested exclusively in either acoustics or structural vibrations.

The book differs from the current texts on acoustics or vibrations in that the chapters on structural vibrations include discussions of elastic shells as well as plates. Material uniquely presented here includes asymptotic techniques for dealing with high-frequency acoustical, vibrational, and interaction situations where the classical normal-mode and wave-harmonic solutions as well as modern computer formulations are cumbersome. In addition, the concluding chapter, which deals with the radiation of acoustic transients, reflects the recent interest in an area not covered in detail in existing texts.

The following topics are covered, among others: the wave equation, its elementary solutions, simple sources, dipoles, line arrays, pulsating gas bubbles, planar sound radiators, vibrations of beams and plates, sound radiation by plates, convex sound radiators, vibrations of shells, sound radiation by shells, scattering of sound by rigid boundaries, elastic scatterers and reflectors, high-frequency formulation of the acoustical and structural solutions, and the radiation of impulsive acoustic transients.

Miguel C. Junger is President and Principal Scientist, Cambridge Acoustical Associates, Inc.