The application of transient statistical energy analysis and wave propagation approach to coupled structures

Lednik, Dušan (1994) The application of transient statistical energy analysis and wave propagation approach to coupled structures. University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.

Abstract

In many engineering applications, complex mechanical structures such as buildings, ships, vehicles, aircraft and spacecraft, are exposed to shocks. This may lead to extremely high vibrational levels far away from the excitation points which can damage sensitive pieces of equipment. In order to prevent damage it is imperative to be able to predict the shock transmission. Current modelling techniques are predominanty modally based and therefore have difficulties with the broadband nature of shock excitation.

The objective of this study has been to investigate the feasibility of using, in parallel, two approximate approaches for shock response prediction: the Transient Statistical Energy Analysis (TSEA) and Wave Propagation Analysis (WPA). Both approaches share the same physical basis in that a wave arriving at a boundary will perceive the structure beyond to be of infinite extent if the interaction with the boundary occurs before any reflected waves are received from distant points.

The two approximate approaches have been applied to elementary coupled structures, for which exact solutions can be obtained. Initial investigations were conducted on a two-oscillator system, the very system from which the classical (i.e., steady-state) SEA expressions were derived. The next test case was a two-beam system; theoretical investigations were followed by experimentation.

The predictions obtained by the TSEA and WPA were found to be accurate, even for very strong coupling. There seems to be a real potential for the two methods to be applied on practical problems.

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