Far-field multimodal acoustic radiation directivity
Approximate equations for the far field acoustic radiation patterns in the forward quadrant from a flanged circular duct were compared with exact equations for both single and multimodal excitations. The single mode comparison showed good agreement between the exact and approximate equations for the principal lobes of higher radial order modes. For lower and especially for zero radial order modes, there was some error in the angular location and decibel level of principal lobe peak pressure obtained from the approximate equation. Some agreement of sidelobes was also observed although the approximate equation was not intended to simulate the sidelobes. The multimodal approximate summation equations consisting only of a simple function of directivity angle and an acoustic power biasing function were checked against the exact equations for several distributions of modal power and showed excellent agreement with exact equations for all cases. Although many modes contribute to the final level and shape of the directivity curve, the major contributions appear to come from the higher radial order modes.