Nanowerk  April 23, 2024 A team of researchers in the US (MIT, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Case Western University) investigated traditional fabrics as emitters and suppressors of sound. They found that when attached to a single strand of a piezoelectric fiber actuator, silk fabric emits up to 70 dB of sound. Despite the complex fabric structure, vibrometer measurements revealed behavior reminiscent of a classical thin plate. Fabric pore size relative to the viscous boundary layer thickness was found to influence acoustic-emission efficiency. They demonstrated sound suppression using two distinct mechanisms – direct acoustic interference where sound reduced by up to 37 […]