Underwater Radiated Noise: What’s Missing for Design?
We all acknowledge the environmental impact of Underwater Radiated Noise (URN) from ships, and the challenges it poses for shipping companies and shoreside organizations. While noise is produced by drive systems and other mechanical components, noise specifically from the propeller can be particularly damaging since it is the source with the greatest URN strength and propagation distance. Mitigating this type of URN production is also of timely interest, as certain whale populations…
New Standard for Vessel Underwater Noise
ISO 17208-1:2016, a new international standard for the measurement of underwater noise from ships, has been published by ISO. The full title of this standard is “Underwater acoustics – Quantities and procedures for description and measurement of underwater sound from ships – Part 1: Requirements for precision measurements in deep water used for comparison purposes”. The standard specifies the general measurement system, procedures, and methodology used for the measurement of underwater sound from ships under a prescribed operating condition. It is available for purchase from the ISO ans ANSI webstores. Noise Control Engineering, LLC (NCE), a leader in the field of shipboard noise control, led the effort to develop this standard.
First Non-Military Standard, Underwater Noise
A new voluntary consensus standard for the measurement of underwater noise from ships is now available from the Acoustical Society of America (ASA) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The new standard will be known as ANSI/ASA S12.64-2009/Part 1, “American National Standard, Quantities and Procedures for Description and Measurement of Underwater Sound from Ships- Part 1: General Requirements”. Noise Control Engineering, Inc. of Billerica, Mass. led the effort to develop the new standard having its Vice President Michael Bahtiarian chair the committee. NCE also provided significant administrative resources to completing the effort. “We started this effort to fill a need for NCE clients designing and building quiet research vessels,” noted Chair Bahtiarian.
Underwater Noise Measurement Standard Working Group Forming
The development of an entirely new commercial standard for “Underwater Noise Measurement of Ships” will commence in early 2007. ANSI-Accredited Standards Committee S12 Committee on Noise recently voted unanimously to form a Working Group (WG) for the development of an underwater noise measurement standard. Currently, no voluntary consensus standard exists for performing underwater noise measurements of ships. For many years, the field of underwater noise from ships has been the exclusive specialty of the Navy. However, non-navy vessels are looking to be just as quiet so that they can perform better science. “Green Ships” are being conceived in order to have less emission into the ocean.
