Reduction of rain noise from Ethylene/TetraFluoroEthylene membrane structures

Ethylene/TetraFluoroEthylene (ETFE) is a kind of fluororesin, which is recently used for outer skins of many sports facilities because of its weatherability and lightweight properties. Herein, rain noise from an air-cushion-membrane structure with ETFE films is investigated. An analytical prediction model is proposed and the model is verified by the laboratory experiment based on ISO 140-18. To control the noise, some samples with nonwoven fabrics and gel sheets were tested. The theoretical and experimental results show the possibility of attenuating the noise by adding absorptive layers and/or damping materials.