Acoustic Test Characterization of Melamine Foam for Usage in NASA's Payload Fairing Acoustic Attenuation Systems

The external acoustic liftoff levels predicted for NASA's future heavy lift launch vehicles are expected to be significantly higher than the environment created by today's commercial launch vehicles. This creates a need to develop an improved acoustic attenuation system for future NASA payload fairings. NASA Glenn Research Center initiated an acoustic test series to characterize the acoustic performance of melamine foam, with and without various acoustic enhancements. This testing was denoted as NEMFAT, which stands for NESC Enhanced Melamine Foam Acoustic Test, and is the subject of this paper. Both absorption and transmission loss testing of numerous foam configurations were performed at the Riverbank Acoustical Laboratory in July 2013. The NEMFAT test data provides an initial acoustic characterization and database of melamine foam for NASA. Because of its acoustic performance and lighter mass relative to fiberglass blankets, melamine foam is being strongly considered for use in the acoustic attenuation systems of NASA's future launch vehicles.