Sound propagation in curved ducts

An analysis of the sound field in a circularly curved duct of rectangular cross-section is carried out for both rigid and locally-reacting absorbing walls. The field is excited by a piston source at one end of the duct section, and comparisons of the acoustic field and the net power flow along the duct axis are made with corresponding results for a straight duct section for various frequencies. It is found that in general the curved duct yields a significant increase in sound attenuation along the duct axis as compared to the straight duct.