The DLR-Institute of Composite Structures and Adaptive Systems offers two PhD research positions in the field of active noise reduction in aircraft. The Doctoral Candidates (DC) will be employed by the DLR and fully funded for 3 years by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Network IN-NOVA (Active reduction of noise transmitted into and from enclosures through encapsulated structures; project 101073037) within the Horizon Europe Program. IN-NOVA is an international consortium of high-profile universities, research institutions and companies located in Poland, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Germany, and United Kingdom.
The DC will work in the Vibroacoustics Team of the Smart Structures Department of the Institute under supervision of very experienced post-doc researchers. At the same time the DC will be enrolled as PhD students at the Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg at the chair of Adaptronics of Professor Hans Peter Monner who is also head of the Smart Structures Department of DLR.
The successful DC will receive a salary in accordance with the MSCA regulations for Doctoral Candidates. The exact salary will be confirmed upon appointment. The living allowance for Germany will be €40.100 per year plus a monthly mobility allowance of €600. An additional monthly allowance of €495 is applicable depending on family situation. In addition to their individual scientific projects, all DC will benefit from further continuing education, which includes secondments (internships), a variety of training modules as well as transferable skills courses and active participation in workshops and conferences.
Within IN-NOVA each DC will spend three secondment periods at three of the other complementary Beneficiaries or Associated Partners for a duration of 2-3 months for each secondment. During their secondment, DC receive supervision and training at the premises of the receiving organization. Secondments are mandatory. If you apply for one of the positions then you agree that you will be seconded to other organizations during your contract.
Topics offered by DLR
Contribution analysis of vibrating aircraft interior parts to overall cabin noise
Objectives:
The objective is to develop an acoustic cabin simulator that allows the identification of cabin noise sources with simulation. The aircraft cabin is surrounded by various vibrating structures (ceiling and sidewall panel, hatrack, floor) which act as noise sources and contribute differently to the cabin noise depending of the load case. By identifying the most important noise sources for different load cases, effective treatments can be investigated and evaluated in the numerical framework on cabin level. Relevant load cases will be obtained from measurement data of full-scale aircraft on ground or in-flight operation.
Expected Results:
The key interior components which contribute to the cabin noise will be identified. Therefore, noise maps of the cabin with vibrating surroundings will be calculated in order to understand sound pressure distributions caused by different parts. A numerical framework will be available to evaluate the efficiency of individual cabin treatments.
Active aircraft interior parts with structurally integrated sensors for cabin noise reduction
The vibration excitation of aircraft interior structural parts through external noise sources plays a major role for cabin noise. It is assumed that this transmission path is inherent to all aircraft and that it is not possible to completely eliminate this transmission path. Therefore, the main objective of this project is the development of active noise control for aircraft interior parts to counteract noise close to the passengers. Key features of such an active component are the structure-based sensing scheme and the modularity. The structure-based modular concept avoids the distribution of microphones in the cabin and permits each active interior part to act independently and decentralized. The active component is also able to emit useful sound (e.g. passenger announcement) or improve sound quality through noise masking or psychoacoustic features.
Expected
Results:
A modular and robust aircraft interior part with active noise reduction capability will be available at the end of the project. Major intermediate results for the development of such a part are the selection of a suitable structure-based sensing scheme, the optimization of actuators and sensors, the design and implementation of a controller and the structural integration of the active components. Each active part will contribute to the reduction of noise in a neighboring region of the cabin and their assembly will facilitate a global reduction in a dedicated section of the aircraft or even in the whole cabin.
Eleven other topics in the field of active noise reduction are offered by our IN-NOVA partners. Please see for further information.
Doctoral Candidates must have not been awarded a doctoral degree. Conditions of international mobility require that the DC of DLR must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Germany for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately before the recruitment date. Compulsory national service, short stays such as holidays, and time spent as part of a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention are not taken into account.
DLR searches for DC with a master degree in a relevant discipline (engineering/technical sciences) interested in combining academic and industrial research experience. The official recruitment and selection process starts in October 2022 and will consist of:
Individual tasks or projects can be given to help with the selection. IN-NOVA organizations act in line with the principles of the European Charter for Researchers and Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers