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A model for calculating the air flow resistivity of glass fiber felt

Article in Applied Acoustics · April 2015

DOI: 10.1016/j.apacoust.2014.11.006

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 Applied Acoustics 91 (2015) 6–11

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Applied Acoustics
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/apacoust

A model for calculating the air flow resistivity of glass fiber felt
Yong Yang, Zhaofeng Chen ⇑
College of Material Science and Technology, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing 210016, PR China

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The acoustical properties of fiber materials are mainly determined by the air flow resistivity. In this paper
Received 1 August 2013 a model for calculating the air flow resistivity of glass fiber felt is presented. According to this model the
Received in revised form 1 November 2014 air flow resistivity depends on the mean spacing of the fibers, the amount of resin bonding and the phys-
Accepted 14 November 2014
ical properties of air. Expressions for predicting the air flow resistivity of glass fiber felt are derived. It is
demonstrated that the model gives predictions that are reasonably close to direct measurements.
Ó 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords:
Acoustic
Physical model
Air flow resistivity
Glass fiber felt

1. Introduction
Air flow resistivity is one of the most important parameters
used to describe the acoustic behavior of fibrous materials [1].
Fibrous materials are anisotropic, so the air flow resistivity
depends on the direction of air flow through the material. Fibers
in the material generally lie in planes parallel to its surface, and
there is a close relationship between air flow resistivity, density
and fiber diameter [2]. The air flow resistivity is determined by
an experiment whereby steady air flow is passed through a sample
of fiber material placed in a tube. The mean air velocity hui, the
pressure decreases over the sample Dp, and the thickness of the
sample L, are measured [3–5]. The air flow resistivity of the mate-
rial is defined:
R ¼ Dp=huiL
One can predict or calculate the air flow resistivity from the
fiber diameter, density and distribution in space. Bies and Hansen
[6] presented a simple model which allowed the calculation of air
flow resistivity values starting from the values of the bulk density
of the fibrous material and the fiber diameter, and pointed out that
the equation was suitable for the fibers with uniform diameter.
Garai and Pompoli [7] modified the equation in order to fit polyes-
ter fibers with larger and more dispersed diameter. The models by
Delany–Bazley [8] and Miki [9] used the air flow resistivity to
describe the acoustic behavior of fibrous materials, and had
reported formulas for the acoustic properties of fiber materials
where air flow resistivity, air density and sound velocity were
⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +86 189 520 189 69.
E-mail address: zhaofeng_chen@163.com (Z. Chen).
the main parameters. Viggo Tarnow [10,11] showed that the sound
attenuation of glass wool was anisotropic and presented equations
for predicting resistivity in three main directions in glass wool.
Kino and Ueno [12] discussed a relationship between the air flow
resistivity, the fiber equivalent diameter and the bulk density in
melamine foam, and it had been found that the melamine foam
achieved large air flow resistivity by lowering the cross-sectional
pore shape factors. Attenborough [13,14] introduced the theories
of sound propagation in a rigid porous material or in an elastic por-
ous material, and several models and methods of measuring acous-
tic properties of porous material were discussed, both viscosity and
heat conduction were taken in account for sound propagation
within porous materials, the theoretically predicted effects of var-
iation in fiber flexibility, distributions of fiber radii, shot content,
and fiber orientation were also considered. Sides and Attenborough
ð1Þ [15] used a generalized theory of acoustic propagation in a porous
medium to analysis the propagation of sound through fibrous
materials, and it had been found that the size and orientation of
the fibers were the main factors involved, the frame itself played
only a small part in the propagation of sound in the medium. Tam-
ayol and Bahrami [16] indicated the microstructural effects were
more significant for low porosities, and fiber orientation had an
important effect on the permeability, these effects were more pro-
nounced in low porosities, i.e., h < 70%. Lux [17] used X-ray tomog-
raphy to describe morphological characterization of wood based
fibrous materials, and the 3D images were processed using classi-
cal tools of mathematical morphology. Rizvi et al. [18] developed a
mathematical model of the fiber system to explore the influence of
microstructure on the mechanical behavior of fibrous material, and
the model described the microstructural properties of a fibrous
matrix using a probability density function.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apacoust.2014.11.006
0003-682X/Ó 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 Y. Yang, Z. Chen / Applied Acoustics 91 (2015) 6–11 7

Nomenclature

R air flow resistivity (Pa s/m2) h porosity (%)

Dp pressure decrease (Pa) qr density of resin (kg/m3)
hui mean air velocity (m/s) N number of fibers
L thickness of the sample (m) qg density of glass fiber (kg/m3)
a diameter of composite fiber (m) qc density of composite fiber (kg/m3)
b diameter of glass fiber (m) h angle of velocity gradient (°)
c pore size around single fiber (m) dv/dx velocity gradient
Vm maximum velocity (m/s) f friction of one fiber (N)
q density of sample (kg/m3) F friction of all fibers (N)
m0 weight of single composite fiber (kg) g coefficient of air viscosity (Pa s)
l the length of the fiber (m) m weight of sample (kg)
S the sum of the biggest section area of two fibers (m2)
v the velocity of air flow (m/s)

A model for calculating the air flow resistivity of glass fiber felt
is investigated in this article. Glass fiber felt is made of glass fiber
and phenolic resin adhesive, and phenolic resin adhesive content is
considered in this model. The air flow resistivity is measured in the
direction perpendicular to the large surface, where the surface is
parallel with the conveyor belt in the manufacturing process.
Further, experiments are conducted to validate the model.
2. Experimental
2.1. Microstructural characterization
Glass fiber felts were produced by centrifugal-spinneret-blow
system. Composition of the samples consisted of pure glass fiber
with phenolic resin adhesive. The diameters of composite fibers
were investigated using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). A
vertical optical microscope (VOM) was used to detect the distribu-
tion of diameters of glass fibers, microstructure and cross-sectional
structure of glass fiber felts. The parameters of glass fiber felts are
given in Table 1.
2.2. Tensile strength
Tensile strength was measured on a universal material testing
machine (HOUNSFIELD H10KS). Tensile strength tests in longitudi-
nal and transversal directions were carried out using rectangular
samples with dimensions of 152 mm  76 mm  25 mm, while
the moving speed of the crosshead was set to be 305 mm ±
13 mm/min.
2.3. The air flow resistivity measurements
The measurement of the flow resistance and flow resistivity of
porous materials has been standardized on a compressed-air
apparatus according to ASTM C 522-3 Standard Test Methods
[19]. The air velocity through the samples was 40 mm/s. Each
sample was tested six times, and the mass density of the sample
was calculated from the weight and the volume of the sample.
3. Model, results and discussion
3.1. Morphology of glass fiber felt
The arrangement of glass fibers in glass fiber felt is very compli-
cated. The actual geometry and orientation, pore size and structure
are normally unknown characteristics. The structures of glass fiber
felts are shown in Fig. 1. As seen from Fig. 1(a), the cross-sectional
structure of glass fiber felt is layered, and the arrangement of fibers
in glass fiber felts is mesh structure as shown in Fig. 1(b). It is dem-
onstrated that most fibers are parallel to the surface, few fibers are
orientated perpendicular to the surface in a given material. It can
be considered that most of glass fibers are arranged in the same
planes, and the axes of fibers are located in planes parallel to each
other with random positions and orientations on these planes.
According to Table 2, the longitudinal and transverse tensile
strength of glass fiber felt is close to 1:1, and we can assume that
the equivalent number of fibers are the same in longitudinal and
transverse distribution.
The SEM images in Fig. 2 show the variation in diameter of the
composite fibers. The diameters of composite fibers range from 4
to 6 lm, and the distribution of fiber diameters is uniform. The
mean diameter is 5 lm. According to the results observed by
SEM and VOM, morphology and normal distribution curve of glass
fiber are drawn in Fig. 3. The shape of normal distribution curve
implies the distribution status of fiber diameter. The steeper the
normal distribution curve the more uniform the fiber diameter.
The diameters of glass fibers are distributed from 1.5 to 5 lm
and mainly concentrate in 2–4 lm, and the mean diameter of glass
fibers is 3 lm.
3.2. Model development
According to the Bies and Hansen’s model [6], the air flow
resistivity can be expressed as a function of bulk density and fiber
diameter:
Ra2 qK 1 ¼ K 2 ð2Þ

Table 1
Parameters of glass fiber felts.

No. Density Thickness Diameter of glass fiber Diameter of composite Average fiber Resin Porosity
(kg/m3) (mm) (lm) fiber length content (%)
(lm) (mm) (%)
1# 11.2 25 2–4 4–6 6 17 99.4
2# 16.5 25 2–4 4–6 6 17 99.1
3# 28.3 15 2–4 4–6 6 17 98.5
8 Y. Yang, Z. Chen / Applied Acoustics 91 (2015) 6–11

(a) cross-sectional structure (b) inter structure

Fig. 1. Structure of glass fiber felt.

Table 2 r Glass fiber felts have a regular layered structure and in a vol-
Tensile strength of glass fiber felt. ume of 1 cm3 there are n parallel layers.
s The fibers in glass fiber felt are mainly placed in dense layers
No. Density Longitudinal tensile strength Transverse tensile strength
(kg/m3) (N/m) (N/m) separated by less dense layers, and the less dense layers are not
1# 11.2 388.0 405.3 connected.
2# 16.5 426.7 442.7 t The thickness of the less dense layers can be ignored.
3# 28.3 782.2 822.2 u The fibers are in a square array, all fibers in a layer are par-
allel or perpendicular, and the distance between the fibers are
equal.
v Resin evenly covers the surface of every fiber to a depth b  a
For glass fiber K1 = 1.53 and K2 = 3.18  109. The airflow resis-
where b is the radius with resin coating and a is the radius with-
tivity of common absorbent materials typically varies between
2  103 and 2  105 Pa s/m2. out resin coating.
w The fibers have the same diameter and are motionless.
Resin content is considered in the model developed in this
paper. According to properties of glass fiber felts, we assume that:

Fig. 2. Morphology of composite fibers.

35

30

25

20
Percent(%)

15

10

0
0-0.5 0.5-1.01.0-1.51.5-2.02.0-2.52.5-3.03.0-3.53.5-4.04.0-4.54.5-5.05.0-5.5
Fiber diameter (µm)

Fig. 3. Morphology and normal distribution curve of glass fiber.

 Y. Yang, Z. Chen / Applied Acoustics 91 (2015) 6–11 9

According to the assumptions, the structure of glass fiber felt y

can be simplified to the model in Fig. 4.
According to the model, the formula for calculating air flow
resistivity of glass fiber felt is gradually derived. In this case the Vm
equation for the density of the composite fiber is:
2 2
dv
b qg þ ða2  b Þqr
qc ¼ ð3Þ dx Direction of
a2 x
3 flow
where qg is density of glass fiber (kg/m ), qr is density of resin (kg/
m3) and qc is density of composite fiber (kg/m3). The porosity of a
sample of fibrous material is defined as the ratio of the volume of
air in the void space in the sample to the total volume of the sample,
and the porosity can be directly measured [20,21]. The gravimetric c
measurement of porosity requires the weighing of a known volume
Fig. 5. The velocity gradient of any two fibers.
of dry material. The dry weight of the sample can be used to calcu-
late the bulk density q. Subsequently an assumed solid density is
used to calculate the porosity, h from:
maximum by halfway between any two fibers. According to the
q
h¼1 ð4Þ assumption, the velocity gradient of any two fibers can be
qc
described in Fig. 5.
The weight of a single composite fiber and the number of fibers When the air flow passes though the fibrous materials, due to
in sample are expressed by: the viscosity of air, the velocity gradient is expressed by:
1 2 Vm 4v c
m0 ¼ pa lqc ð5Þ tan h ¼ dv =dx ¼ ¼ ð9Þ
4 ðc  aÞ=2 ðc  aÞ2

m 4m where Vm is maximum velocity (m/s) and v is the velocity of air flow

N¼ ¼ ð6Þ (m/s). According to Newton’s law of viscosity, the relation between
m0 qc pa2 l
the friction and velocity gradient is:
From the model of glass fiber felt in Fig. 4, the total volume as a
function of the unit cell size c can be calculated as: f ¼ gSðdv =dxÞ ¼ 2lagðdv =dxÞ ð10Þ
rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi In the sample, friction experienced by all fibers is expressed by:
a p
c¼ ð7Þ
2 1h F ¼ Nf ð11Þ
From Eq. (4) one can rewrite this expression as: The air flow resistivity as defined in Eq. (1) is found from (3) and
rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi (11),
a q
c¼ p c ð8Þ aq c
2 q R ¼ 32g  ð12Þ
2 2
b qg þ ða2  b Þqr pðc  aÞ2
The air flow resistance is the resistance experienced by the air
when it passes through open pores in the material, and friction By substituting Eq. (7) into Eq. (12) and rearranging:
between fibers and moving air in the sound wave is produced. In pffiffiffiffi
64ga q
this case, the velocity of air flow is zero on the fiber’s surface and R ¼ rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi !2 ð13Þ
uneven in between them. It is physically reasonable to assume that h i p½b2 qg þða2 b2 Þqr 
a velocity gradient is generated in the glass fiber felt. The simplest p b2 qg þ ða2  b2 Þqr q  2a
assumption is that the velocity gradient is linear and the velocity is
After a further simplification, the equation can be expressed by:
0 vffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
iffi1
u h 2
c up b q þ ða2  b2 Þq
64ga B t g r C
R¼ @B ¼ A ð14Þ
BðB  2aÞ2 q
Direction of
flow
n layers

resin Glass fiber

b
Composite fiber The unit cell of glass fiber felt
Fig. 6. Comparison of the existing model and new model on the limit air flow
Fig. 4. The model of glass fiber felt. resistivity.
10 Y. Yang, Z. Chen / Applied Acoustics 91 (2015) 6–11
Fig. 7. Air flow resistivity versus between calculation and measurement: (a) 11.2 kg/m3, (b) 16.5 kg/m3, (c) 28.3 kg/m3.
3.3. Comparison of the air flow resistivity between model and
experimental results
Samples are cut from different places covering the whole felt,
and the direction is perpendicular to the large surface which is par-
allel to the conveyor belt used in the manufacture. Considering the
discreteness of fibers, the diameters of composite fibers and glass
fibers range from 4–6 lm and 2–4 lm, respectively. The air flow
resistivity for a given density is in a certain range, and the limit
air flow resistivity is calculated by the minimum and maximum
fiber diameters. Comparison of the Bies and Hansen (B–H) model
and new model on the limit air flow resistivity are shown in
Fig. 6. It can be found that increasing density or decreasing diam-
eter can improve the air flow resistivity, and the minimum air flow
resistivity calculated by new model is less than B–H model, how-
ever the maximum air flow resistivity is greater than B–H model.
Measured and predicted air flow resistivity are shown in Fig. 7.
Air flow resistivity is calculated by models, and the mean diame-
ters of composite fibers and glass fibers are 5 lm and 3 lm, respec-
tively. It can be observed that air flow resistivity calculated by B–H
model and new model are closed to the experiment data. However,
compared to B–H model, new model is much better for calculating
air flow resistivity at low densities, and the calculated value and
experimental value fit well. Considering the amount of resin in this
model it can accurately predict air flow resistivity.
In this paper, the assumed values of density of resin and glass
fiber are 1500 kg/m3 and 2550 kg/m3, and the viscosity of air is
17.9  106 Pa s.
4. Conclusion
In this paper, air flow resistivity of glass fiber felt has been cal-
culated by a new model, and the parameters, such as diameter,
have been studied by SEM and VOM. Air flow resistivity for glass
fiber felts of densities 11.2 kg/m3, 16.5 and 28.3 kg/m3 are mea-
sured. The results show that air flow resistivity of glass fiber felt
calculated by a new model is similar to the value of measurement.
The assumptions of the model are valid for glass fiber felt
whereby the fibers in the felt are mainly parallel with the largest
surface. The airstream is assumed perpendicular to the largest sur-
face of glass fiber felt. In this case one can assume that the air flow
velocity is perpendicular to the fibers. A model for calculating air
flow resistivity of glass fiber felt is constructed and the equation
for air flow resistivity is derived. From the equation, the results
of calculation and measurement, the following general conclusions
can be drawn:
(1) According to the equation, the air flow resistivity depends on
the fiber diameter and density under the stable pressure
difference.
(2) The calculations of the model for air flow resistivity are rea-
sonably close to direct measurements and B–H model, and it
is proved that the assumed model for the glass fiber felt is
suitable.
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