Acoustics of Suction Mufflers with Multiple Chambers

In recent years there has been a growing focus on reducing the suction noise from hermetic household compressors. One approach is to reduce the transmitted sound power through the suction muffler at particular frequencies. In order to better control the acoustic performance of the muffler, a large variety of muffler designs have emerged. Most notably is the appearance of mufflers with two or more chambers which are often connected in series. In this study, the acoustic effects of introducing multiple chambers in series are investigated by use of boundary element and transfer matrix methods. General conclusions are given on the acoustic performance of mufflers with identical and different chambers in series.