I-Corps: Super noise attenuation hearing protection devices (earplugs and earmuffs) utilizing porous nanostructured materials

耳塞和耳罩广泛用于在嘈杂环境下保护听力，以及用于听音乐和语音。在高强度噪声环境中，例如在机器车间、军事射击场、机场地面人员、喷气式战斗机中的飞行员以及航空母舰甲板上的人员中，对具有显著降噪的听力保护装置的需求很高。然而，目前的隔音材料，如隔音泡沫，不足以降低噪音。 这个I-Corps团队打算推出紧凑的高性能耳罩，它可以隔离高音噪声以及比目前市场上可用的听力保护设备所能提供的更宽频谱的散列噪声。这个I-Corps团队已经开发出具有剧烈的空气传播声衰减的多孔纳米结构材料，达到20-60 dB/cm的数量级的声衰减，远高于目前用于耳塞或耳罩的声学泡沫（在相同测试条件下给出10 dB/cm）。开发的多孔纳米结构材料（即气凝胶）具有延展性和柔性，使其能够用作耳塞和耳罩的制造材料。在这个项目中，I-Corps团队打算通过开发耳塞和耳罩原型并进行市场调查，迈出商业化的第一步。

Earplugs and earmuffs are used widely for hearing protection under noisy environments, and for listening to music and voice. Hearing protection devices with drastic noise reduction are in high demand in high intensity noise environments, such as in machine shops, military shooting range, airport ground personnel, pilots in jet fighters, and personnel on decks of aircraft carriers. However, current acoustic insulation materials, such as acoustic foam, are not adequate for noise reduction. This I-Corps team intends to introduce compact, high performance earmuffs that can insulate from high pitch noise as well as a broad spectrum of hash noise than what can be provided by hearing protection devices currently available in the market.This I-Corps team has developed porous nanostructured materials with drastic air-borne acoustic attenuation, reaching sound attenuation on the order of 20-60 dB/cm, much higher than the acoustic foam (which gives 10 dB/cm under same testing condition) currently used for earplugs, or earmuffs. The porous nanostructured materials (namely aerogels) developed are ductile, and flexible, allowing it to be used as materials for fabrication of earplugs, and earmuffs. In this project the I-Corps team intends to take the first step towards commercialization by developing prototype earplugs and earmuffs, and conducting market research.