Multifunctional acoustic and mechanical metamaterials prepared from continuous CFRP composites

The imperative advance towards achieving “carbon neutrality” necessitates the development of porous structures possessing dual acoustic and mechanical properties in order to mitigate energy consumption. Nevertheless, enhancing various functionalities often leads to an increase in the structural weight, which limits the feasibility of using such structures in weight-sensitive applications. In accordance with the outlined specifications, a novel structural design incorporating carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites alongside mechanical and acoustic metamaterials has been introduced for the first time. This innovative construction exhibits a lightweight composition with excellent mechanical and acoustic characteristics. Experimental findings demonstrate that with meticulous planning and fabrication, CFRP composite structures can achieve a balance of lightweight construction, high strength, exceptional energy absorption, and remarkable resilience. By introducing membrane and reasonable cavity design, the structure can produce low broadband noise reduction performance by a local resonance effect and impedance matching mechanism of metamaterials. The structural sound insulation capability breaks traditional mass law, resulting in an exceptionally broadband sound insulation peak (bandwidth of nearly 1000 Hz). Furthermore, the sound absorption characteristic of the structure surpasses that of the melamine sponge at frequencies below 300 Hz, demonstrating superior low-frequency sound absorption properties. The proposed structure provides new approaches for the design of multifunctional lightweight superstructures.