2 SCHOLTE-STONELEY WAVES ON DOUBLY FLUID-LOADED PLATES AND SHELLS

Previous theoretical and experimental studies of sound scattering from plates and from evacuated cylindrical or spherical shells with one-si ded water loading have demonstrated the existence of a water-borne Sch olte-Stoneley wave, and its acoustic excitation, in addition to that o f the Lamb-type plate or shell wave modes. For two-sided water loading two Scholte-Stoneley waves, of symmetric (S) and antisymmetric (A) na ture, were predicted on plates, with only the A wave surviving for the case of one-sided loading, while for loading with two different fluid s, again two such waves have been demonstrated theoretically. In the p resent investigation, these two Scholte-Stoneley waves are studied exp erimentally via short-pulse scattering from water-immersed, thin-walle d cylindrical shells filled alternatingly with air, water, and alcohol , and a theoretical analysis of their dispersion curves is presented. (C) 1997 Acoustical Society of America.