Free-field three-transducer spherical-wave reciprocity calibration for hydrophone at hydrostatic pressure of 10 MPa

Abstract

Free-field three-transducer spherical-wave reciprocity method has been reviewed and employed to calibrate the hydrophone of TC4033 in a high hydrostatic pressure vessel. To reduce the measurement uncertainty, a reciprocal calibration bracket and reciprocal transducers were designed and developed. The calibration bracket can locate the transducers in the high hydrostatic pressure vessel. The reciprocal transducer can reduce the errors caused by the deviation of reciprocity. A correcting sensitivity method based on complex electrical impedance measurement has been described, which can obtain the original open-circuit sensitivity of a hydrophone. It is more accurate than correcting method based on the measurement of extension cable capacitance especially near the resonant frequency range. The TC 4033 hydrophone was calibrated in the one-third octave frequency points from 2 kHz to 200 kHz at a high hydrostatic pressure of 10 MPa. The calibration results were analyzed, and the measurement uncertainty was estimated to be 0.5 dB (k=2).