Noise Control & Acoustics Division
The Noise Control and Acoustics Division (NCAD) objectives are to establish a program within ASME that will encourage, focus and further the development and application of noise control and acoustics principles to all engineering branches.
About
The Noise Control and Acoustics Division (NCAD) of ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) originated at the ASME Winter Annual Meeting on March 16, 1980. On November 19, 1981, less than two years later at Washington, D.C., NCAD attained full Division status in the ASME technical family. NCAD is the 32nd Technical Division of the ASME and is part of the Council of Engineering's Environment and Transportation Technical Group. Other Divisions in the Group include Aerospace, Rail Transportation, Environmental Engineering, and Materials and Energy Recovery.
The general objective of NCAD is to establish a program within ASME that will encourage, focus and further the development and application of noise control and acoustics principles to all engineering branches. The Division intends to serve its members who represent various disciplines within ASME as well as other organizations. The program will also provide a balance between the theoretical studies of acoustics and its applications in terms of noise control engineering. At the present time there are almost 500 primary members in the Division.
NCAD routinely participates in ASME’s International Mechanical Engineering Conference and Exhibit (IMECE). Every few years the Annual Conference for NCAD is held in conjunction with other acoustic societies, which for 2012 was Internoise 2012. There are several awards that are presented at the annual conference. The Rayleigh Lecture award is given to an individual who has made pioneering contributions to the sciences as well as application to industry. A significant monetary award is also given to the best student-authored technical paper presented at the conference.
The Division also awards the Per Bruel Gold Medal for Noise Control and Acoustics in recognition of eminent achievement and extraordinary merit in the field of noise control and acoustics. The achievement includes useful applications of the principles of noise control and acoustics to the art and science of mechanical engineering. This medal, established in 1987, honors Dr. Per Bruel who pioneered the development of sophisticated noise and vibration measuring and processing equipment. A monetary award of $1000 is given with the award.
NCAD is managed by an Executive and Technical committee. The Executive Committee consists of five members that serve a five year term. The technical committees represent the many interests of mechanical engineers in the field of noise control and acoustics, and are crucial to the long range success of the Division. The three branches of the technical committees are Active and Passive Control, Structural Acoustics, and, Aero/Hydro Acoustics.
Upcoming Events
Uncertainty Analysis in Piezoelectric Energy Harvesters Webinar
presented by Dr. Rafael O. Ruiz, Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan–Dearborn
April 29, 2026 | 12:00 PM ET | Register Today
Piezoelectric energy harvesters (PEHs) are widely studied for powering low‑energy electronics and enabling remote sensing technologies. While existing models accurately describe underlying physics, real‑world performance is often affected by uncertainties in electromechanical properties and geometric characteristics. These uncertainties can significantly influence device reliability and make it challenging to achieve consistent performance in practical applications.
In this webinar, Dr. Ruiz will review recent advances in Uncertainty Quantification (UQ) for PEHs, including methods to characterize and propagate uncertainty in material properties and geometry. The talk will highlight the use of Bayesian inference to update electromechanical properties using experimental data, as well as design and optimization strategies based on surrogate models. The presentation will also discuss emerging piezoelectric‑based metamaterials designed for both vibration suppression and energy harvesting, with attention to accounting for geometric uncertainty from additive manufacturing within a robust UQ framework.
Speaker Bio
Dr. Rafael O. Ruiz joined the University of Michigan–Dearborn in 2022 after nearly six years as a faculty member at the University of Chile. He earned a dual Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame and the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. His research focuses on vibration control, multifunctional metamaterials, and piezoelectric energy harvesters using stochastic simulations and surrogate modeling.
Honors & Awards
Society Level Awards
Division Level Awards
Important Award Information For Recipients of Monetary Awards
Please note that honorariums cannot be distributed without receipt of applicable tax forms. If you are a recipient of a monetary award, you will be contacted by ASME staff regarding tax forms you will need to complete, as well as how to submit them to us.
Leadership
2025-2026 NCAD Leadership
Chair, Yousof Azizi
Vice Chair, Michael Frazier
Secretary, Zhenhua Tian
Treasurer, Fabio Semperlotti
Member, at Large, Jihong Ma
Member, at Large, Rafael Ruiz
Resources
Join us for the upcoming webinar. Register
at: https://asme.zoom.us/meeting/register/sJ_JLJ2LR4GMQJOIQdhKUg
NCAD General Committee Meeting and Awards Ceremony
Enjoy this recording of our awardees being recognized at IMECE 2021 - Virtual.
IMECE 2021 Rayleigh Lecture
Enjoy the 2021 Rayleigh Lecture, Tutorial on Vibroacoustics, presented at IMECE 2021 by Dr. Stephen A. Hambric.