Acoustical Causes in Architecture

“ ACOUSTICAL CAUSES IN
ARCHITECTURE “
Sound insulation and sound isolation are the terms used in acoustical context.
The two processes reflection and absorption are mutually exclusive and they
both fall in the realm of room acoustics .
The third process transmission falls under the broad heading of sound
isolation. The issue is not how much sound is reflected or absorbed but how
much of it is allowed to pass through the materials of which the walls, floor
and ceiling are made .
It should be understood that attenuation usually involves two or more

spaces, one containing the source, the other containing the receiver. One
speaks of attenuation between the rooms.
Absorption, in contrast, affects the acoustics of one room, which contains

both the source and the receiver.
The source room contains noise, whose transmission into the other, the
receiving room, is to be reduced or prevented.
The degree to which this is possible depends mainly on the attenuation

offered by the wall ( floor/ceiling) between the two rooms.
In this concept, reverberant sound level in the source room is compared with
the resultant reverberant sound level in the receiving room.
The difference between them is expressed in decibels .
Attenuation is more precisely defined in context to two well defined rooms.

The sound level difference between the two rooms that one measures or
experiences is called noise reduction.
The sound level difference due to principal barrier alone and not to any
peripheral factors is known as transmission loss.
Transmission loss is a specific property of the barrier under consideration.
The relationship between Transmission loss and Noise reduction is expressed

as :
NR = TL – 10log S + 10log A2
NR – Noise Reduction
TL – Transmission Loss
S – Surface area of the barrier
A2 – Amount of acoustical absorption in the receiving room
Conclusion from the figure
Curve a depicts lead sheet
Curve b depicts concrete block
Curve c depicts gypsum board on studs
Conclusion : Heavy materials such as

concrete and masonry perform well in
lower frequencies are relatively inefficient
in the 500Hz range and regain their
superiority in the higher frequencies
Lightweight materials such as gypsum

board or plaster on studs perform poorly in
lower frequencies, quite well in the middle Sound Transmission Loss Curve
frequencies and again less well at the
highest frequencies of interest
AIRBORNE ATTENUATION
Airborne attenuation is consider a pair of adjacent rooms , one the

source room, contains noise, whose transmission in to the other, the
receiving room , is to be reduced or prevented.
The degree to which this is possible depends mainly on the attenuation

offered by the wall/floor/ceiling between the two rooms.
It also depends on so-called flanking paths that may allow sound to

bypass the barrier.
FLANKING PATH
It is tempting to think of the walls/floor/ceiling between two rooms as

the barrier that governs isolation between the rooms.
In addition to the sound that is transmitted through the common wall,

some energy reaches the next room via other, more circuitous paths.
Examples of flanking include:

Continuous ceiling plenums, where sound from one room is transmitted
through the ceiling in to the plenum.
Examples of flanking include:
Raised floor systems, with continuous under floor cavities.
Curtain wall systems, because of light weight , which conduct sound

from room to room, potentially bypassing the partition.
Continuous floors & roof decks, that like curtain walls, conduct sound
laterally from one room to another.
Common corridors, where attenuation along the door-corridor-door

path is less good then that provided by the common wall.
Duct-borne crosstalk, where sound is transmitted through a common

duct serving two or more rooms.
IMPACT ATTENUATION
Impacts are generated by direct , physical contact with a surface whose

other side is exposed to an adjoining room.
The sounds are structure-borne rather than airborne.

A typical case is that of footfalls & their transmission to the floor below.
SHIELDING
It is used to describe attenuation provided by incomplete barriers, such

as the partial-height partition used in open offices, barriers erected
along highways to protect residences from traffic noise, and barriers
around exterior mechanical equipment.
DUCT ATTENUATION
Noise from ventilation fans or due to turbulence in the airstream of air-

handling systems propagates along ducts and enters rooms through the
air supply and returns grilles.
VIBRATION ISOLATORS
It pertains specifically to mechanical equipment.
Rotating components within the equipment produce vibration that can

enter the building structure & radiate from surfaces as noise, often a
considerable distance from the equipment.
Attenuation is achieved through use of vibration isolators that allow the

equipment to float free of the structure
HVAC vibration isolators
These spring hangers are normally used in critical areas where noise
and vibration need to be controlled.
“Sound Absorption Coefficients
for some common materials
and Reverberation time“
The sound absorption coefficient indicates how much of the sound is
absorbed in the actual material. The absorption coefficient can be expressed
as:
α = Ia / Ii (1)
where
Ia = sound intensity absorbed (W/m2)
Ii = incident sound intensity (W/m2)
Absorption coefficient - α - for some common materials can be found in the

table
Material Sound Absorption Coefficient - α -
Acoustic belt, 12 mm 0.5

Acoustic tiles 0.4 - 0.8
Asbestos, sprayed 25 mm 0.6 - 0.7
Brickwork, painted 0.01 - 0.02
Brickwork, unpainted 0.02 - 0.05
Cork sheet, 6 mm 0.1 - 0.2
Fiber board on battens, 12 mm 0.3 - 0.4
Hardwood 0.3
Mineral wool, 100 mm 0.65
Persons, each 2.0 - 5.0
Plaster walls 0.01 - 0.03
Plywood panel, 3 mm 0.01 - 0.02
Polystyrene, expanded on 50mm battens 0.35
Polystyrene, expanded rigid backing 0.15

Polyurethane foam, flexible 0.95
Rubber sheet, 6 mm porous 0.1 - 0.2
Slag wool or glass silk, 50 mm 0.8 - 0.9
Snow 0.75
Wood wool cement on battens, 25 mm 0.6 - 0.07
The absorption coefficient varies with the frequency of sound.
Total Room Sound Absorption
The total sound absorption in a room can be expressed as:

A = S1 α1 + S2 α2 + .. + Sn αn = ∑ Si αi (2)
where
A = the absorption of the room (m2 Sabin)
Sn = area of the actual surface (m2)
αn = absorption coefficient of the actual surface
Mean Absorption Coefficient
The mean absorption coefficient for the room can be expressed as:
am = A / S (3)
where
am = mean absorption coefficient
A = the absorption of the room (m2 Sabine)
S = total surface in the room (m2)
Sound Absorption Coefficient
Sabin (unit)
Wallace Clement Sabine : American pioneer in architectural acoustics. He

derived an expression for the duration T of the residual sound to decay
below the audible intensity. The associated absorption unit was named after
him - sabin without the e.
One square foot of 100% absorbing material has a value of one Sabin. One
square metre of 100% absorbing material has a value of one metric sabin.
A unit of acoustic absorption such that one square meter of material of

one sabin absorbs 100 percent of the sound energy that strikes it.
A=S1α1+S2α2+...+Snαn=ΣSiαi
where
A = the absorption of the room (m2 metric sabin)
Sn = area of the actual surface (m2)
αn = absorption coefficient of the actual surface
Sabins are used in calculating the reverberation time
Room noise reduction
Reverberation time
Reverberation time is defined as the length of time required for sound to
decay 60 decibels from its initial level.
T= 0.161 V/A (Volume is in cubic feet)
T= 0.049 V/A (Volume is in cubic meter)

Find the reverberation time T at 500 Hz in space with no occupants and no
sound absorbing treatment
1. Compute the room volume V.

2. Compute the surface area S.
3. Compute the total room absorption a .
a= ΣSα.
5. Compute the reverberation time T.
6. T= 0.05 V/a.
s at 500 Hz
To compute surface area.

(Rectangular, S= L X W
Triangular, S= ½ B X A
Half Circle, S= πR²/2
Circle, S= πR²
Half Parabola, S= 4/3 H X B
A classroom 60 ft long by 35 ft wide by 15 ft high has sound absorption
coefficients α’s of 0.30 for walls, 0.04 for ceiling, and 0.10 for floor.
All α’s are at 500 Hz.
Find the reverberation time at 500 Hz in this space with no occupants and no
absorbing treatment.
1. Compute the room volume V.

V = L X B X H = ____ cubic feet.
V = 60 X 35 X 15 = 31,500 cubic feet.
2. Compute the surface area S.

Ceiling S = 60 x 35 = 2100 ft²
Walls S = 2 X 35 X 15 = 1050 ft²
S = 2 X 60 X 15 = 1800 ft²
Floor S = 60 X 35 = 2100 ft²
3. Compute the total room absorption a .

a= Σsα
S α a (sabins)
Ceiling 2100 x 0.04 = 84
Walls 2850 X 0.3 = 855
Floor 2100 X 0.10 = 210
Total a = 1149 sabins
5. Compute the reverberation time T.
T= 0.05 V/a.
s at 500 Hz
T = 0.05 x 31500
1149
1.37 s at 500 Hz.
1.37 s
ASSIGNMENT QUESTION
Find reverberation time of your studio.

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“ ACOUSTICAL CAUSES IN

It should be understood that attenuation usually involves two or more

Absorption, in contrast, affects the acoustics of one room, which contains

The degree to which this is possible depends mainly on the attenuation

The difference between them is expressed in decibels .

Attenuation is more precisely defined in context to two well defined rooms.

Transmission loss is a specific property of the barrier under consideration.

The relationship between Transmission loss and Noise reduction is expressed

Conclusion : Heavy materials such as

Lightweight materials such as gypsum

Airborne attenuation is consider a pair of adjacent rooms , one the

The degree to which this is possible depends mainly on the attenuation

It also depends on so-called flanking paths that may allow sound to

It is tempting to think of the walls/floor/ceiling between two rooms as

In addition to the sound that is transmitted through the common wall,

Examples of flanking include:

Raised floor systems, with continuous under floor cavities.

Curtain wall systems, because of light weight , which conduct sound

Common corridors, where attenuation along the door-corridor-door

Duct-borne crosstalk, where sound is transmitted through a common

Impacts are generated by direct , physical contact with a surface whose

The sounds are structure-borne rather than airborne.

It is used to describe attenuation provided by incomplete barriers, such

Noise from ventilation fans or due to turbulence in the airstream of air-

It pertains specifically to mechanical equipment.

Rotating components within the equipment produce vibration that can

Attenuation is achieved through use of vibration isolators that allow the

Absorption coefficient - α - for some common materials can be found in the

Acoustic belt, 12 mm 0.5

Polystyrene, expanded rigid backing 0.15

Total Room Sound Absorption

The total sound absorption in a room can be expressed as:

Mean Absorption Coefficient

Wallace Clement Sabine : American pioneer in architectural acoustics. He

A unit of acoustic absorption such that one square meter of material of

T= 0.161 V/A (Volume is in cubic feet)

T= 0.049 V/A (Volume is in cubic meter)

1. Compute the room volume V.

To compute surface area.

1. Compute the room volume V.

2. Compute the surface area S.

Floor S = 60 X 35 = 2100 ft²

3. Compute the total room absorption a .

Find reverberation time of your studio.

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