UNIT 4

FUNDAMENTALS OF ACOUSTICS

COMPILED BY : NIVEDHITHA K R| ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

ACOUSTICS
the branch of physics
concerned with the properties
of sound.
Architectural acoustics is the study of sound in homes and other
buildings and the design of those structures for optimal acoustic
performance, including control of sound transmission throughout the
building, maintaining conditions for good speech intelligibility, and
maintaining sound isolation for speech privacy
What is sound?
• At its most basic level, sound is a very small and very rapid fluctuation in air
pressure above and below atmospheric pressure.

• All sounds – an HVAC system (Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), a

vibrating cell phone on a desk, road traffic – operate using this principle.

• The ear is very sensitive to sound sources and the range of pressure vibration
from the weakest to the loudest sound heard is extremely large.

• The ear doesn’t experience sound in a linear fashion. Instead, it uses a

logarithmic scale with a measure of energy in decibels (dB). To the ear, a sound
heard at 60dB only needs to decrease to 50dB to experience this sound as being
half as loud. Furthermore, a sound going from 60dB to 40dB (i.e. a busy street to
a quiet library), would be experienced as an even more dramatic change.

• The potential for a sound to damage our hearing is proportional to its intensity,
not its loudness.
SOUND WAVES
Sound (or noise) is the result of
pressure variations, or
oscillations, in an elastic
medium (e.g., air, water, solids),
generated by a vibrating surface, or
turbulent fluid flow. Sound
propagates in the form of
longitudinal (as opposed to
transverse) waves, involving a
succession of compressions and
rarefactions in the elastic medium.

When a sound wave propagates in

air, the oscillations in pressure are
above and below the ambient
atmospheric pressure.
 At any point on the
wave, the vertical
Amplitude distance of the wave
from the centerline
(Height of Waves) is called the
amplitude of the
wave.

The amplitude of the

peak is called the
peak amplitude.

The more intense

the vibration, the
greater the pressure
variations, and the
greater the peak
amplitude. The
greater the
amplitude, the
louder the sound.
 The sound source (in this case, the
Frequency loudspeaker) vibrates back and forth
(No of Cycles / second) many times a second.
The number of cycles completed in
one second is called the frequency.
The faster the speaker vibrates, the
higher the frequency of the sound.

Frequency is measured in hertz

(abbreviated Hz., One Hertz equals
one cycle per second. The higher the
frequency, the higher the perceived
pitch of the sound. Low-frequency
tones (say, 100 Hz) are low pitched;
high-frequency tones (say,10,000 Hz)
are high- pitched.

Doubling the frequency raises the

pitch one octave.
 When a sound wave travels through the
air, the physical distance from one peak
Wavelength (compression) to the next is called a
(Distance) wavelength. Low frequencies have long
wavelengths (several feet); high
frequencies have short wavelengths (a
few inches or less).
Velocity – (speed of sound)
The speed of sound is the distance
travelled per unit of time by a sound
wave propagating through an elastic
medium. In dry air at 20 °C (68 °F), at
sea level, the speed of sound is 343
metres per second (1,125 ft/s)
SOUND POWER, INTENSITY AND PRESSURE
Sound power
(Power emitted by source)

It is the total sound power emitted by a source in all

directions.

It is measured in watts (joules / second).

Sound power level indicates the strength of a sound source,
irrespective of the location of source and observer

Sound Intensity
(Power per unit area)
Rate of energy flow across a unit area
(power per unit area)
Sound pressure
(local pressure deviation from ambient atmospheric pressure)
Because the ear is sensitive to such a wide range of
pressure variations, sound pressure measurements are
made on a logarithmic scale (decibel scale).
dB scale (logarithmic scale)

A direct application of linear scales (in Pa) to the

measurement of sound pressure leads to large and
unwieldy numbers. In addition, as the ear
responds logarithmically rather than linearly to
stimuli, it is more practical to express acoustic
parameters as a logarithmic ratio of the measured
value to a reference value.

This logarithmic ratio is called a decibel or dB.

Here, the linear scale with its large numbers is
converted into a manageable scale from 0 dB at
the threshold of hearing (20 µPa) to 130 dB at the
threshold of pain (~100 Pa). F

ig 1.2 shows the dB scale equivalent to pressure

levels. Our hearing covers a surprisingly wide
range of sound pressures -- a ratio of over a
million to one. The dB scale makes the numbers
manageable
Adding and Subtracting Sound
Levels: (Doubling the source
gives 3 dB increase)

If the sound levels from two or more

sound sources have been measured
separately, and you want to know the
combined sound pressure level of the
sound sources, the sound levels must be
added together. However, due to the
fact that dBs are logarithmic values they
cannot just be simply added together.
One way to add dBs is to convert the
individual dB values to linear values, add
those together, and convert back to dB
using the following equation:
CLASSIFICATION OF SOUND

Audible range: (20Hz to 20,000 Hz)

Speech and music
frequencies

Speech normally carries the mid

frequency. The male voice has
little lower frequency than the
female voice. Speech
frequencies ranges from 200Hz
to 2KHz. Fig 1.5 explains the
speech and much frequencies.
Music frequencies ranges little
wider than the speech
frequencies. It ranges from 63Hz
to 16Khz. The sound pressure
level (dB levels) are ranges from
20dB in the mid frequencies to
90dB in the lower frequencies in
the case of drums and bands.
Noise Criteria (NC) curves
are primarily used to rate indoor noise
levels. It is important that the
background noise levels are within
acceptable limits to ensure optimal
speech communication for structures
ranging from residences and offices to
hospitals and schools
NC & NR curves calculator:
https://www.buildingcalculators.com/nc-level-
nr-level-calculator
CPCB has laid down the permissible noise level in India for different area. In industrial area, the permissible limit is 75dB for day time
and 70db at night. In commercial area, it is 65dB and 55dB while in residential area it is 55dB and 45 dB during daytime and night
respectively. Additionally, there is a category called Silent zone which includes area that lies within 100 meters of the premises of
school, college, hospitals and courts.
How is sound measured? Acoustical engineers use decibels to quantify sound loudness,
but when it comes to acoustics design in buildings, that measure is just one way of
evaluating its performance. There are two primary metrics used in noise measurement for
evaluating the acoustic performance in a building’s acoustical performance – acoustical
absorption and sound transmission loss

1. Acoustical absorption is the ability of a material to absorb rather than reflect sound
(think about the difference between jumping onto a trampoline vs into a pile of pillows).
2. Sound transmission loss refers to a material’s ability to reduce sound transfer from one
space to another (i.e. blocking noise or sound between rooms).

When referring to sound absorption, you should look for products that absorb
reverberation and echoes in a room. If you want a product that will stop or block a sound,
you’ll need a heavier, denser material. Materials with high sound absorption are not great
for stopping sound transmission. For example, concrete is great for sound transmission
loss, but not great for sound absorption.
Material Property

ABSORPTION

REFLECTION

DIFFRACTION

DIFFUSION

TRANSMISSION
 When sound is
BEHAVIOUR OF generated in a
room, it is
SOUND IN
ENCLOSURES Reflected
Absorbed
& Transmitted

In accordance
with the nature
of construction.
Absorption
When sound waves hit the surface of an obstacle,
some of its energy is reflected while some are lost
through its transfer to the molecules of its barrier.

In the process of absorption sound energy is

converted into heat due to frictional resistance
inside the pores of the material. The property of a
surface by which sound energy is converted into
other form of energy is known as absorption.

The thickness and nature of the materials - its

softness & hardness influences the amount of
sound energy absorbed.
The fibrous and porous materials absorb sound
energy more, than other solid materials
SOUND ABSORPTION COEFFICIENT
REFLECTION
Sound waves also get reflected as light waves do. Bouncing back of sound wave
from the surface of solid or liquid is called reflection of sound.
Follows the laws of reflection as light wave does

- Angle of incident wave and reflected wave to the normal are equal
DIFFUSION / SCATTERING
- Random distribution of a sound wave occurs when the surface depth of
hard surface materials are comparable to the wavelength of the sound.
- Diffusion does not break up or absorb sound - direction of the incident
wave is changed as it strikes the sound diffusing material.
DIFFRACTION
Occurs when the dimensions are of the same order or less than the wavelength of
the sound.
- In this case, the edge of the obstacle acts like a source of sound itself and
the sound ray appears to bend around the edge.
This limits the effectiveness of barriers.

- Bending of the waves around small obstacles & spreading out of waves
beyond small opening.
 TRANSMISSION

Two factors affecting sound transmission

1. Increased weight per unit area of panel decreases sound transmission
2. 2. Increased frequency of incident sound sound decreased sound transmission.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
gVjyV-thkM4&ab_channel=AmberB
ook
NOISE
Sounds that annoy us
Those which interfere with our hearing &
Communication / hazardous
NRC
The coefficient of commercial absorbing materials is specified in
terms of a noise reduction coefficient (NRC) - refers to the
AVERAGE of ABSORPTION COEFFICIENTS at 250Hz, 500Hz, 1000
Hz & 2000 Hz.

NRC of 0 indicates PERFECT REFLECTION

NRC of 1 indicates PERFECT ABSORPTION

Sound Transmission Class
(STC)
STC is a single-number rating of how effective a material or
partition is at isolating sound. Example: ½” drywall has an STC
of 28.
Hard materials like rubberized sound barriers, concrete,
brick and drywall will have high STCs. Softer materials like
mineral fiber, acoustic foam and carpet will have much lower
STCs.

Sound Transmission Class (STC) is an integer rating of how well a building

partition attenuates airborne sound. In the USA, it is widely used to rate interior
partitions, ceilings and floors, doors, windows and exterior wall configurations
(see ASTM International Classification E413 and E90). In short, STC gives you
a rough idea of how much sound a wall, for example, might stop. STC is the
most common sound reduction measurement in use. As common as this
measurement is, it is quite limited and should not be totally relied upon for
real-world soundproofing expectations.
Calculated by taking
Transmission loss (TL)
values at 16 frequencies -
range of 125 Hz to 4000
Hz and plotted on a graph.
These transmission- loss
values are then plotted on
a sound pressure level
graph and the resulting
curve is compared to a
standard reference
contour.

STC is an integer rating

of how well a building
partition attenuates
airborne sound. It is
widely used to rate
interior partitions,
ceiling/floors, doors,
windows and exterior
wall configurations.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
ysdfoA-t1aA&ab_channel=AmberB
ook

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
Xk-hEpUQZQY&ab_channel=Ambe
rBook

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
FHEi-tCqmsI&ab_channel=AmberB
ook
IMPACT INSULATION CLASS (IIC)
Acoustic rating used to quantify impact sound absorption.

- Used for flooring / ceiling arrangements.

ACOUSTIC MATERIALS
Acoustic Material and Their Different Types

When the sound intensity is more, then it gives the great trouble or nuisance to the particular area like
auditorium, cinema hall, studio, recreation center, entertainment hall, college reading hall. Hence it is very
important to make that area or room to be soundproof by using a suitable material called as ‘Acoustic
material’. It is measured in decibels (db).

Acoustic material play a vital role in the various area of building construction. In studio, classroom, reading
hall, cinema theatre, more concentration is required to listen, hence the acoustics treatment is provided so
as to control the outside as well as inside sound of the various building until such that sound will be
audible without any nuisance or disturbance.

Acoustic Material:

• Acoustic plaster. • Acoustic tiles.• Perforated plywood. • Fibrous plaster. • Straw board. • Pulp board. •
Compressed fiber board. • Hair felt. • Cork board slabs. • Foam glass. • Asbestos cement boards. •
Thermocol. • Foam plastic. • Chip boards. • Gasket cork sheet. • Hair felt. • Acoustic foam.
ACOUSTIC ● Sound absorbers - Wall panels •
MATERIALS Ceiling clouds • Ceiling tiles • Ceiling
baffle • Broadband baffle • absorbers
● Sound diffusers - Quadra pyramid
diffusers • Pyramid diffuser •
Quadratic diffuser • Double duty
diffuser
● Noise barriers - Vibration control •
Composite
● Sound reflectors/ isolators
SOUND ABSORBERS
● Sound Absorbers - These materials
eliminate sound reflections and are
generally porous, with many pathways
that redirect sound and cause it to lose
energy. Typical sound absorbing materials
are fiberglass, rock wool, open cell
polyurethane foam, cellular melamine
foam, heavy curtain blankets and thick
fabric wall coverings. Absorber materials
do not substantially block sound, but
absorption can enhance isolation by
stopping air movement that would
otherwise allow sound and noise to travel.
SOUND DIFFUSERS
● These devices reduce the intensity of
sound by scattering it over an expanded
area, rather than eliminating the sound
reflections as an absorber would. •
Traditional spatial diffusers, such as the
polycylindrical (barrel) shapes also double
as low frequency traps.
NOISE BARRIERS
● These materials are heavy, dense and
massive to prevent sound penetration. • A
common material is drywall (gypsum,
sheetrock). Thin materials with high sound
blocking characteristics are lead foil and
mass loaded vinyl. • A sandwich of
dissimilar materials such as five-eighths
inch gypsum, one- eighth inch vinyl
barrier, and a halfinch finish layer of
drywall will block more effectively than an
equivalent thickness of drywall alone. •
More energy is lost as sound must change
its speed for each different material
ISOLATORS
● These devices are resilient and prevent
sound transmission through the structural
steel or concrete of a building as well as
its plumbing and air handling systems. •
Typical devices are resilient channel for
drywall, isolation pads for floors, and
special adhesives for walls to avoid the
hard connections of nails and screws that
often provide a sound path through
otherwise effective sound insulation
materials.
 Study of various absorbing materials
● All materials should absorb sound but some to a lesser extent.
Sound wave strikes porous surface and dissipate heat channels.
Efficiency of sound energy depends upon the porosity of material.
Absorption coefficient is used to express the amount of incident
sound that can be absorbed .

The need for absorbing materials

● To ensure Privacy
● Noise control
● To improve Environment for efficient working.
ACOUSTIC MATERIALS &
ITS PROPERTIES

General classifications
1. Porous Materials
2. Non perforated Panel or
Membrane Absorbers
3. Cavity(Helmholtz)
Resonators
 Porous absorbents
● A good example of a porous sound absorbent is stone wool.
When the sound wave penetrates the mineral wool, the sound
energy through friction is changed into heat.
● High frequencies (above 500 Hz) are easier to handle with 30–50
mm stone wool thicknesses. More challenging are the sounds in
frequencies below 500 Hz.
● Here we need thicker stone wool slabs to create better sound
absorption. Material thickness can also be compensated for with
air space behind an acoustic ceiling or wall panel to improve low
frequency performance
Porous Materials
Characteristic of porous
materials - cellular network of
minute interlocking pores.

They Convert the incident

sound energy into heat energy
by the frictional and viscous
resistance within these pores
and by vibration of their small
fibres.

Good for high frequency range.

- Fibre boards, mineral

wool, insulation blankets
etc.
 Resonant Panels Absorbents
● Semi hard material in the form of fibrous boards. In this system
the absorbent material is fixed on the sound framing with an air
gap left out between this material and the wall backing. Sound
waves of appropriate frequency cause vibration in the panels.
Absorption is obtained by damping this vibration by means of an
air space. Resonant Panels are effective for sound absorption at
the lower frequencies.
Membrane Absorbers
- Any impervious material,
installed on a solid
backing but separated by
an air space will be set to
vibration when struck by
sound waves.
- Good for low frequency
range

- Wood & hardboard

panelling / Gypsum boards
/ suspended plaster ceiling
/ rigid plastic boards /
wood floors etc.
 CAVITY RESONATORS
● These cavity resonators consist of a container or chamber
with a small opening in which absorption takes place by the
resonance of the air in the container which causes loss of
sound energy It can be designed to absorb sound of any
frequency. Suitable for Particular higher frequencies.

Composite type Absorbents:

● Combination of all the 3 types. Consists of perforated panel
fixed over an air space containing porous absorbents. Panel
may be of metal,plywood,hard board etc.
Cavity Resonators
- They consist of an
enclosed body of air
confined within rigid walls
and connected by a
narrow opening (called the
neck) with the surrounding
space in which the sound
waves travel
HAIR FELT ACOUSTIC PLASTER STRAW BOARDS
Coeff of absorption of BOARDS Coeff of absorption of
25mm thk hairf elt is Coeff of absorption of 13mm thk is 0.3
0.6 20mm thk is 0.3 Prepared from
compressed straw and
covered with thick paper/
hardboard
ACOUSTIC DEFECTS
● Echoes mainly produced due to the
reflection of sound waves (mainly from the
surface of walls , roofs , ceilings etc. ) coming
from the some sources , reaches to the ear , just
when direct sound wave is already heard and
thus there is a repetitions that is nothing but
echoes.
● 1. Normally the formation of echoes (happens
when the time lag between the two voices or
sounds is about 1/17 of a second. And the
reflecting surfaces are situated at a distance
more than 15 meter.
● 2. If the reflected surface is curved with smooth
surface this problem usually occurs. To
minimizes this problem selection of proper
geometry of auditorium and surface and also
use the rough and porous material for the
interior surface
Reverberation : Reverberation means the prolonged reflection of sound from wall
floor or roof of a hall. 1. When the sound is reflected back (some part of the sound is
absorbed ) resulting in formation of echoes, but sometimes this reflection of sound does
not stop even the sound is died out. 2. The sound reflected back and forth against the
walls, ceilings and floors for several times T.
● REVERBERATION TIME : The
time gap between the initial
direct note & the reflected
note up to a minimum
audibility level is called as
reverberation time. When the
source emits sound, the waves
spread out and the listener is
aware of the commencement
of sound.
● If the note is continuously
sounded, the intensity of sound
at the listeners ear gradually
increases. After some time, a
balance is reached between
the energy emitted per sound
by the source and energy lost
or dissipated by walls or other
materials.
The reverberation time of a room
characterizes how long acoustic energy
remains in a room. It is usually defined as
the time for the acoustic intensity (or
energy density) to decrease by a factor of Reverberation time T =0.161V / S a
one million (60 dB). Since a reasonably loud V= room volume
clap is about 100 dB (SPL) and a whisper is T=reverberation Time
about 40 dB, you can easily estimate the a= Absorption Coefficient
reverberation time for a room by clapping S=Total Absorption (Sabins)
and listening to how long you can still hear
some remaining sound from the clap. This
assumes that the room is not particularly
unusual in its dimensions and that it is
reasonably quiet.
EARLY DECAY TIME (EDT)

Derived from the reverberation time decay curve ; between 0 dB and 10 dB

below the initial level.

A short EDT is a good indicator of speech clarity, as early reflection that reach
the listener within 50 milliseconds integrate with the direct sound and can
improve speech clarity.
SOUND FOCI : Reflecting concave surfaces causes
concentration of reflected sound waves at certain
spot creating a sound of large intensity.These spots
are called sound foci. This defect can be removed:
Geometric designed shapes of the interior
faces,including ceilings. Providing highly absorbent
materials on focusing areas
● DEAD SPOT : This defect is an outcome of
the formation of sound focii. Because of high
concentration of reflected sounds at sound
focii,there is deficiency of reflected sounds at
some other points. These points are dead
points where sound intensity is so low that it
is insufficient for hearing. This defect can be
removed by: Installation of suitable diffusers
o that it can evenly distribute sound in the hall
Insufficient loudness: the sound waves should be
properly reflected and uniform ally spread all over
the interior part of the auditorium. But due to the
lack of sound reflecting flat surfaces near the sound
source or stage and excessive absorption of sound in
the hall resulting the defect of insufficient loudness.

This defect can be minimized by providing hard

surface near the stage and absorbent material should
be provided as per the requirements. Also the
location of the loudspeakers should be adjusted. So
that there is no dead spots and sound foci. Also use
of adequate no of windows or door openings