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Transportation Research Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

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Transportation Research Procedia 40 (2019) 639–646

www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia
13th International Scientific Conference on Sustainable, Modern and Safe Transport
(TRANSCOM 2019), High Tatras, Novy Smokovec – Grand Hotel Bellevue,
13th International Scientific
SlovakConference
Republic,on Sustainable,
May 29-31, 2019Modern and Safe Transport
(TRANSCOM 2019), High Tatras, Novy Smokovec – Grand Hotel Bellevue,
The use of foam glassSlovak based aggregates
Republic, for2019
May 29-31, the production of ultra-
lightweight porous
The use of foam concrete
glass basedfor the production
aggregates for the of noise barrier
production wall
of ultra-
lightweight porous concrete forpanels
the production of noise barrier wall
panels
Jan Bubeník a
, Jiří Zacha,*
a
Jan Bubeník , Jiří Zach * a,
Brno University of Technology, Faculty of Civil Engineering,aCentre AdMaS, Purkyňova 139, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic

a
Brno University of Technology, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Centre AdMaS, Purkyňova 139, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic

Abstract

Abstract
In the last few years, there is an increasing demand for hygienically harmless environment in the area of well-being. One of many
hygiene limits is the reduction of unwanted noise, especially from road or rail traffic. Road and rail traffic poses a huge noise
burden,
In mainly
the last in thethere
few years, built-up
is anareas and civil
increasing construction.
demand Unwanted
for hygienically noise needs
harmless to be reduced
environment (diverted,
in the area swallowed,
of well-being. Onedeterred).
of many
hygiene
The mostlimits is thetool
common reduction
for noiseofelimination
unwanted noise, especiallyoffrom
is construction roadtypes
various or rail
of traffic. Road and
noise barriers, rail traffic poses
embankments, silenta road
hugecovers
noise
and other
burden, elements.
mainly in theThe paperareas
built-up dealsandwith theconstruction.
civil developmentUnwanted
of noise barrier wall panels
noise needs using lightweight
to be reduced porous concrete
(diverted, swallowed, with
deterred).
foammost
The glasscommon
based aggregate
tool for in the elimination
noise absorber area.is construction of various types of noise barriers, embankments, silent road covers
and other elements. The paper deals with the development of noise barrier wall panels using lightweight porous concrete with
foam glass based aggregate in the absorber area.
© 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
© 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 13th International Scientific Conference on Sustainable,
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 13th International Scientific Conference on Sustainable,
©
Modern
Modern and
2019 The Safe
Safe Transport
andAuthors.Transport (TRANSCOM
Published(TRANSCOM 2019).
by Elsevier B.V.2019).
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 13th International Scientific Conference on Sustainable,
Modern
Key words:and Safeabsorption,
Sound Transportnoise
(TRANSCOM 2019).absorbent material, lightweight porous concrete
barrier wall panels,

Key words: Sound absorption, noise barrier wall panels, absorbent material, lightweight porous concrete
1. Introduction

1. Introduction
Noise barrier wall panel systems are the most commonly used structure to divert undesirable noise from road/rail
traffic. Noise barriers differ in design and by the use of absorbent material. The main material bases for the
Noise barrier wall panel systems are the most commonly used structure to divert undesirable noise from road/rail
traffic. Noise barriers differ in design and by the use of absorbent material. The main material bases for the

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +420 54114 7516.

E-mail address: zach.j@fce.vutbr.cz
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +420 54114 7516.
2352-1465 © 2018 The
E-mail address: Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
zach.j@fce.vutbr.cz
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 13th International Scientific Conference on Sustainable, Modern and
Safe Transport
2352-1465 (TRANSCOM
© 2018 The Authors.2019).
Published by Elsevier B.V.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 13th International Scientific Conference on Sustainable, Modern and
Safe Transport (TRANSCOM 2019).

2352-1465  2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 13th International Scientific Conference on Sustainable, Modern and
Safe Transport (TRANSCOM 2019).
10.1016/j.trpro.2019.07.091
640 Jan Bubeník et al. / Transportation Research Procedia 40 (2019) 639–646
2 Bubenik, Zach / Transportation Research Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

manufacture of these structures are concrete, aluminum, glass and plastic. The most used noise barriers, especially for
rail traffic, are traditional concrete barriers, which are characterized by high acoustic efficiency, minimal maintenance
and long service life. Thanks to the very frequent construction of this type of noise barriers, there is the possibility of
producing an equivalent of these structures using alternative raw materials. Existing materials have limited properties,
especially high bulk density, which limits sound absorption values. When using lightweight porous concrete with
foam glass based aggregate to produce an absorption layer of noise barriers, there is a potential for improving the
desired properties.
Problems with undesirable noise caused by road traffic are dealt with in standard EN 14388 “Road traffic noise
reducing devices – Specifications”. This standard includes individual requirements for road traffic noise reducing
devices (sound absorption, airborne sound insulation, load resistance, etc.). For determination of acoustic properties
of noise barrier products (noise reducing devices) there are set of standards EN 1793.

2. Panels from lightweight porous concrete

For determination of product performance, the standard EN 1793-1 defines a single value sound absorption DLαNRD
[dB] in which the individual values of the reflection coefficient must be weighted according to the normalized traffic
noise spectrum, as defined in EN 1793-3. The single value sound absorption is calculated:

∑18
𝑖𝑖=1 𝛼𝛼𝑁𝑁𝑁𝑁𝑁𝑁𝑁𝑁 10
0,1𝐿𝐿𝑖𝑖
𝐷𝐷𝐷𝐷𝛼𝛼,𝑁𝑁𝑁𝑁𝑁𝑁 = −10𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙⁡|1 − ∑18 0,1𝐿𝐿𝑖𝑖 | (1)
𝑖𝑖=1 10

where:
α,NRDi the sound absorption coefficient in the i-th third octave band;
Li the sound pressure level of the normalized A-weighted traffic noise spectrum in the third-octave band defined
in EN 1793-3.

For the determination of the efficiency of noise barrier, a single value of airborne sound insulation DL R [dB] is
calculated according to EN 1793-2. The individual values must be weighted according to the normalized spectrum of
traffic noise defined in EN 1793-3. The single digit value of the airborne sound insulation DLR is calculated by this
equation:

∑18
𝑖𝑖=1 10
0,1𝐿𝐿𝑖𝑖 ⁡10−0,1𝑅𝑅𝑖𝑖
𝐷𝐷𝐷𝐷𝑅𝑅 = −10𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙⁡| ∑18 0,1𝐿𝐿𝑖𝑖 | (2)
𝑖𝑖=1 10

where
Ri is the sound reduction index in the ith one-third octave band;
Li is the normalized A weighted sound pressure level, in decibels, of traffic noise in the ith one-third octave
band defined in EN 1793-3.

Table 1: Normalized traffic noise spectrum

fi [Hz] 100 125 160 200 250 315 400 500 630 800 1000 1250 1600 2000 2500 3150 4000 5000

Li [dB] -20 -20 -18 -16 -15 -14 -13 -12 -11 -9 -8 -9 -10 -11 -13 -15 -16 -18

On the basis of general information of acoustic absorbers, a schematic diagram of the noise barrier panel was
proposed. See figure 1.
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Bubenik, Zach / Transportation Research Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000 3

Figure 1. Scheme of the noise absorber made from lightweight porous concrete (a – load-bearing reinforced concrete element, b1 –load-bearing
layer absorbing noise, b2 – diffusion layer absorbing noise

The panel consists of two layers:

• Absorbent layer – composed of two parts of lightweight porous concrete. Base layer with thickness b1 ≈
50 mm, which forms the base layer absorbing noise and upper corrugated surface with thickness b2 ≈ 60 mm,
forming the outer sound absorbing layer. Thanks to the tapered top layer, the elements have a larger surface
for absorption, and this layer is also used as an acoustic diffuser.
• Supporting layer - The basic part will consist of a reinforced concrete structure with increased density. The
proposed thickness of this structure and ≈ 50 mm, depending on the concrete strength class.

3. Production of test specimens

In the framework of the experimental work, 5 types of lightweight porous concrete recipes were designed to
optimize the amount of cementing compound with respect to the mechanical and acoustic properties of hardened
concrete. The cement dose was chosen from 60 to 150 kg per 1m3.
All recipes were designed from aggregate based on foam glass bonded with cement, the amount of which varied
for each recipe. A superplasticizing additive was used to reduce the water factor. The individual recipes used are
described in table 2.

Table 2. Composition of individual lightweight porous concrete recipes

Recipe

Entry component 1 2 3 4 5

1 m3

Cement CEM I 42,5 R Mokrá [kg] 150 130 100 80 60

Aggregate
[l] 1000 1000 1000 1000 1000
4 - 16 mm REFAGLASS
Water [l] 57 53 51 50 40

Plasticizing admixture 0,8 % from

1.20 1.00 0.80 0.64 0.48
MURAPLAST FK 19 mc [kg]

Water-cement ratio [-] 0.40 0.41 0.51 0.63 0.67

First, the cement, water and superplasticizing admixture, bulk porous aggregate were weighted and prepared. All
ingredients were gradually mixed in a forced circulation mixer to get the desired consistency (wet mix). The fresh
concrete was then deposited into molds by vibro-press technology to achieve perfect compaction and filling of the
whole mold. This technique has been continuously optimized so as to achieve higher densities at a lower dose of
cement and gradually improve the ratio of mechanical properties and bulk density.
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4 Bubenik, Zach / Transportation Research Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

Two types of samples were produced from the fresh lightweight porous concrete, on which the required properties
were determined:

• Specimens with nominal sizes 150 x 150 x 150 mm (determination of mechanical and physical-mechanical
properties),
• square samples 200 x 200 x 35 mm (determination of mechanical, thermal insulation properties),
• Cylinders specimens of 100 and 30 mm diameter, 90 mm width (determination of acoustic properties).

Figure 2. Light porous concrete (recipe 1 - the largest amount of Figure 3. Contact zone of foamed aggregate and cement matrix
cement) macroscopic structure. (recipe 1).

Figure 4. Light porous concrete (recipe 5 - lowest amount of Figure 5. Contact zones of aggregate and cement cement (recipe 5),
cement) macroscopic structure. greater gap.
 Jan Bubeník et al. / Transportation Research Procedia 40 (2019) 639–646 643
Bubenik, Zach / Transportation Research Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000 5

3.1. Measurement results

A number of laboratory measurements were performed on the above samples to identify the key properties that are
an important feature in the design of acoustic absorption layers. The following characteristics have been identified:

• Density in fresh/hardened condition (EN 12350–6, EN 12390-7)

• Acoustic properties – sound absorption (ISO 10534-1, EN 1793)
• Compressive strength of concrete (EN 12390-3)
• Thermal insulating properties - as additional measurement (EN 12667, (ISO 8301))

3.2. Determination of physical-mechanical properties

The key feature of the developed concrete was density. The aim was to achieve the lowest possible density and at
the same time the best mechanical properties. All these properties were tested on samples of 150 x 150 x 150 mm.
The measurement results are shown in the table 3.

Table 3. Overview of measured density and compressive strengths

Strength fc
Recipe DFC [kg/m3] DHC [kg/m3]
[MPa]

580 550 1.46

2 500 460 0.84
3 510 470 1.10
4 500 470 1.55
5 440 390 0.88

Figure 6. Dependence of density on compressive strength

644 Jan Bubeník et al. / Transportation Research Procedia 40 (2019) 639–646
6 Bubenik, Zach / Transportation Research Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

The highest bulk density in hardened state was achieved with recipe 1 (550 kg/m 3) due to the highest amount of
cement used and the lowest bulk density in the hardened state was for recipe 5 (390 kg/m3) due to the smallest amount
of cement. Strength was best for recipe 4 (1.55 MPa) and the lowest for recipe 2 (0.84 MPa). The strengths did not
match the amount of cement due to the attempts to improve the technology of sample production. Graphical evaluation
shows the dependence between bulk density and compressive strength. The correlation coefficient is 0.67, which
means that there is some dependence here.

3.3. Determination of acoustic properties

Noise barriers must be characterized by good sound absorption. The key parameters for the design of these
structures are airborne sound insulation and sound absorption in the soundproofing band of frequencies at 100 to 5000
Hz. The single digit value of the sound absorption factor was determined according to ISO 10534-1 in the third octave
bands. An acoustic interferometer was used to determine the acoustic properties. The device consists of a loudspeaker,
an acoustic sensor, a removable metal tube and a sample holder. For the 100 to 1000 Hz frequency band, a larger tube
with an internal diameter of 100 mm and a length of 1 m was used. A tube with an inner diameter of 30 mm and a
length of 280 mm was used for the frequency band 1250 to 6300 Hz. Thanks to the sounding of lightweight concrete,
a material reflecting sound waves had to be put behind the measured sample. To eliminate acoustic bridges, the contact
of the tube and the sample was insulated with an elastic material.
On the basis of these values measured according to ISO 10534-1 a single value of sound absorption was determined
according to EN 1793. The resulting values are given in the following table 4.
Table 4. Single value of sound absorption

Recipe 1 2 3 4 5
DL NRD [dB] 2.83 2.97 3.18 2.98 2.25

Figure 7. Overview of measured sound absorption values at given frequencies

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Bubenik, Zach / Transportation Research Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000 7

There was no apparent dependence on the detected values, only for the 5th recipe the sound absorption value was
slightly lower. The other values were around 3 dB. The highest value is for recipe 3 (3.18 dB) and the lowest is for
recipe 5 (2.25 dB).
Single value of airborne sound insulation was determinated according to EN 1793 (see in table 5).

Table 5. From the proposed absorber, based on basis weights, a single value of the airborne sound insulation

Recipe 1 2 3 4 5
DLR 41.38 41.18 41.21 41.21 41.08

As is obvious form results (table 5) single value of airborne sound insulation is similar for all recipes (with very
low difference) because the square mass of all final products with different recipe of lightweight concrete in absorption
layer is practically compatible.

4. Conclusion

The utilization of lightweight aggregate based on foam glass for noise barrier production seems very appropriate.
The lightweight porous concrete has sufficient noise absorption. Theoretically acoustic values in table 4 were
calculated from results of sound absorption coefficient determination in acoustic interferometer (according to ISO
10534-1) with flat samples. For final product (with final shape of surface area) and its sound absorption classification
will be necessarily to measure acoustic properties according to EN 1793. Utilization of waste glass and aggregate
based on this waste glass ensures ecological savings. The concrete thus produced is completely recyclable and can be
re-used.

Acknowledgements

This paper was written under the project No. LO1408 “AdMaS UP - Advanced Materials, Structures and
Technologies”, supported by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports under the “National Sustainability
Programme I” and project FV20086 "Development of light new-age building materials with utilization of light-weight
aggregate based on waste glass powder" supported by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

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