ACOUSTIC DESIGN

When you think of acoustics, you probably think of concert halls. But musicians aren’t the only
ones who benefit from good acoustics. Architectural acoustics are essential in ensuring sounds
are transmitted clearly and effectively. They matter when it comes to keeping things quiet in
places like libraries or museums, or in making sure loud noises aren’t too loud in places like
casinos.

Acoustic Design

Architectural acoustics can be defined as the study of the generation, propagation and transmission of
sound in rooms, dwellings and other buildings.

Although a relatively new science, architectural acoustics permeates every walk of modern life. Correct
application of the principles of architectural acoustics can considerably improve the quality of life at
work, during leisure time and in the home. Some sounds are desirable and need to be enhanced or
emphasized (music in a concert hall; the speakers voice in a debating chamber etc), other sounds are
highly undesirable (known as noise) and need to be reduced or prevented (e.g., noise in a factory
workshop; noise from a neighbor's party in the early hours of the morning etc).

Acoustics -the branch of physics that deals with sound and sound waves.

-the qualities or characteristics of a room, stadium auditorium, etc., that determine the
audibility or fidelity of sounds in it.

Sound - the sensation perceived by the human ear resulting from rapid fluctuations in air
pressure. These fluctuations are usually created by some vibrating object which sets up
longitudinal wave motion in the air.

Effects of Bad Acoustics

 Bad acoustics in hospitals increases blood pressure and heart rate.

 78% is negatively influenced by noise at their workplace.
 66% decrease of productivity with bad acoustics.
 70% of the children in a classroom cannot hear the consonants the teacher is pronouncing.
 2 days per year teachers are sick because of vocal problems

Loud noise can increase stress, anxiety and blood pressure and put people at greater risk of stroke and
heart disease. A well-designed building with proper acoustics can influence a person’s mental health and
overall sense of well-being for the better.

Methods of Improving Airborne Sound Insulation of Building Elements

1. Damping - Damping is only effective in the frequency ranges where resonance and coincidence
occurs. The most common method of adding damping to an element is to apply a thick layer of a
 mastic-like material to one side of the element. Providing there is a good bond between the
layer and the element a greater proportion of the energy incident in the element will be
dissipated in the layer.
2. Double Leafed Elements - The insulation of a single leaf element can be improved by
increasing the mass of the element but this process can only continue up to a certain point.
3. Flanking Transmission - Frequently, the expected insulation of a dividing w all is not realized
in practice due to flanking transmission. There are several other transmission paths that sound
can follow apart from the direct path through the dividing wall. To obtain the desired insulation
none of the flanking paths should be weaker in insulation than the direct path.
4. Doors - The insulation provided by a door does not follow the predictions of the Mass Law for
two reasons:
a. there are nearly always small gaps between the door and the door-frame through which
sound can be transmitted
b. the size of the door is very much smaller than the wall in which it is placed so that the
resonant frequencies of the door occur at much higher frequencies than in a wall made
of the same material.
5. Outer Walls and Windows - Many of the noises which disturb people within buildings
originate out of doors. The noise produced by such sources as air and road traffic and industrial
noise enter the building via the outer walls, the windows and the roofs. Many modern buildings
have roofs made from concrete or comparable heavy materials so these do not pose such a
great problem as the outer walls and windows. The insulation of the outer facade is usually but
not always determined by the insulation of the windows. When a high degree of insulation is
required, it is essential that fixed windows be used which means that a mechanical ventilation
system is necessary.
6. Floor-Ceiling Elements - An obvious solution to the problem of impact insulation is to reduce
the impact effect on the main structure by covering the floor with a resilient layer such as
carpeting or rubber tiling. The action of the resilient layer is to cushion the blow of the impact
and thus to reduce the amount of energy transmitted to the structure. Floor coverings are most
effective in reducing the higher frequencies of the impact noise. When choosing an appropriate
floor finish many non-acoustic factors have to be considered such as durability and resistance to
chemical attack.
7. Floating Floors - One of the most practical means of obtaining high impact sound insulation in
a building is to use a floating floor construction. A floating floor rests on the structural floor but
is separated from it by a resilient support such as a mineral wool blanket. It is vitally important
in any floating floor construction that the resilient element is nowhere shorted by a rigid
mechanical connection. Such connections which allow sound to be transmitted across the
element are sometimes referred to as sound bridges.
8. Ceilings - There are two types of ceiling construction which can be used to reduce the radiation
of sound from floors set into vibration due to impacts namely, the false ceiling and the
suspended ceiling. False ceilings are ceilings which are independent of the main floor ceiling
structure. Suspended ceilings are ceilings which are hung from the structural floor by wire or
 resilient hangers. It should be noted that these ceilings reduce the noise level only in the room
where they are installed and that they do not reduce the radiation of sound from the side walls
which is due to flanking transmission.
9. Acoustic Leaks - The expected sound insulation of a w all or other building element can be
obtained only if sufficient attention is paid to the insulation of the other parts of the
construction. For example, the transmission loss across a wall, designed to give 45 dB of
insulation, will be far below the expected value if the wall contains ordinary doors and windows.
Even when doors and windows of special design are used, the measured sound insulation will
only approach the expected value providing all the gaps and cracks around the doors and
windows are adequately sealed. The higher the sound insulation required, the more important is
this attention to detail.

TYPES OF ACOUSTIC MATERIAL

 Acoustic Plaster
 Acoustic Tiles
 Perforated Plywood
 Fibrous Plaster
 Pulp Board
 Compressed Fibre Board
 Hair Felt
 Cock Board Slabs
 Foam Glass
 Asbestos Cement Boards
 Thermocoal
 Foam Plastic
 Chip Boards
 Gasket Cork Sheet
 Acoustic Foam

MANNER OF PROVIDING SERVICES ACCORDING TO SP 203

The Architect may enter into contract with the Owner in two possible ways:

 Working in a dual capacity as Architect-of-record and as Consulting Architect for acoustic design
services.
 Working as Consulting Architect for acoustic design services only.
HOW SOUNDS TRAVEL?

1. REFLECTION- Sound hits a surface and bounces back off of it.

2. ABSORPTION- Sound hits a surface and some of it is absorbed.
3. TRANSMISSION- Sound that isn’t absorbed or reflected passes through the material,
such as wall.

QUESTIONS

1. The branch of physics that deals with sound and sound waves.
2. What is the collection of the reflected sounds or prolongation of a sound?
3. It is defined as the study of the generation, propagation and transmission of sound in rooms,
dwellings and other buildings.
4. Acoustic design falls on which SPP Document?
5. Give one example how sound travels?