Building Acoustics
Building Acoustics
Building Acoustics
Building acoustics
LEGISLATION AND GUIDANCE PRINCIPLES OF BUILDING ACOUSTICS
Irish Building Regulations Sound Building acoustics is the science of controlling noise within
Technical Guidance Document E published by the buildings. This includes minimising noise transmission
Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local between compartments and the control of sound
Government is part of a series of documents forming the characteristics within a space.
Building Regulations.
The term building acoustics embraces both sound
The document specifies the required on-site performance insulation and sound absorption.
criteria for both airborne and impact sound transmission
values for separating elements between residential Sound Insulation
dwelling units. The current Building Regulations do not Sound insulation is used to describe the reduction of sound
require any specific criteria for buildings other than that passes between two spaces separated by a dividing
residential dwelling units. It is therefore often the element. The sound energy that passes between these two
designers choice to specify the appropriate level of sound spaces may occur through the dividing element (direct
performance of the dividing elements within a domestic transmission) or through the surrounding structure
dwelling and for other building types. However, guidance (indirect or flanking transmission). It is important to
to the level of sound performance is often based on distinguish between both methods of sound transmission
specific sector guidance and previous experience. as the walls and floors which flank the dividing element,
can sometimes contribute significantly to the level of sound
BS 8233 Sound insulation and noise reduction for transmission. The presence of nearby windows, doors,
buildings service ducts, etc. can also affect the level of sound
Code of practice which provides guidance to acoustic transmission performance.
ratings appropriate to different building types.
External noise
Plant noise
Plant noise
Plant noise
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Building Acoustics
It is therefore the whole acoustic environment of a room or Deflection head (subject to fire performance)
building and its ability to eliminate air paths in the vicinity
of sound reducing elements that should be considered 1
when assessing sound transmission performance. For these
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reasons, it is often unlikely that RwdB figures quoted from
laboratory test conditions will be achieved in practice. 2
ACOUSTIC PRIVACY
KEY DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS FOR SOUND
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Building Acoustics
DnTw
SOUND ABSORPTION
This single figure rating method that gives the airborne
sound insulation performance between two adjacent
Sound absorption is the term given to the loss of sound
rooms within a building as measured on site. The result
energy on interaction with a surface. Sound absorbent
achieved is affected not only by the separating element but
surfaces are used to provide the correct acoustic
also by the surrounding structure and junction details. The
environment within a room or space. Sound absorbing
result achieved therefore become site specific.
materials can also convert some of the sound energy to
heat, assisting in sound insulation. However, this reduction
Ctr
in noise is very small and should not be considered as an
The Ctr adaption term is a correction that can be added to
adequate substitute for sound insulation.
either the Rw (laboratory) or DnTw (site) airborne rating.
The Ctr adjustment focuses on the lower band frequencies,
Reverberant energy
in particular the performance achieved in the 100-315 Hz
Reverberation is the persistence of sound in a particular
frequency range. Ctr is not a statutory requirement within
space after the original sound is removed. The length of
the Building Regulations, but is sometimes required to
this sound decay is known as the reverberation time and
meet project specific requirements.
can be controlled using sound absorbing materials. The
appropriate reverberation time will be determined by the
Lnw
size and function of any given space.
This single figure rating method is the rating used for
laboratory impact sound insulation tests on separating
floors. The figure indicates the amount of sound energy
being transmitted through the floor test in isolation, in the
absence of any flanking paths. With impact sound
insulation, the lower the figure the better the performance.
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Building Acoustics
Speech Clarity
Reverberation time alone cannot be relied upon to deliver
a suitable environment for good speech intelligibility. In
any situation where sound communication is critical e.g.
conference room, lecture theatre or classroom, the design
of the space must consider an appropriate mixture of
sound reflective and sound absorbing surfaces.
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