ARCHITECTURAL ACOUSTICS

ARCH 5710
ARCHITECTURAL SCIENCE IV
NOISE AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT
Lecture 04

• Noise protection : BUILT ENVIRONMENT

• Planning level
• Building level
• Building element level
• Impact sound insulation
• Mechanical and plumbing noise protection
• Acoustic treatment
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NOISE PROTECTION: built environment

• planning level

• building level, and

• building element level

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Noise Control at Planning Level:

• Macro planning: Large scale:

▪ neighborhood/city level
▪ Zoning / Mixed use planning
▪ Principles of distance
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• Micro planning: Small scale:

– Zoning with sound contour(principle of distance)
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• Micro planning: Small scale:

– Screening
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• Micro planning: Small scale:

– Screening
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• Micro planning: Small scale:

– Grass cover
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• Micro planning: Small scale:

– Volume proportion/ building street relation
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Layout typology:
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Functional zoning:

– Lateral zoning:

– Vertical zoning:
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Screening structures:
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Screening structures:
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Screening structures:
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Sound lobbies:
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

better poor

GOOD
Door opening arrangement
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Volume Separation buffer:
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Structural Separation:
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DESIGN AT BUILDING LEVEL

• Volume Separation:
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DESIGN AT ELEMENT LEVEL
• Insulation of :
– Air born
– Impact
– Flanking

through the use of special materials, methods of

construction and designs.
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SOUND MOVEMENT CONTD.…

• Sound moves through building spaces in a variety of

ways. Most commonly, it is transmitted through air.
• wall partitions, ceilings and floor/ceiling assemblies can
also transmit both airborne sound, and impact sound.
• Sound waves actually travel through many physical
objects faster and with less loss of energy than they
travel through air.
• Sound waves travel at a rate of 344m/s through air;
3,566 m/s through wood; and 5,486 m/s through steel.
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DESIGN AT ELEMENT LEVEL

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DESIGN AT ELEMENT LEVEL

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DESIGN AT ELEMENT LEVEL - Isolating Sound

• The STC rating is used to rate partitions, doors, windows,

and other acoustic dividers in terms of their relative ability
to provide privacy against intrusion sounds.

• STC - usually ranges from approximately 35 to 70. It

quantifies the transmission loss (TL) of an assembly.

• A wall partition or floor/ceiling assembly that reduces the

overall incoming sound levels from 80dBA to 20dBA would
have an STC rating of approximately 60.
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DESIGN AT ELEMENT LEVEL

• Insulation of :
– Openings & external walls
– Floors & Roofs
– Partitions
– Joints & connections
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DESIGN AT ELEMENT LEVEL

Impact sound insulation of floors -Flexible floor

coverings

• The impact sound insulation of massive floor structures

(hollow core slabs, massive concrete slabs) is based on
large mass

• Improving impact sound insulation by increasing the

mass of the floor is feasible only up to a certain point
(load bearing issues, costs)
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Impact sound insulation - Lightweight floors

As ”rules of thumb”, the impact sound insulation of lightweight

floor structure improves when:

• The height of the airspace formed by the load bearing

structure increases (typical height 300...400 mm)

• The amount of sound absorbing material in the airspace

increases

• The resonance frequencies of the floating floor and

suspended ceiling decreases
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PLUMBING NOISE PROTECTION

• Pipes/ducts and from the walls of pipes/ducts

• Turbulent vs. smooth flow
• Direction change
• Cross-sectional change
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PLUMBING NOISE PROTECTION

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MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT ROOMS

Machines produce :
– direct sound( air born)
– vibratory sound(impact, flanking)
• Reflective and absorbing lining(Surface treatment )
• Resilient mountings
• Sealed corners
• Acoustic doors
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MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT ROOMS
• Resilient mountings

Noise-isolating springs
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bad fair

good Excellent

• Vibration isolation of mechanical equipment/ Isolation of

heavy industrial equipment
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ACOUSTIC TREATMENT

• Existing structures
• Surface treatment
• Opening redesign
• Sound Lobby introduction
• Creation of quiet environment to the function of
the space
Reading Assignment
• NOISE CONTROL DURING CONSTUCTION

• ACOUSTICAL SPECIFICATION

N.B: Further reading of the course book is expected from

everyone.