BUILDING UTILITIES 3 – ACOUSTICS AND LIGHTING SYSTEMS
MODULE 1: INTRODUCTION TO ACOUSTICS
Background and Components of Acoustics
The following are the various definitions
of "acoustics" depending on its context:
 The science of sound phenomena in
buildings dealing with the production,
transmission, and absorption of sound in
order to secure the distinct conditions in every
part of the building or room.
 The science of sound and vibration which refers
to the stress fluctuations as well as waves in a
material medium.
 An environmental technology on sound and
noise control in a man-made surrounding
conducive to a clear understanding of speech,
better appreciation of music, and minimal noise
interference.
 The art and science of designing a room or
building which insures both comfort and
communication, and provides special features as
the purpose and use of the structure requires.
 Types of Acoustics
 Psycho Acoustics – deals with the reaction of
human beings to audible sound
 Environmental Acoustics – deals with the
effects of the environment upon audible sound
waves; may be broken down to Architectural
Acoustics and Landscape Acoustics
 Electro Acoustics – deals with the generation
and detection of audible sound waves
 Sonics – deals with the technical application of
mechanical waves in basic scientific research,
industry, and medicine.
Definition of Sound
 Any vibratory motion of bodies, the transmission
of these vibrations in a medium, and the
sensation produced on the human auditory
mechanism.
 An alteration in pressure (particle displacement
in velocity) projected and propagated in an
elastic material.
 Form of energy propagated in waves which
continue to subsist until filtered through a
material turning into heat by friction.
Sources of Sound
 Speech – produced by the human voice
 Music – produced by an instrument
 Noise – produced by impact, by vibrating
bodies, even by speech or music
Types of Sound
 Wanted – sound heard as perfectly as possible
at the right level or loudness without pain or
strain
 Unwanted – sound which entails an annoyance
factor
Properties and the Characteristics of Sound
Properties of Sound
 Sound must always have a source, a path, and
a receiver. (see F1)
 Speed – sound travels at 1130 ft. per second or
344 m. per second at normal room temperature
(68°F); sound travels faster in denser media.
 Intensity – rate at which sound energy is being
transmitted, measured at any point in the
medium; intensity diminishes inversely as the
square of the distance.
 decibel – the unit in which sound intensity is
defined for architectural purposes
 decibel-meter – instrument by which sound
intensity is measured
 Sound Pressure – the fluctuation in the
atmospheric pressure caused by the vibration of
air particles due to a sound wave.
 Loudness – subjective attribute of an auditory
sensation in terms of which sounds may be
ordered on a scale of soft to loud.
 Threshold of Audibility – minimum intensity
that is capable of evoking an auditory sensation
in the ear.
 Threshold of Pain – minimum sound pressure
level which stimulates the ear to a point which is
painful
 Frequency – the number of displacements or
oscillations that a particle undergoes in 1
second.
o Hertz – unit of frequency; numerically
equal to cycles per second
 Pitch – the attribute of an auditory system which
enables us to pinpoint sounds on a scale
extending from high to low frequency.
 Tone – sound sensation having pitch.
 Wavelength – the distance a sound wave
travels during each complete cycle of vibration
measured in meters or feet.
 Directional of Sound Sources – sound sources
radiate sound waves in all directions; radiation
pattern varies with the frequency; high frequency
sounds are more pronounced along the
longitudinal axis of the sound source.
Natural Elements that Affect Sound
 Temperature – particles of sound tend to follow
cold air
 Clouds – if heavy, clouds can act as a reflecting
surface
 Wind – may change the direction of sound
 Bodies of Water – can also act as a reflecting
surface
BUILDING UTILITIES 3 – ACOUSTICS AND LIGHTING SYSTEMS
Characteristics of Sound
1. Sound Reflection – sound reflected off a
surface, usually one which is hard, rigid and/or
flat.
2. Sound Absorption – sound waves absorbed
into a material upon contact; change of sound
energy into some other form
 Sound Absorption Coefficient (α) – fraction
of energy of the incident sound absorbed by
the surface; rates the efficiency of sound
absorption of a material at a specified
frequency (0-1)
 Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) –
arithmetic average of sound absorption
coefficients at the frequencies 250, 500,
1000 and 2000 Hz, expressed to the nearest
multiple of 0.05
 Surface Absorption – sound absorption of a
surface obtained by multiplying the area of
the surface by its sound absorption
coefficient
3. Sound Diffusion – occurs when sound waves
are dispersed equally in a room
4. Sound Diffraction – acoustical phenomenon
which causes sound waves to be bent or
scattered around such obstacles as corners,
columns, walls, beams, etc.
5. Sound Refraction – change of sound wave
direction as it moves from one medium to
another of different density
6. Sound Transmission – sound which penetrates
through a surface
7. Reverberation – the prolongation of sound as a
result of successive reflections in an enclosed
space after the source of sound is turned off
Acoustical Defects
1. Echo – sound waves which have been reflected
to a listener with sufficient magnitude and time
delay so as to be perceived separately from
those communicated directly from the source to
the listener.
2. Long-Delayed Reflection – similar to echo
except that the time delay between the
perception of direct and reflected sounds is
somewhat less.
3. Flutter Echo – a rapid succession of noticeable
small echoes observed when a short burst of
sound is produced between parallel sound
reflective surfaces.
4. Sound Concentration – sound reflections from
concave surfaces concentrating in an area
sometimes referred to as hot spots. The intensity
of sound at hot spots are always at the expense
of dead spots.
5. Coupled Spaces – two rooms adjacent to each
other by means of open doorways, with at least
one space being highly reverberant.
6. Distortion – an undesirable change in the
quality of musical sound due to the uneven and
excessive sound absorption of the boundary
surfaces at different frequencies.
7. Room Resonance – also called Coloration.
Occurs when certain sounds within a narrow
band of frequencies tend to sound louder than
other frequencies.
8. Sound Shadow – occurs when an area does
not receive an adequate amount of direct and
reflected sound.
9. Whispering Gallery – high frequency sounds
creeping along large concave surfaces such as
a hemispherical dome.
MODULE 2: ACOUSTIC CALCULATION
Sound Absorption and Noise Reduction
1. Compute for the surface area
2. Compute for the total room absorption (a1)
based on existing finishes
o You may use the following guides (or
something similar) for the sound
absorption coefficients of the building
material/finishes
3. Prescribe new finishes for the room that are
either more sound absorbent or less sound
absorbent depending on existing material and
the intended use for the room
4. Compute for the new total room absorption (a2)
based on the proposed finishes
5. Compute for the noise reduction (NR) with the
change of finishes
6. Tabulate the results of your computation
Reverberation Time
1. Compute for the volume of the space
2. Compute for the Optimum RT (Opt RT) using the
following formula:
 Opt. RT = 0.3log(V/10)
3. Compute for the surface area
4. Compute for the total room absorption (A) based
on the given finishes
5. Compute for Reverberation Time (RT) using the
formula:
 RT = (0.16*V)/A
6. Compute for the discrepancy between Opt. RT
and RT using the formula: