REVERBERATION TIME

ARCHITECTURAL ACOUSTICS
AR. RADHA KRISHAN
ACOUSTICS IN BUILT
ENVIRONEMNT
 Sabine – Father of modern Architectural acoustics
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Wallace Clement Sabine: Father of Modern Architectural Acoustics

He concluded the relationship between the surface quantity of

absorption materials placed on walls, seats, ceilings, and floors and
the volume of the enclosed space.
 Reverberation
Reverberation is the persistence of sound in an enclosed space after the original
excitation sound has ceased. It consists of a series of very closely spaced reflections, or
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echoes, whose strength decreases over time due to boundary absorption and air
losses.
Reverberation Time
The interval between the initial direct arrival of a sound wave and the last audible
reflected wave is called reverberation time
RT60
The standard method for specifying reverberation time, RT60 is the amount of time it
takes for the reverberant energy in an enclosed space to drop by 60 dB from its initial,
steady-state value after the original sound has ceased. Large rooms with hard, highly
reflective surfaces (like cathedrals) have long reverberation times, while smaller rooms
with absorptive surfaces have short reverberation times.

(typical RT for school and auditorium range from 1.8 – 12.2 seconds)
 Reverberation
RT30 & RT20
As defined earlier, the RT60 is the time taken for the sound to decay by 60 dB when the
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source is removed. In a real environment this can be difficult to achieve, so it is more

common to use the RT30 or RT20. These are based on the time taken for the sound to
decay by either 30 or 20 dB respectively, and this is then extrapolated to 60 dB

Early Decay Time (EDT)

A measure of reverberation, EDT is the time that it takes for the reverberant energy in a
room to decrease by 10 dB from its steady-state value.

The reverb time is affected by the size and shape of the room, the building materials
and techniques used and all objects (including people) within the room. Long
reverberation times can make speech unintelligible, short reverberation times can
make music sound "dead". The ideal reverb time depends on the size and intended
use of the space.
 Room Volume Vs RT recommendation
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 Room Volume Vs RT recommendation
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1.5

1500
 RT Calculation

0.161V
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RT60 =
ΣSa
where:

RT60 = reverberation time (sec)

V = room volume (m³)
S = surface area (m²)
= absorption coefficient of material(s) at given frequency

To use this formula, the volume of the room, surface area of each material in the room,
and absorption coefficients for those materials must be known.
 Sound absorption
Sound waves striking an arbitrary surface are either reflected, transmitted or absorbed; the
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amount of energy going into reflection, transmission or absorption depends on acoustic

properties of the surface.

The reverberation time is strongly influenced by the absorption coefficients of the surfaces
 Sound absorption coefficient
Absorption coefficients are measured in specialized laboratories, and represent the fraction of
sound energy (not sound level-dB) the material will absorb as a decimal from 0 to 1
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Sound absorption Coefficient (α)

Building Materials 125H 250Hz 500H 1kHz 2kHz 4kHz Properties
z z
carpet 0.01 0.02 0.06 0.15 0.25 0.45 Absorptive
Concrete (unpainted, rough finish) 0.01 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.1 Masonry: Good sound
Concrete (sealed or painted) 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.02 insulation, stop critical
Brick (natural) 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.07 low frequencies
Brick (painted) 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.03
Marble or glazed tile 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.02 Reflectivity
Lesser sound insulation,
Wood: Doors (solid wood panels) 0.1 0.07 0.05 0.04 0.04 0.04 resonate easily, good
for sound treatment
Glass (1/4" plate, large pane) 0.18 0.06 0.04 0.03 0.02 0.02 Transparent, high sound
insulation, harsh
Glass (small pane) 0.04 0.04 0.03 0.03 0.02 0.02 reflectivity,
Fiberglass board (50mm(2") thick) 0.18 0.76 0.99 0.99 0.99 0.99 Limited use of sound
insulation, good sound
Sprayed cellulose fiber (16mm(5/8")
0.05 0.16 0.44 0.79 0.9 0.91 absorption
on solid backing)
 Noise Reduction Coefficient NRC
It is simply the average of the absorption coefficients at 250, 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz
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This simple, one-number rating can be useful for comparing the relative absorption of
two materials; however, examining absorption coefficients in each octave band gives
a better idea of the performance of a material at various frequencies.

NRC value of any materials varies from 0 to 1

Where;
NRC value 0 indicates 100% Reflection and 0% Absorption
NRC value 1 indicates 0% Reflection and 100% Absorption

For quick RT calculation NRC could be used as Absorption coefficient

 Desirable Reverberation Time

The optimum
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reverberation time for

an auditorium or room
of course depends
upon its intended use.
Around 2 seconds is
desirable for a
medium-sized, general
purpose auditorium.
 Recommended design sound level and Reverberation times
Educational buildings Recommended design sound level Recommended
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DB(A) RT
Type of occupancy/activity Satisfactor Maximum RT60
y
Teaching spaces Primary Schools 35 45 0.4 to 0.5
Teaching spaces Secondary Schools 35 45 0.5 to 0.6
Audio Visual areas 30 35 0.6 to 0.8
Art Studios 40 45 0.6 to 0.8
Computer Rooms 40 45 0.4 to 0.6
Conference Rooms 35 40 0.6 to 0.7
Corridors & Lobbies 45 50 0.6 to 0.8
Libraries 40 45 0.4 to 0.6
Music Practice Rooms 40 45 0.7 to 0.9
Music Performance Room 40 45 1.0 to 1.5
Office Areas 40 45 0.4 to 0.6
Lecture theatre less than 50 people 30 35 <0.8
Lecture theatre more than 50 people 35 45 <1.0
Assembly Halls, Multi-Purpose Halls 45 55 0.8 To 1.2
Indoor Sports Hall 45 55 <1.5
Gymnasiums 45 55 <1.5
 Recommended design sound level and Reverberation times
Health Buildings Recommended design sound level Recommended
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DB(A)
Type of occupancy/activity Satisfactory Maximum Reverberation time
Casualty Areas 40 45 0.4 to 0.6
Corridors & Lobbies 40 50 0.4 to 0.6
Consulting rooms 40 45 0.4 to 0.6
Wards 35 40 0.4 to 0.7
Waiting rooms, Reception areas 35 50 0.4 to 0.7
Office Buildings
Board & Conference Rooms 30 40 0.6 to 0.8
Call Centers 40 45 0.1 to 0.4
General Office areas 40 45 0.4 to 0.6
Private Office areas 35 40 0.6 to 0.8
Corridors & Lobbies 45 50 0.4 to 0.6
Public Buildings
Municipal Building public spaces 40 50 0.4 to 0.6
Library reading areas 40 45 0.4 to 0.6
Post Offices & Banks 40 45 0.6 to 0.8
Corridors & Lobbies 45 50 0.4 to 0.6
Restaurants & Cafes 35 50 <1.0
 Assignment
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Assignment 1: RT60 calculation for the room selected

Step 1: Measure drawing of the room

Step 2: Identification of acoustical material on each surface
Step 3: RT60 calculation
Step 4: Comparison with the RT60 recommended for the room.

9 numbers of groups
Each group 4 members
 Assignment: Sample Classroom
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Wall D

Wall C Wall A

Floor: vitrified tiles

Floor Plan Wall B

 Assignment: Sample Classroom
Ventilator: Open/grill
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Door: Wall: Plastered

Wooden masonry wall

Wall A
 Assignment: Sample Classroom
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Wall: Plastered
masonry wall

Wall B
 Assignment: Sample Classroom
Window: Glass
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Wall: Plastered
masonry wall

Wall C
 Assignment: Sample Classroom
Board: Particle board
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Wall: Plastered
masonry wall

Wall D
 Assignment: Sample Classroom
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Ceiling: Plastered
Concrete slab

Ceiling
 Assignment: Sample Classroom
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Sl. No. Location Material Surface area (m2) (S) Absorption coefficient (a) Sa

Plastered masonry
1 Walls 83 0.02 1.66
wall

Plastered concrete
2 Roof 44.25 0.02 0.885
slab

3 Floor Vitrified tiles 25.35 0.06 1.521

4 Door Plywood 2.3 0.0375 0.08625
5 Windows Glass 13.6 0.0375 0.51
6 Board Particle board 3.6 0.065 0.234
7 Furniture Wood 18.9 0.04 0.756
ΣSa 4.89625
 Assignment: Sample Classroom
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0.161V
RT60 =
ΣSa

VOLUME
Length Breadth Height Rt value
(m3)

7.5 5.9 3.6 159.3 5.23

THANK YOU