Instruments and acoustic measurements UNTREF Santiago Rayes July 2013

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SOUND INSULATION IN SITU MEASUREMENT
BETWEEN TWO CLASSROOMS

SANTIAGO RAYES

Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero, Ingeniera de Sonido, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
rayes.santiago@gmail.com

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to measure the sound insulation to airborne sound transmission
between two classrooms of the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero (UNTREF, Buenos Aires,
Argentina) building. In order to do that, 18 Transfer Function curves between the rooms had been measured.
This information has been used to calculate the level difference (D) between rooms, the apparent sound
reduction (R), the normalized level difference (Dn) and the standardized level difference (DnT) following the
ISO 140-4 Standard. Finally the weighted apparent sound reduction (Rw) was calculated following the
procedure of the reference curve of the ISO 717-1. Results show an insufficient weighted apparent sound
reduction.



1. INTRODUCTION.
Measuring the sound insulation between rooms is
an important consideration in order to determine
the protection provided to the occupants of a
building. In many countries it is also an efficient
way to classify the acoustic quality of a building.
In this case the sound insulation to airborne sound
transmission is measured using the procedures of
the ISO 140-4 and ISO 717-1 standards.
The measurements made between two classrooms
determine if the sound insulation between both
spaces is appropriate for the usage given.
2. BASIC CONCEPTS.

2.1. Reverberation time.
Reverberation time is defined as that time required
for the sound in a room to decay 60 dB. This
represents a change in sound intensity or sound
power of 1 million (10 log 1,000,000 = 60 dB), or
a change of sound pressure or sound-pressure
level of 1,000 (20 log 1,000 = 60 dB). In very
rough human terms, it is the time required for a
sound that is very loud to decay to inaudibility. [2]
Obtaining a nice, straight decay spanning 60 dB or
more as in Fig. 1A is a very difficult practical
problem. Background noise, an inescapable fact of


life, suggests that a higher source level is needed.
This may occur if the background noise. [2]
The situation of Fig. 1B is the one commonly
encountered a usable trace less than the desired 60
dB. The solution is simply to extrapolate the
straight portion of the decay. It has been
demonstrated that in evaluating the quality of
speech or music, the first 20 or 30 dB of decay is
the most important to the human ear. [2]

FIGURE 1 - THE LENGTH OF THE DECAY DEPENDENT ON
STRENGTH OF THE SOURCE AND THE NOISE LEVEL. (A) RARELY
DO PRACTICAL CIRCUMSTANCES ALLOW A FULL 60-DB DECAY.
(B) THE SLOPE OF THE LIMITED DECAY IS EXTRAPOLATED TO
DETERMINE THE REVERBERATION TIME. [2]
(1)RI (Sobinc) = u,161 .
I
Atot + 4mI
|scc. ]


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V = Volume of the room. [m3].
Atot = med.Stot = Total absorption of the room.
[sabins].
med = individual surface absorption index.
Stot = Si = total surface of the room. [m2].
Si = area of an individual surface. [m2].
m = air sound attenuation constant. |m
-1
].

2.2. In situ airborne sound insulation.
For airborne sound insulation in the field, sound is
not only transmitted by the separating wall or
floor, but also by flanking transmission. To
calculate a sound reduction index for field
measurements it is therefore necessary to define a
transmission coefficient, , that includes the
sound power, W3, transmitted by flanking
elements into the receiving room. [1]
(2)
i
=
w2 + wS
w1

W2 is the sound power transmitted by the test
element to the sound power incident on the test
element (W1). [1]
The apparent sound reduction index,R, is
therefore defined as:
(S)R
i
= 1u log _
1

i
] = 1u log _
w1
w2 + wS
]
= Ip1 Ip2 + 1u log _
S
A
]
Where S is the area of the separating element. In
the field there may be a step or a stagger between
the rooms, therefore S is the area that is common
to both the source and receiving rooms. [1]
For field measurements the airborne sound
insulation can be described in terms of the sound
pressure level difference,D, between the source
and receiving rooms. This can cause problems
when setting sound insulation requirements for
regulatory purposes, because adding or removing
sound absorptive material from the receiving
room will change the measured sound pressure
level, and hence change the level difference. In
some situations the reverberation time in the
receiving room may be fixed by other
requirements and it may be appropriate just to use
the level difference. Otherwise it is necessary to
measure the reverberation time in the receiving
room and to standardize or normalize the level
difference. This provides a fairer basis on which
to set performance standards for sound insulation.
The level difference,D,is standardized using a
reference value for the reverberation time and the
level difference is normalized using a reference
value for the absorption area. [1]
For a given sound power that is transmitted into
the receiving room, the mean-square sound
pressure in this room is inversely proportional to
the absorption area,A, of that room. [1]
On this basis the normalized level difference,Dn,
is defined by using a reference absorption
area,A0,of 10m 2 for the receiving room (ISO 140
Part 4)[3]. [1]
(4)n = Ip1 _Ip2 + 1u log _
A
Au
]]
= 1ulog (
A
Au
)
A similar approach is used to give the
standardized level difference. For a given sound
power transmitted into the receiving room, the
mean-square sound pressure in this room is
proportional to the reverberation time, T, of that
room. The standardized level difference, DnT,is
defined by using a reference reverberation
time,T0, for the receiving room, which for
dwellings is 0.5 s (ISO 140 Part 4)[3]. [1]
(S)nI = Ip1 _Ip2 1u log _
I
Iu
]]
= + 1ulog (
I
Iu
)
Note that from Sabines equation (Eq. 1) the
relationship between T and A only involves the
receiving room volume; hence Dn and DnT will
be the same when the volume is 31 m3. [1]
Regulatory requirements for dwellings are often
set using single-number quantities that are
calculated with the rating method in ISO 717-1.
[1]
Instruments and acoustic measurements UNTREF Santiago Rayes July 2013
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2.3. Obtaining the Rw using ISO 717-1.
In order to value the results calculated using the
ISO 140-4 in third-octave frequency bands (with a
0,1 dB precision) it is necessary to move the
reference curve (shown on Figure 2) in 1dB steps
towards the measured curve until the sum of
unfavorable deviations is the highest possible, but
not higher than 32 dB (For the 16 third octave
frequency bands). [4]

FIGURE 2 THIRD OCTAVE BAND REFERENCE CURVE FOR
AIRBORNE SOUND INSULATION. [4]
Below is a Table were the values of the reference
curve are displayed in detail.
TABLE 1 REFERENCE VALUES FOR AIRBORNE SOUND
INSULATION. [4]


3. EQUIPMENT.

2 DPA Measurement Microphones.
Outline Globe omnidirectional source
radiator with sub-woofer.
Svantek SV959 type 1 Sound Level
Meter.
2 channel Digidesign Mbox Audio
Interface + PC.

4. MEASUREMENT PROCEDURE.
For the measurement two adjacent classrooms
were chosen. Both rooms are part of the same
building and have similar structures and
construction materials.
The bigger room (approx. 114 m3) was chosen as
the Source Room while the smaller one (approx.
89 m3) was chosen as the Receiver Room.
The surface of the shared wall is 20,8 m2. The
material is plasterboard with rockwool stuffed
cavity.
On the source room two sources and three
microphone positions were placed. On the
receiver room three microphone positions were
placed. All the positions and room configurations
used for the test are shown on Figure 3.

FIGURE 3 MICROPHONE AND SOURCE POSITIONS FOR THE
SOURCE ROOM AND RECEIVER ROOM.
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Background noise was measured on the receiver
room with a calibrated type 1 sound level meter.
With these results an appropriate signal level for
the source was chosen.
The signal used for the test was Pink Noise.
18 transfer functions were the result of the
combination of all the microphone and source
positions used.
Finally the Reverberation Time of the receiver
room was measured.

5. RESULTS.
Some examples of Transfer Function curves taken
during this measurement are shown on Figures 4,
5 and 6.
Figure 7 and Table 2 show the level difference D
and apparent sound reduction values and curves.
On figure 8 is displayed the average signal level
(pink noise) compared to the background noise
level by frequency.
Figure 9 and Table 3 show the Dn and DnT values
and curves.
A view from the source room is shown on Figure
10.
Figure 11 and Table 4 show the original reference
curve and the new one adapted to the results
obtained for this test. On Table 4 the Rw
calculated value is marked on yellow.

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FIGURE 4 TRANSFER FUNCTION FOR SOURCE POSITION 1 (MIC S2 AND MIC R1).
FIGURE 5 - TRANSFER FUNCTION FOR SOURCE POSITION 1 (MIC S3 AND MIC R1).
FIGURE 6 - TRANSFER FUNCTION FOR SOURCE POSITION 2 (MIC S2 AND MIC R2).
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TABLE 2 D AND R VALUES BY FREQUENCY.

FIGURE 7 CALCULATED LEVEL DIFFERENCCE (D) AND APPARENT SOUND REDUCTION (R).


0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
5
0
6
3
8
0
1
0
0
1
2
5
1
6
0
2
0
0
2
5
0
3
1
5
4
0
0
5
0
0
6
3
0
8
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
2
5
0
1
6
0
0
2
0
0
0
2
5
0
0
3
1
5
0
4
0
0
0
5
0
0
0
L
e
v
e
l

[
d
B
]
Frequency [Hz]
ISO 140-4 D and R' values
D
R
ISO 140-4
Freq. [Hz] D [dB] R [dB]
50 10,25 10,88
63 18,52 21,92
80 21,85 23,98
100 22,64 23,16
125 26,20 25,51
160 20,25 19,41
200 15,56 16,10
250 19,17 19,55
315 25,12 27,44
400 29,10 28,80
500 32,08 31,45
630 35,69 34,67
800 36,34 35,14
1000 39,30 38,40
1250 40,11 39,48
1600 42,78 42,55
2000 41,89 41,57
2500 43,92 43,59
3150 45,01 44,75
4000 46,18 45,71
5000 45,34 44,59
0
20
40
60
80
5
0
6
3
8
0
1
0
0
1
2
5
1
6
0
2
0
0
2
5
0
3
1
5
4
0
0
5
0
0
6
3
0
8
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
2
5
0
1
6
0
0
2
0
0
0
2
5
0
0
3
1
5
0
4
0
0
0
5
0
0
0
L
e
v
e
l

[
d
B
]
Frequency [Hz]
Signal/Noise
Noise
Signal
FIGURE 8 SIGNAL (PINK NOISE) AND BACKGROUND NOISE LEVEL DIFFERENCE ON THE RECEIVER ROOM.
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TABLE 3 DN AND DNT VALUES.









FIGURE 9 DN AND DNT CURVES.


ISO 140-4
Freq. [Hz] Dn [dB] DnT [dB]
50 7,70 8,23
63 18,74 13,73
80 20,80 18,32
100 19,98 20,73
125 22,33 25,50
160 16,23 19,70
200 12,92 13,63
250 16,37 17,40
315 24,26 21,41
400 25,62 28,02
500 28,27 31,33
630 31,48 35,34
800 31,96 36,15
1000 35,22 38,82
1250 36,29 39,35
1600 39,37 41,63
2000 38,39 40,81
2500 40,41 42,85
3150 41,56 43,88
4000 42,53 45,26
5000 41,41 44,70
0,00
5,00
10,00
15,00
20,00
25,00
30,00
35,00
40,00
45,00
50,00
5
0
6
3
8
0
1
0
0
1
2
5
1
6
0
2
0
0
2
5
0
3
1
5
4
0
0
5
0
0
6
3
0
8
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
2
5
0
1
6
0
0
2
0
0
0
2
5
0
0
3
1
5
0
4
0
0
0
5
0
0
0
L
e
v
e
l

[
d
B
]
Frequency [Hz]
Dn vs. DnT
Dn [dB]
DnT [dB]
FIGURE 10 SOURCE ROOM VIEW.
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FIGURE 11 ORIGINAL REFERENCE CURVE VS. THE CORRECTED ONE FOR THIS MEASUREMENT.


TABLE 4 REFERENCE AND NEW CURVE VALUES. THE RW IS MARKED ON YELLOW.
Frequency [Hz] 100 125 160 200 250 315 400 500 630 800 1000 1250 1600 2000 2500 3150
Reference curve 33 36 39 42 45 48 51 52 53 54 55 56 56 56 56 56
New Curve 15 18 21 24 27 30 33 34 35 36 37 38 38 38 38 38
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
L
e
v
e
l

[
d
B
]
Frequency [Hz]
Reference Curve
Reference curve
New Curve
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6. CONCLUSION.
All the Transfer Functions obtained had similar
frequency spectrums.
The maximum differences between the calculated
D and R are 3,4 dB and 2,14 dB for 63 Hz and 80
Hz respectively. Differences on the rest of the
frequency spectrum analyzed vary less than 2 dB.
The difference between signal and noise vary
between 24 and 35 dB from 63 Hz to 5 kHz. The
only frequency that did not fulfill the
recommended values for signal/noise ratio was 50
Hz, where the difference between signal and noise
was 4,9 dB.
Dn have values between 7,7 dB and 41,41 dB.
DnT have values between 8,23 and 44,7 dB.
The coincidence frequency can be located around
200 Hz on the D, R, Dn and DnT curves.
The new curve has been moved 18 dB from the
reference curve established by the ISO 717-1.
The Rw values obtained is 34 dB. This weighted
apparent sound red can be insufficient considering
that some of the classrooms have small sound
systems and are sometimes used to play musical
instruments on the inside.
7. BIBLIOGRAPHY.

[2]Everest, F. A. (2001). The Master Handbook of
Acoustics. McGraw-Hill.
[1]Hopkins, C. (2007). Sound Insulation.
Burlington: Elsevier Ltd.
[3]UNE-EN ISO 140-4 (1998)- "Medicin del
aislamiento acstico en los edificios y de los
elementos de construccin. Parte 4: Medicin in
situ del aislamiento al ruido areo entre locales".
Madrid: AENOR.
[4]UNE-EN ISO 717-1 (1996)-"Evaluacin del
aislamiento acstico en los edificios y de los
elementos de construccin. Parte 1: Aislamiento a
ruido areo". Madrid: AENOR.