23/06/2018 Calculating Noise Reduction Coefficients & Decibel Drop

Decibel Drop and Noise

Reduction Coefficients for
Material Combinations

DECIBEL DROP AND NOISE REDUCTION COEFFICIENTS FOR MATERIAL COMBINATIONS

Posted on February 9, 2015

This article was written by Mike Bannon & Frank Kaputa

Material manufacturers are required by law to publish Material Safety Data Specification (MSDS) sheets for their
products. The MSDS sheet consists of the chemical and physical properties of a particular material like fiberglass
or mineral wool. In addition to the MSDS, companies manufacturing materials that target the sound-reduction
market often publish sound-reduction coefficients for their materials. The coefficients target individual
frequencies. A problem arises when a company wants to offer a combination of materials. You just can’t add up
the coefficients for the different materials. There is no formula you can use to determine the combination. The
way to determine the coefficient is to test your combination of materials. In this article, we will take you through
the testing process and show how the coefficients are calculated.

The Sound Test

For example, our material combination may consist of a layer of one-inch fiberglass, two layers of ⅛-inch silent
tread (recycled tires) and two layers of ⅛-inch EVA (mass loaded vinyl). We will need a sound room – pretend
that you have constructed a soundproof room. Inside this room is a wall dividing the room in half. There is a 2-
foot by 3-foot cutout in this dividing wall. On one side you have your sound source, and on the other side you
have your audio analyzer hooked up to a laptop. You turn on your sound source at a certain frequency, 1 kHz,
and measure the sound pressure level (SPL) in decibels (dB) coming through the opening from the source side.
Let us say the SPL reading is 86.4 dB. This is your control value — 86.4 dB. Next, you fabricate a sound jacket. You
fashion your sound jacket to the dividing wall covering the 2 by 3 foot hole in the wall. When you have it
secured, you take another sound measurement and you find the reading is now 63.3 dB. The decibel drop is 23.1
dB.

To determine the coefficient (C) of sound reduction, use the decibel drop (d) in the following formula:

Example: for a 23.1 dB drop, the coefficient is 0.93:

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23/06/2018 Calculating Noise Reduction Coefficients & Decibel Drop

Therefore, the coefficient for this material combination at 1 kHz is 0.93. This test will need to be repeated for
different frequencies. Typically, these frequencies are 125 Hz, 250 Hz, 500 Hz, 1 kHz, 2 kHz, and 4 kHz. Once the
tests are done at the different frequencies, a table like the following can by published.

Frequency 125 Hz 250 Hz 500 Hz 1 kHz 2 kHz 4 kHz

dB drop 19.4 21.6 22.0 23.1 22.9 22.1

coefficient .89 .92 .92 .93 .93 .92

Using the Coefficient to Calculate Decibel Drop

To determine the decibel drop (d) with the material at the given frequency, we can use the coefficient (C) in this
formula:

Example: for a coefficient 0.78, the decibel drop is 13:

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Conclusion
Published sound-reduction coefficients for a material are used to determine sound pressure level decibel drops.
The coefficients and decibel drops are related by the mathematical formulas above. However, when combining
different materials to reduce sound, the combined-materials product will need to be tested to determine its
coefficients or decibel drop characteristics. Keep in mind the coefficients are for certain frequencies and it’s
important that you understand which frequency or frequencies of sound you are trying to reduce.

Learn more about Thermaxx Noise Insulation Jackets!

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