Abstract
In order to assess the airborne sound insulation of a new material or building solution, access to standardized laboratories, large and expensive facilities, and a sample area of at least 10 m2 are required. At the research and development stages of new sustainable acoustic materials for construction, it is not easy to make large sample areas available. Moreover, the financial investment in acoustic testing of materials during the research stage in standardized laboratories is excessive. In this work, the assessment of the airborne sound insulation of multi-layer partitions designed with new sustainable materials is presented. The assessed solutions are formed by green composite fiber boards as lightweight elements and a new material designed from sheep wool as absorbent material. The results of these 100% recyclable solutions are compared with lightweight element based solutions, which are commonly used for acoustic insulation. Characterization of those new sustainable solutions for building is leveraged in a reduced sized transmission chamber. The design, construction, and validation of this kind of laboratory are provided. This laboratory enables the assessment of the airborne sound insulation of a material in its research stage.
Highlights
The absorbent material employed in buildings as acoustic solutions contained toxic mineral wools or materials that were difficult to recycle
The geometric relationship proposed for the rooms was evaluated through the resonance frequencies themselves using the finite element method (FEM), and the design of energy interaction was evaluated using a statistical energy analysis (SEA) model [42]
In [59,60], the objective of the project was developed in detail, and data on the diameter of the fibers and comparison with other fibers already consolidated as acoustic absorbents—like polyester fibers (PET), recycled foam, and mineral wool—were presented
Summary
The absorbent material employed in buildings as acoustic solutions contained toxic mineral wools or materials that were difficult to recycle. Researchers have conducted numerous studies to evaluate the acoustic and thermal properties of a multitude of natural fibers [2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9] and recycled materials [10,11,12,13,14,15] They have made simulation models with these new materials [16,17,18,19] and have even conducted studies on how plants can improve acoustics both indoors and outdoors [20,21,22]. One of them refers to “enabling the transition towards a green economy and society through eco-innovation” by reinforcing innovative sustainable products, among others
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