BUILDING UTILITIES 3

RE 600
ACOUTICAL TERMINOLOGIES

SUBMITTED BY:
MARCOS, KENNETH

ACOUSTICS:
The scientific study of sound, its production, transmission, and effects.
ACOUSTICAL:
The properties of a material to absorb or reflect sound (adjective), Acoustically
(adverb).
ACOUSTICAL ANALYSIS:
A review of a space to determine the level of reverberation or reflected sound in
the space (in seconds) influenced by the building materials used to construct the
space. Also the amount of acoustical absorption required to reduce reverberation
and noise.
ACOUSTICAL CONSULTANT:
A professional who is experienced in providing advice on acoustical
requirements, and noise control in a variety of situations.
ACOUSTICAL ENVIRONMENT:
The acoustical characteristics of a space or room influenced by the amount of
acoustical absorption, or lack of it in the space.
AIRBORNE SOUND:
Sound that reaches the point of interest by traveling through the air.
AMBIENT NOISE/SOUND:
All noise level present in a given environment, usually being a composite of
sounds from many sources far and near. Traffic, HVAC, masking sound or even
low-level background music can contribute to ambient level of noise or sound.
AMPLITUDE:
The nonnegative scaler measurement of a sound waves peak magnitude during
a frequency cycle or peak pressure variation.
ARCHITECTURAL ACOUSTICS:
The control of noise in a building space to adequately support the
communications function within the space and its effect on the occupants. The
qualities of the building materials used to determine its character with respect to
distinct hearing.
ARTICULATION CLASS (AC):
A measure of rating building elements such as acoustical ceilings and acoustical

screens for speech privacy purposes. AC values increase with increasing

privacy. AC has replaced Noise Isolation Class (NIC) as the accepted industry
standard performance value. NIC is based on hearing sensitivity rather than
discernment of actual speech, which is the primary concern in open office layouts
prevalent in acoustical design work.
ARTICULATION INDEX:
A measure of speech intelligibility influenced by an acoustical environment, and
rated from 0.01 to 1.00. The higher the number, the higher the intelligibility of the
spoken word in a sentence from 0 to 100%.
AREA EFFECT:
Acoustical materials spaced apart can have greater absorption than the same
amount of materials butted together. The increase in efficiency is due to
absorption is due to more surface area on an acoustical panel, diffraction around
the panels, and air space.
ASTM:
Acronym for American Society of Testing and Materials
A-WEIGHTING:
A measure of sound pressure level designed to reflect the response of the
human ear, which does not respond equally to all frequencies. To describe sound
in a manner representative of the human ears response it is necessary to reduce
the effects of the low and high frequencies with respect to medium frequencies.
The resultant sound level is said to be A-weighted, and the units are in decibels
(dBA). The A-weighted sound level is also called the noise level.
A-WEIGHTED SOUND LEVEL:
The sound level measured with a sound level meter using A-weighting, which
alters the sensitivity of the sound level meter with respect to frequency so that
the sound level meter is less sensitive is less sensitive at frequencies where the
ear is less sensitive; usually used in specifying permissible sound levels in
buildings.
BACKGROUND NOISE:
The sum total of all unwanted residual noise generated from all direct and
reflected sound sources in a space that can represent an interface to, or interfere
with good listening and speech intelligibility. (Hearing impaired persons are
especially victimized by background noise)
BAFFLE:
An acoustical sound absorbing unit. Normally suspended vertically in a variety of

patterns to introduce absorption into a space to reduce reverberation and noise

levels.
BARRIER:
Anything physical or an environment that interferes with communication or
listening.
BASS TRAP:
An acoustic absorber or sound baffle used mainly in sound-recording studios and
home theaters to absorb sound at low frequencies less that about 100 hertz (Hz).
Bass traps, like all acoustically absorptive materials, function by turning sound
energy within the room into minute amounts of heat through friction.
BOOMINESS:
Low frequency reflections. In small rooms, acoustical panels with air space
behind can better help control low frequency reflectivity.
CLOUD:
In acoustical industry terms, an acoustical panel suspended in a horizontal
position from a ceiling or roof structure. Similar to a baffle, but in a horizontal
position.
COCKTAIL PARTY EFFECT:
The Cocktail Party effect describes the ability to focus ones listening attention on
a single talker among a mixture of conversations and background noises,
ignoring other conversations. This effect reveals one of the surprising abilities of
our auditory system, which allows us to communicate in a noisy place, such as a
cocktail party.
COINCIDENCE REGION:
The typically high frequency at which sound can pass directly through a partition
due to the partition resonating at that same frequency. Speed of wave traveling
through the material equals the speed if the sound (incident) wave in air.
CONSTRAINED LAYER DAMPING (CLD):
Vibrational energy is dissipated and converted into small amounts of heat as a
result of the extension and compression, or shearing of a damping layer. A
viscoelastic damping compound between two stiff or rigid constraining layers
such as drywall or plywood. This conversion of vibration to heat reduces the
resonance of the stiff layers much like placing a hand on a drum head to stop it
from resonating.

CYCLE:
In acoustics, the cycle is the complete oscillation of a sound waves pressure
above and below the atmospheric static pressure.
CYCLES PER SECOND:
The number of oscillations (cycles) that occur in the time frame of one second.
(See FREQUENCY). Low frequency sounds have fewer and longer cycles than
high frequency sounds.
DAMPING:
The process by which vibrations are converted into heat over time and distance.
DECIBEL (dB):
A logarithmic unit used to express the difference or magnitude of the level or
power of sound intensity. It is equal to ten times the common logarithm of the
ratio of the two levels. [DECI + BEL] A whisper is about 20 dB, typical
conversation is between 60 - 70 dB, and the threshold of pain for the human ear
is around 120 dB. Decibels are not directly related to human ear sensitivity and
doubling dB does not equate to a doubling in perceived loudness since it works
as a curve. 10 dB is a typical doubling or halving of perceived volume. Note that
being logarithmic values, they cannot be added.
DEFLECTION:
The distance of an elastic body or spring moves when subjected to a static or
dynamic force.
DIFFUSION:
The scattering or random reflection of a sound wave from a surface. The
direction of reflected sound is changed so that the listeners may have the
sensation of sound coming from all directions at equal levels. Most rooms are not
diffused, and reverberation times can be different in different parts of the room
due to the rooms modes. The amount of diffusion can be measured by taking
reverb measurements in many different locations in the room and then taking the
average of the differences in decay times.
ECHO:
A reflected sound producing a distinct repetition of the original sound that
reaches the listener when the delay is > .01 sec after the direct sound. The
reflecting object must be at an average of about 60 ft in order for an echo to be
heard.
ECHO FLUTTER:
An echo flutter can be heard as a ringing effect caused when a sound rapidly

bounces back and forth between two hard, flat parallel surfaces within a room.
Echo flutters can be controlled with diffusers and sound absorbing products. Also
known as a Flutter Echo.
EQUAL LOUDNESS CONTOURS:
A measure of sound pressure over the frequency spectrum represented by
curves on a graph for which a listener perceives the different frequencies to be at
equal volumes. Human hearing is less sensitive at low frequencies whereas high
frequencies above 2000 Hz at higher volumes can be more annoying.
FLANKING:
An indirect path of sound transmission traveling around a partition or barrier
within a building reducing the STC significantly. Some examples of flanking paths
are noise under doors, electrical conduit penetrations in the partition, window
mullions, back to back electrical boxes, ductwork and ceiling plenums, as well as
shares walls, floors, and ceilings
FREE FIELD:
Sound waves not varying in magnitude according to direction of measurement in
a sound environment that is free from all bounding surfaces or obstructions.
FREQUENCY:
The number of cycles per second of a given tone. Acoustical frequency is
normally measured in units called Hertz (Hz). One Hz is 1 cycle per second, two
Hz is 2 cycles per second, and so on.
FREQUENCY ANALYSIS:
An analysis of a sound to determine the character (the volume of sounds at
various frequencies) that make up the overall sounds spectrum. i.e.:
higher frequency sound or pitch vs, low frequency sound or pitch. A sound is
rarely composed of a single pure frequency.
HEARING IMPAIRMENT (HEARING LOSS):
Any degree, full or partial, of impairment of the ability to apprehend sound. Sound
waves vary in frequency and amplitude. Hearing loss can be caused by age,
illness, or by exposure to excessively high noise levels. Environments with longer
reverberation times make it harder for those with hearing loss to understand
conversation.
HEARING RANGE:
An average young persons hearing range is from as low as 16-20 Hz to 20,000
Hz. With human speech being from 600 Hz to 4800 Hz. Men tend to lose their

hearing range quicker than women as they age with the highest frequency an
average middle aged person being between 12,000-14,000 Hz.
HERTZ (Hz):
The unit of frequency, equal to one cycle per second.
IMPACT SOUND (IMPACT NOISE):
Sound generated by the collision of two solid objects and carried through a
structure. Examples are footsteps, dropped objects, and slamming doors.
LIVE END / DEAD END:
An acoustical treatment plan usually for performance purposes, where one end
of the performance space is highly absorbent, and the other end is more
reflective or diffused. As an example, in a good theater the stage would be the
DEAD END so that the performer could hear the purest sound produced. The
audience would be in the LIVE END of the theater and able to enjoy the warm
sound produced by the reverberation and diffusion of the performance as its
sound works with the rooms acoustic treatments.
LOUDNESS:
A subjective measurement of the perception of a sounds intensity, and duration
and can be ranked from soft to loud. Loudness depends on sound pressure,
intensity, and frequency. Every 10 dB is roughly a doubling or halving of
loudness. Also known as Intensity.
MASKING:
The ability or process in which one sound makes the ear incapable of hearing
another sound. Most commonly used in open office environments to help speech
privacy and are more commonly and less accurately known as white noise" or
pink noise".
MASS:
The weight of a given material in a given volume. Generally the heavier or denser
a material is, the more sound it will stop and the higher the Transmission Loss
(TL) will be. It is harder for a sound wave to move a heavy (high mass) wall than
a light (lower mass) wall.
MASS LAW:
For every doubling of mass there is a 6dB improvement of transmission loss. For
example, if you were to measure a stand alone single layer of 5/8" drywall (not
attached to a wall of any kind) compared to 2 layers of 5/8" drywall wall, a TL
gain of +6dB would be seen. If you were to double the mass again, going from 2
to 4 layers of 5/8" drywall (again, not an actual wall, just drywall), the TL would

again improve +6dB.Note that this DOES NOT mean that adding another sheet
of drywall to an existing wall gives you +6dB. You would have to double the
weight of the entire wall, which includes studs and insulation.
NOISE:
In acoustics Noise is described as any sound in the acoustic domain both wanted
and unwanted. While music and birds chirping are examples of wanted sounds,
noise is more commonly used in reference to unwanted sounds such as traffic,
airplane, industrial, and other annoying sounds. Noise does not have to be
excessively loud to be annoying or cause interference.
NOISE CRITERIA (NC):
NC is determined by NC Curves which are a series of curves of octave-band
spectra, used to provide a single number rating of the noisiness of an indoor
space. The rooms octave-band spectrum is compared with this set of curves to
determine the NC level of the room and illustrates the extent to which unwanted
noise such as mechanical or HVAC noise interferes with speech intelligibility.
NOISE ISOLATION CLASS (NIC):
A single-number rating of building elements such as acoustical ceilings and
acoustical screens for speech privacy purposes derived from the measured
values of noise reduction between two enclosed spaces that are connected
between one or more paths that can not be isolated such as open office
environments. NIC has been replaced by Articulation Class (AC).
NOISE MITIGATION:
Noise mitigation is a set of strategies to reduce noise pollution.
NOISE REDUCTION (NR):
The average amount of reduced sound pressure level (SPL) measured in
decibels (dB) on a logarithmic basis between two rooms separated by a wall with
a sound source in one room and the measurement taken in the other room. NR is
also be used to determine the reduction of SPL caused by an absorbent material
before and after it is introduced into a room with a sound source.
NOISE REDUCTION COEFFICIENT (NRC):
An arithmetic average of an acoustic material to the nearest multiple of .05 of
four sound absorption coefficients at frequencies of 250 Hz, 500 Hz, 1000 Hz,
and 2000 Hz. An NRC of 0 = perfect reflection and an NRC of 1 = perfect
absorption. NRC is based on human speech frequencies therefore providing a
simple scale of how well a surface material will absorb the human voice.

OCTAVE BANDS:
Sounds that contain energy over a wide range of frequencies are divided into
sections called bands. An octave is the interval between two discrete frequencies
having a frequency ratio of two. For instance, frequencies of 50 Hz and 100 Hz
are said to be separated by one octave. The 10 most commonly used octave
band are centered at the following frequencies:
31.5 Hz, 63 Hz, 125 Hz, 250 Hz, 500 Hz, 1000 Hz, 2000 Hz, 4000 Hz, 8000 Hz,
and 16,000 Hz.
1/3 OCTAVE BANDS:
Though similar to Octave Bands, except that each of the Octave Bands are split
into three. Usually with the most commonly used Octave Bands (See:
OCTAVE BANDS) as the middle frequency. This yields a more detailed
description of the frequency content of the sound source being measured. For
example, the 1000 Hz Octave Band is divided into 800 Hz, 1000 Hz, and 1250
Hz 1/3 Octave Bands to cover the same frequency range of the original 1000 Hz
Octave Band. 1/3 Octave Bands are useful in many building acoustic and
environmental applications as well as the measurement of many noise control
products.
OITC:
Acronym for Outdoor Indoor Transmission Class and covers a range from 80 Hz
to 4000 Hz. Though similar to STC, this method is used to rate the amount of
Transmission Loss (TL) of a partition or wall from outside to inside such as
determining how much traffic noise an exterior wall can stop. OITC is an AWeighted number and is expresses in dB as opposed to STC which uses points.
PHON:
A unit measurement of perceived sound or loudness. 1 Phon is equal to 1 dBSPL
at a frequency of 1000 Hz.
PINK NOISE:
A random signal of every frequency in which each higher octave drops off 3 dB.
The lower octaves have more power, and the higher octaves have less power.
Pink noise is used to test loudspeakers and tune" a room for optimum audio
reproduction or masking systems.
PLENUM:
An open cavity between a given spaces deck and dropped ceiling or an
enclosed space not for human occupancy purposes in buildings. Most open
office designs have open plenums for electrical and HVAC purposes and are a
flanking path for sound transmission.

REFLECTION:
Sound wave energy that strikes and bounces off a surface through which it
cannot pass. Harder and non porous surfaces, such as a painted concrete wall,
are more reflective than soft porous surfaces, such as an acoustical panel.
Sound reflection can be used to enhance the quality (intelligibility) of music and
speech.
RESONANCE:
Every item has a natural frequency of vibration, which is determined by a
combination of factors such as mass and stiffness. Changing a factor will change
the resonance frequency. It is much easier to get an object to vibrate at its
resonance point. In acoustics, an airborne frequency can be amplified due to the
reinforcement of a partition vibrating at resonance. Also as an example, if a wall
is resonating at 100Hz, frequencies around 100Hz will pass much more readily
through that wall.
RESONANCE REGION:
The frequency at which the entire partition or wall assembly resonates. This
frequency is dependent on cavity depth, insulation, mass, etc.
RESONANT FREQUENCY:
A frequency at which a resonance exists.
REVERBERATION:
The perpetuation of sound wave energy in an enclosed space after the original
sound source has stopped. After this original sound source has stopped the
sound wave energy will continue to be reflected, and absorbed until it looses
enough energy to die out. More reverberation can be good for music, but poor for
speech intelligibility.
REVERBERATION TIME:
The time it takes in seconds for a sound to decay 60 dB or one-millionth of its
original sound level after the source has stopped in an enclosed space.
Commonly referred to as RT60.
SABIN:
A measure or unit used to measure the amount of sound absorption of a room or
acoustic material. 1 metric Sabin is equal to the value of 1 square meter of 100%
absorbing material. Named in honor of Wallace Clement Sabine (1868-1919)
who developed the formula allowing for the calculation of reverb time within a
space prior to construction.

SEPTUM:
In acoustics, a thin layer of material such as foil, steel, or lead that helps prevent
sound waves from passing through an absorptive material.
SIGNAL TO NOISE RATIO:
The comparison of the level of desired signal such as speech and music to the
level of background or unwanted noise. The higher the ratio the lower the
background or unwanted noise interferes with the desired signal.
SINE WAVE:
A continuous uniform (sound) wave having a constant amplitude and frequency.
SOUND:
Vibrational mechanical energy that propagates as a wave through matter such as
air and water and is defined by the properties of sound waves which are
frequency, amplitude, wavelength, intensity, period, speed and direction. The
speed of sound depends on the temperature, and medium it travels through. The
average speed of sound through the air at sea level and at 20C (68 F) is 343
m/s (Roughly 767 mph).
SOUND ABSORPTION:
The property of materials such as air, walls or acoustic panels that changes
sound wave energy into heat energy. When a sound wave hits a surface, that
which is not reflected is absorbed.
SOUND ABSORPTION COEFFICIENT:
This defines the amount of sound energy absorbed by a given material. As an
example, if a material being tested reflects 75% of the sound energy striking that
material, the Sound Absorption Coefficient would be 0.25.
SOUND BARRIER:
In acoustics, a sound barrier is any material or structure that is placed around a
sound source to impede the transmission of the noise beyond the barrier. A poor
acoustical environment, such as a room with a long reverberation time, can be a
barrier" to speech intelligibility or good hearing.
(eNoise Control can provide your sound barrier)
SOUND LEVEL:
A subjective measure of sound or Sound Pressure Level (SPL) expressed in
decibels (db) as a comparison corresponding to familiar sounds experienced in a
variety of situations.

SOUND LEVEL METER:

An instrument containing a microphone, amplifier, output meter, and various
frequency-weighting settings used to measure sound levels or noises at different
frequencies.
SOUND PRESSURE:
The varying difference between the instantaneous pressure of a sound wave at a
point in space and the static atmospheric pressure at that point.
SOUND PRESSURE LEVEL (SPL):
Expresses in decibels (dB), SPL of a sound is 20 times the logarithm to the base
0 of the ration of the sound pressure to the reference pressure. The reference
pressure shall be explicitly stated and is defined by standards.
SOUNDPROOFING:
Building materials, elements in construction, and design features that make
structures more impervious to sound transmission from room to room or from the
outside to inside of buildings.
SOUND ATTENUATION:
Reducing the intensity or the sound pressure level of sound, which is transmitted
from one point to another.
SOUND REMEDIATION:
Process of abatement, remedying, or other method to contain or remove sound
or noise from an environment.
SOUND TRANSMISSION CLASS - STC:
A method for a single number ranking of walls, doors, windows, noise barriers,
partitions, and other acoustic products measured over 16 different frequencies
ranging from 125 Hz - 4000 Hz, assuming that the noise source in generally even
across the frequency spectrum. STC involves measuring transmission loss (TL)
at various frequency bands of a generated sound source from one room to
another separated by the median that is being tested. STC is not a very good
rating system for most real world situations which generate sound in frequencies
lower than 125 Hz such as traffic noise, machinery noise, and many music
systems like those found in todays home theaters. Again, STC does not consider
low frequencies in its calculation, so a high STC" wall could very well perform
poorly in the problematic lower frequencies.
SOUND SPECTRUM:
The representation of a sounds wave components of frequency and amplitude. A

sound spectrum is a representation of that sound in terms of the amount of

vibration at each individual frequency.
SPEECH INTELLIGIBILITY:
The ability for the human ear to correctly understand the spoken word in a given
environment such as an open office plan, and rated from 0.01 to 1.00 as defined
by the by the Articulation Index. The higher the number, the higher the
intelligibility of the spoken word in a sentence from 0 to 100%.
SPEECH PRIVACY:
The extent that speech becomes unintelligible between rooms or spaces like
offices and conference rooms usually found in an open office plan, The three
ratings used are:
Confidential (Very Private), Normal (Non Obtrusive), and Minimal (Poor or Low
Privacy).
TIME WEIGHTED AVERAGE (TWA):
The guideline used by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to
measure noise levels in the workplace. Exposure to loud noise over a long time
can cause hearing damage. If the TWA noise level, which is the average sound
level over 8 hours, is exceeding 85 dB(A), a hearing conservation program is
required. The table below shows the equivalent amount of noise and exposure
time equal to 8 hours of exposure.
OSHA Permissible Noise Exposure
90 dB(A)
8.0 Hours
92 dB(A)
6.0 Hours
95 dB(A)
4.0 Hours
97 dB(A)
3.0 Hours
100 dB(A)
2.0 Hours
102 dB(A)
1.5 Hours
105 dB(A)
1.0 Hours
110 dB(A)
30 Minutes
115 dB(A)
15 Minutes or less
ULTRASOUND:
Sound pressures with frequencies greater than the upper limit of human hearing
which is approximately 20,000 Hz (20 kHz) to 25,000 Hz (25 kHz).
VIBRATION:
Mechanical periodic or random oscillations about some specified reference or

equilibrium point. Vibration is expressed in terms of frequency or number of

cycles that occur in a given time period such as Hertz (Hz), cycles per second
(cps), cycles per minute (cpm), rotations per minute (rpm), and strokes per
minute (spm). A few examples are drums, tuning forks, engines, or the imbalance
of a rotating object like in a washing machine.
VIBRATION ISOLATOR:
A resilient support which accomplishes the process of isolating an object from the
source of vibrations. An example would be the use of a Vibration Isolator to keep
the vibration of a roof top HVAC unit from transferring to the building.
VOLUME:
In acoustics, Volume is similar to Loudness in that it is a subjective measurement
of the perception of a sounds intensity, and duration and can be ranked from soft
to loud. Loudness depends on sound pressure, intensity, and frequency.
In architecture, Volume is the cubic space of a given enclosed space by using
the calculation:
Volume = Space Length x Space Width x Space Height.
WAVELENGTH:
The distance between two identical crests in a sound wave or cycle. Wavelength
can be easily pictured as the wave ripples in water from a tossed stone. Sound
wavelengths vary by frequency. The higher the sound frequency, the shorter the
wavelength These frequencies are more quickly dissipated and easier to control
whereas lower end frequencies produce longer wavelengths which take longer to
dissipate and are harder to control. Low end frequencies with long wavelengths
emanate from sound sources that cause most noise complaints such as traffic
noise, and many music systems like those found in todays home theaters.
WHITE NOISE:
A random signal in which all frequencies in all bands have equal power.
Impact Insulation Class (IIC) is a single number rating used to compare and
evaluate the performance of floor/ceiling assemblies measured in an acoustic
laboratory. Field Impact Insulation Class (FIIC) is a single number rating used to
compare and evaluate the performance of floor/ceiling assemblies (and
associated structures) derived from field impact sound measurements in
accordance to ASTM E989.