Acoustics of Buildings

The branch of science which deals with the planning of a building or a hall with a view to provide best audible sound to the audience is called acoustics of building or architectural acoustics.

Essentials features about the good acoustics:1. The sound heard must be sufficiently loud in every part of the hall and no echoes should be present. 2. The total quality of the speech and music must be unchanged i.e., the relative intensities of the several components of a complex sound must be maintained. 3. For the clarity , the successive syllables spoken must be clear and distinct i.e., there must be no confusion due to overlapping of syllables. 4. The reverberation should be quite proper i.e., neither too large nor too small. The reverberation time should be 1-2 seconds for music and 0.5 to 1 second for speech.

5. There should be no concentration of sound in any part of the hall. 6. The boundaries should be sufficiently sound proof to exclude extraneous noise. 7. There should be no Echelon effect. 8. There should be no resonance within the building.

Reverberation and time of Reverberation The time taken for the sound to fall below the minimum audibility measured from the instant when the source stopped sounding . The prolonged reflection of sound from the walls , floor and ceiling of a room.

The persistence of audible sound after the source has stopped to emit sound.

FACTORS AFFECTING THE ARCHITECTURAL ACOUSTICS AND THEIR REMEDY Reverberation :- The time of reverberation for a hall should neither be too large nor too small.

It must have a definite value which may be satisfactory both to the speaker as well as to the audience .
This preferred value of the time of reverberation is called the optimum reverberation time. A formula for standard time of reverberation was given by W.C.Sabine, which is T = 0.165V/A = 0.165/aS Where A is the total absorption of the hall V its volume in cubic metre and S is the surface are in square metre.

The reverberation can be controlled by the following factors :1. By providing windows and ventilators which can be opened and closed to make the value of the time of reverberation optimum. 2. Decorating the walls by pictures and maps. 3. Using heavy curtains with folds.

4. The walls are lined with absorbent material such as felt, celotex,fibre board, glass wool etc.
5. Having full capacity of audience.

6. By covering the floor with carpets.

7. By providing acoustic tiles.

 Adequate loudness:-With great absorption ,no doubt ,the time of reverberation will be smaller which will minimize the chances of confusion ,between the different syllables but the intensity of sound is weakened and may go below the level of intelligibility of hearing . Sufficient loudness in every portion of the hall is an important factor for satisfactory hearing.

The loudness may be increased by:1. Using large sounding boards behind the speaker and facing the audience .Large polished wooden reflecting surfaces immediately above the speaker are also helpful. 2. Low ceilings are also of great help in reflecting the sound energy towards the audience . 3. By providing additional sound energy with the help of equipments like loudspeakers.

 Focussing due to walls and ceilings :- If there are focussing surfaces (concave, spherical, cylindrical or parabolic) on the walls or ceiling or the floor of the hall, they produce concentration of sound into particular regions while in some other parts no sound reaches at all. For uniform distribution of sound energy in the hall:1. There should be no curved surfaces. If such surfaces are present , they should be covered with absorbent material. 2. Ceiling should be low. 3. A paraboloidal reflected surface arranged with the speaker at the focus is also helpful in sending a uniform reflected beam of sound in the fall.

 Absence of echoes:- An echo is heard when direct and reflected sound waves coming from the same source reach the listener with a time interval of about 1/7 second. The reflected sound arriving earlier than this helps in raising the loudness while those arriving later produce echoes and cause confusion.

It can be avoided or weakened as far as possible by absorption.

Echoes can be avoided by covering the long distant walls and high ceiling with absorbent material.

 Freedom from resonance:-The window panes , sections of the wooden portions and walls lacking in rigidity are thrown in vibrations and they create other sounds . For some note of audio frequency , the frequencies of new sound may be the same thus resulting in the resonance. If the frequency of the created sound is not equal to the original sound , they interfere and produce a new sound. Such resonant vibrations should be suitably damped.

 Echelon effect:- A set of railings or any regular spacing of reflected surfaces may produce a musical note due to the regular succession of echoes of the original sound to the listener . This makes the original sound confused or unintelligible. So this type of surface should be avoided

Extraneous noise and Sound insulation:- In a good hall no noise should reach from outside .
Noise may be defined as unwanted sound. The noise may be due to high frequency of sound or both . The noise produces jarring effect or displeasing effect on the ear.

 There are three types of noises which are very :a. Air- borne noise:- The noise which reaches the hall from outside. b. Structure borne noise :- Noise which are conveyed through the structure of building.

c. Inside noise:- The noise which are produced inside the hall or rooms.