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ASSIGNMENT-1
BUILDING SERVICES

ACOSTICS – UNIT I

SUBMITTED BY:
SUBMITTED TO:
KIRAN YADAV,B.ARCH 4 TH YR
AR. SURJEET SINGH
INDEX

1) SOUND
• PITCH
• LOUDNESS
• INTENSITY
• QUALITY
2) BEHAVIOUR OF SOUND IN ENCLOSURE
• REFLECTION
• REFRACTION
• ABSORPTION
• DIFFUSION
• TRANSMISSION
• ECHO AND REVERBERATION
SOUND
physics, sound is a vibration that typically propagates as an audible wave of pressure, through a transmission medium such as a gas,
liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the reception of such waves and their perception by the brain. Humans can only hear
sound waves as distinct pitches when the frequency lies between about 20 Hz and 20 kHz. Sound waves above 20 kHz are known
as ultrasound and is not perceptible by humans. Sound waves below 20 Hz are known as infrasound. Different animal species have
varying hearing ranges.

Sound is defined as "(a) Oscillation in pressure, stress, particle displacement, particle velocity, etc., propagated in a medium with
internal forces (e.g., elastic or viscous), or the superposition of such propagated oscillation. (b) Auditory sensation evoked by the
oscillation described in (a)."[ Sound can be viewed as a wave motion in air or other elastic media. In this case, sound is a stimulus.
Sound can also be viewed as an excitation of the hearing mechanism that results in the perception of sound. In this case, sound is
a sensation.
PITCH
The frequency of a sound wave is what your ear understands as pitch. A
higher frequency sound has a higher pitch, and a lower frequency sound has a
lower pitch.
The human ear can detect a wide range of frequencies. Frequencies from 20
to 20 000 Hz are audible to the human ear. Any sound with a frequency
below 20 Hz is known as an infrasound and any sound with a frequency
above 20 00020 000 Hz Hz is known as an ultrasound.

LOUDNESS
The loudness is a sensation of how strong a sound wave is at a place. It is
always a relative term and is a dimensionless quantity. Loudness is measured
in decibel (dB). It is given as:
L = log(I), here ‘I’ is the intensity.
The loudness depends on the amplitude of the vibration. It will be louder
when the amplitude is high. Suppose when we pluck a string of the sitar it
starts vibrating with low amplitude and if we apply more energy by plucking
more strongly, the string will vibrate with the greater amplitude and produce
a loud sound. As the amplitude of vibration increases, sound also increases.
 INTENSITY
• This refers to the energy transported by a wave
per unit time across a unit area perpendicular to
the energy flow.(power/area).
• Human ear can detect sounds with an intensity as
low as W/M2 and as high as IW/M2.

QUALITY

The word timbre also describes the term quality. As different sources produce different sounds, the timbre helps us to distinguish
between them. A sound of good quality is pleasant to listen. The instruments are of different shapes and size and they produce
different harmonics of loudness hence their sound can be easily distinguished
BEHAVIOUR OF SOUND IN ENCLOSURE

An enclosed space is a room or area bounded on every of its sides. The materials for enclosure may be classified into two:
• Those that allow sound rays to pass through and
• Those that do not allow sound rays to pass through.
Areas bounded with materials that allow sound rays to pass through tend to enjoy good acoustic as the effect of indirect sound from
reflection is reduced within the space. In this space, sound from external source can pass through the material into the enclosure as
background noise. The vibration of some of the materials can be a source of noise within the space and this can be a bane to the
achievement of clear and audible speech and music. The effect of indirect sound may be pronounced in spaces enclosed with
materials that do not allow the passage of sound rays through them. Adjustments to the material to aid diffusion will improve the
acoustic of the space. Some of these materials can absorb sound, reducing the effect of indirect sound.
On encountering barriers posed by the enclosure, sound waves are likely to behave in the following ways:
• Reflection
• Absorption
• Refraction
• Diffusion
• Diffraction
• Transmission
REFLECTION

This occurs when the wavelength of a sound wave is smaller than the
surface of an obstacle. In the case of an enclosed space, the sound waves hit
every side of the enclosure continuously until the sound energy reduces to
zero. The amount of waves reflected depends on the smoothness, size, and
softness of the materials of enclosure. The angle of incidence of sound rays
is equal to that of the reflected rays only if the surface of the reflector is
flat. But when it is curved, the angles are different.

ABSORPTION

When sound waves hit the surface of an obstacle, some of its energy is
reflected while some are lost through its transfer to the molecules of the
barrier. The lost sound energy is said to have been absorbed by the barrier.
The thickness and nature of the material as regards its softness and hardness
influences the amount of sound energy absorbed.
REFRACTION
This is the bending of sound when it travels from one medium into another medium. The difference in the composition of the two
different media bends the sound i.e. the angle of incidence changes into an angle of refraction as it travels into the new medium.

DIFFUSION
This is the scattering of waves from a surface. It occurs as a result of the texture and hardness of the obstacle is comparable to the
wavelength of the sound. The direction of the incident ray changes when it strikes the surface of the obstacle. Satisfaction is
achieved when sound is heard in all direction at equal level.
TRANSMISSION
Transmission In this phenomenon, sound wave is carried by molecules of the obstacle through vibration and reemitted at the other
side irrespective of the medium. It can be structure borne, air borne or impact sound.

REVERBERTION AND ECHOES

Reverberation and Echo Reverberation: This is the persistence of sound in an
enclosed space as a result of continuous reflection or scattering of sound after the
source has stopped. It is one the most prominent behaviours of sound in an
enclosure. It occurs when sound waves hits a surface and are reflected toward
another surface which also reflects it. Some of the sound is absorbed with this
continuous reflection which gradually reduces the energy of the sound to zero. The
phenomenon can affect the audibility of sound in an enclosure, especially if the
reverberation time, which is the time taken for the sound pressure level to
diminish to 60 dB below its initial value is considerably long. Echo: this occurs
when the reverberation time is long enough to cause a distinct repetition of the
direct sound. This condition is an advanced form of reverberation where the sound
is heard clearly and repeatedly after some time until it fades.