On the Evaluation of Decay Curves to Determine Structural Reverberation Times for Building Elements



Hopkins, C ORCID: 0000-0002-9716-0793 and Robinson, M
(2013) On the Evaluation of Decay Curves to Determine Structural Reverberation Times for Building Elements. ACTA ACUSTICA UNITED WITH ACUSTICA, 99 (2). pp. 226-244.

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Abstract

Measurement of structural reverberation times on heavyweight walls and floors is often essential to accompany laboratory measurements of airborne or impact sound insulation, or to quantify vibration transmission on junctions of walls and floors. This paper uses Transient Statistical Energy Analysis (TSEA) to predict structural decay curves that can be evaluated to determine the structural reverberation time. Good agreement is shown between decay curves measured on concrete/masonry walls and floors in a large building and those predicted using TSEA. A series of numerical experiments are then performed with TSEA to quantify the error in the estimate of the total loss factor when using different evaluation ranges to calculate the structural reverberation time. The intention is to reconcile the three main issues that have historically caused problems when measuring structural reverberation times on heavyweight walls and floors. These issues are: (1) the evaluation range that is needed to ensure that the total loss factor calculated from the decay curve is representative of the true total loss factor, (2) the errors in the total loss factor when placed in the context of the other errors that occur due to energy flow between the test element and the connected structure, and (3) the signal processing that is necessary to measure and evaluate short decays. The outcome is a proposal for an evaluation procedure to determine structural reverberation times that maximises the part of the early decay which can be used in the evaluation range and identifies when a structural decay curve is and is not significantly affected by energy returning from the rest of the structure. © S. Hirzel Verlag · EAA.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: ## TULIP Type: Articles/Papers (Journal) ##
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 07 Dec 2020 08:27
Last Modified: 18 Jan 2023 23:19
DOI: 10.3813/AAA.918606
Related URLs:
URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3109444