Innovative acoustical design for the multi-storey wooden buildings of the future
In this project, the previous studies within the AkuTimber project are intensified to find innovative construction solutions that enable good sound insulation of low frequencies in wood-based multi-family houses. Structural and/or airborne resonators, installed inside the floor, will be studied. In addition, cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels are to be developed for fundamental, broad-banded, improved sound insulation.
LTU - Engineering Acoustics runs the research project in collaboration with Simmons Acoustics & Development and Martinsons Byggsystem. The research project runs in 2023–2025(26) and is mainly financed by Formas.
Building with wood has historically been associated with major problems concerning insufficient impact sound insulation at low frequencies caused by walking. Our previous research projects have shown that frequencies as low as 25–50 Hz are extremely important for the experience of these sounds, while sound insulation is evaluated from 50 or 100 Hz and above according to current standards.
Designing modern wooden houses to insulate against such low frequencies is a big challenge. At time being, there is no relevant method for satisfactorily attenuating low-frequency noise and vibrations in a wooden building. It is therefore necessary to look beyond the traditional solutions and instead focus on alternatives, such as metamaterials – a periodic microstructure integrated into a macrostructure. Specially designed resonators will be developed, intended to be applied both to structural vibrations and to airborne sound waves, resonators that "consume" the energy instead of spreading it further into the building. The idea is to integrate such resonators into the floor.
Another idea that will be tested and evaluated is to acoustically improve a CLT-based floor via an elastic adhesive layer. This can lead to the amount of added material in the form of e.g. concrete, gypsum and mineral wool can be reduced, which in turn leads to a reduced carbon dioxide footprint. A positive outcome in the goal of sustainable buildings.

Innovative acoustical design for the multi-storey wooden buildings of the future
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