Study on sound absorption of road acoustic screens under simulated weathering

Abstract

The present paper is comparing the results of research studies carried out for three road acoustic screens of different design and different number of damping layers. For the tests, we selected timber or steel screens with a traditional multilayer structure and also one innovative type of simplified design. With respect to particular panels, their sound absorption properties were investigated in the reverberation chamber after they had been subjected to simulated weathering. In the process, two screens were subjected to the aging tests of 50–500 cycles in a special climatic chamber, and the innovative screens were subjected to 1000 cycles. The procedure was repeated every 50 or 100 cycles in order to obtain the changes of acoustic characteristics. The changes taking place in the absorbing material were also investigated with the use of scanning electron microscopy method (SEM). Basing on the obtained results and on the statistical analysis, the capability to maintain acoustic properties by the panels during their service life in natural conditions was estimated. For that purpose, linear statistical models were worked out, which were then applied to estimate the value of the single number sound absorption coefficient after successive aging cycles as well as the predicted time periods of acoustic class changes.