The measurement of sound radiation from room surfaces in lightweight buildings

When investigating the transmission of sound within a building it is useful to measure the sound powers being radiated by individual room surfaces. This is normally accomplished using the ‘accelerometer method’. This method is shown to be unsuitable for use in lightweight buildings, and a new ‘direct’ method, suitable for general application, is described. The equipment required by the direct method is detailed, and the magnitudes of the inaccuracies involved in its use are estimated. An account is given of the successful testing of the method on lightweight panels radiating into an anechoic chamber, and the application of the method to actual constructions is described.