What is Noise?

Noise is any unwanted sound that

a person hears

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 What is sound then?
• Sound is vibrations transmitted through
an elastic solid or a liquid or gas, with
frequencies in the approximate range of
20 to 20,000 hertz, capable of being
heard by the average human ear.
• Sound pressure levels are used to
measure the intensity of sounds and are
described in terms of decibels.
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Common noise sources

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Source-Path-Receiver Concept

Source

Receiver
Path

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Frequency

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 Frequency
• Frequency is the number of pressure
cycles that pass a point per second
• Frequency=cycles per second=Hertz
(Hz)
• Human hearing is in the range of 20 to
20,000 Hz

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 Speed of sound
• Sounds travels at a rate of 1,126 feet
per second in air of 58 degrees F
• Which corresponds to about 1 mile
every 5 seconds
• The speed of sound is proportional to
the square root of the temperature

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 Example
• What is the wavelength of a sound with
a frequency of 5,000 Hz? (assume
speed of sound is 1,126 feet per
second)

• 1,126 feet per second / 5,000 cycles per

second =.23 feet or 2.7 inches

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 Sound Pressure

• Sound pressure amplitude determines the

loudness of the sound.
• Sound pressure in air can be measured in
units of micro Newtons per square meter
(mN/M2) or micro-Pascals (mPa).
• The human ear can detect a wide range of
sound pressure. Usually from a range of
20 mPa to 200,000,000 mPa.
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 Sound Pressure
200,000,000 mPa = 2 X 108 mPa
20,000,000 mPa = 2 X 107 mPa
2,000,000 mPa = 2 X 106 mPa
200,000 mPa = 2 X 105 mPa
20,000 mPa = 2 X 104 mPa
2,000 mPa = 2 X 103 mPa
200 mPa = 2 X 102 mPa
20 mPa = 2 X 101 mPa
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Sound Pressure Levels and
Decibels
• The square of sound pressure is proportional to
sound power or sound energy.
• A measure of Sound Pressure Level (SPL) is
the decibel; defined as
dB = 10 log10 (P1/P0)2
where:
P1 = pressure value of interest
P0 = a standard reference value of 20 mPa RMS
• The quantity (P1/P0)2 is called the “relative
energy.”
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 Sound Pressure Levels and
Decibels
Relative Pressure Relative Energy Decibel, dB
(P1/P0) (P1/P0)2 10 Log (P1/P0)2
100 = 1 100 = 1 0
100.5 = 3 101 = 10 10
101 = 10 102 = 100 20
101.5 = 32 103 = 1,000 30
102 = 100 104 = 10,000 40
102.5 = 316 105 = 100,000 50
103 = 1,000 106 = 1,000,000 60
103.5 = 3,162 107 = 10,000,000 70
104 = 10,000 108 = 100,000,000 80
104.5 = 31,623 109 = 1,000,000,000 90
105 = 100,000 1010 = 10,000,000,000 100
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 Addition and Subtraction of
Sound Pressure Levels (SPL)

• dB levels may not be added or

subtracted directly
• Relative energy values may be added
or subtracted directly

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 Addition and Subtraction of
Sound Pressure Levels (SPL)

Example: A source produces a sound pressure level of

70 dB. A second 70 dB source is added next to the first
source.
What is the combined sound level of the 2 sources?
• 70 dB + 70 dB does not equal 140 dB. Relative energy
values must be added.
• Relative energy for each source =10(70/10)=10,000,000
• Relative energy for both sources is 20,000,000
• SPL for both sources=10 Log (20,000,000)=73 dB

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 Addition and Subtraction of
Sound Pressure Levels (SPL)

Doubling sound energy

increases sound levels by 3
decibels

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 Addition and Subtraction of
Sound Pressure Levels (SPL)

When Two Values Differ By: Add to Higher Value

0 to 1 dB 3 dB
2 to 3 dB 2 dB
4 to 9 dB 1 dB
10 or more dB 0 dB

Example: 65 dB+ 70 dB = 71 dB

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 What are A-weighted decibels (dBA)?

The sensitivity of the human ear to sound depends on the

frequency or pitch of the sound. People hear some frequencies
better than others. If a person hears two sounds of the same
sound pressure but different frequencies, one sound may
appear louder than the other. This occurs because people hear
high frequency noise much better than low frequency noise.

A-weighting serves two important purposes:

1. gives a single number measure of noise level by integrating

sound levels at all frequencies

2. gives a scale for noise level as experienced or perceived by

the human ear
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A, B, & C Weighting Network Filters

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 Changes in noise levels in
an outdoor environment
• 3 dBA (increase or decrease) is barely
perceptible
• 5 dBA (increase or decrease) is clearly
noticeable
• 10 dBA (increase or decrease) is
perceived as twice as loud (or half as
loud)

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Refraction and Wind
Gradients

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Refraction and Temperature
Gradients

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Noise Path without a Barrier

Source
Receiver

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Noise Path with a Barrier

Barrier

Source
Receiver

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Geometric Relationship Between Traffic and Receiver
D

70 dBA

Hard reflective ground surface

2D

Less loud by 3 dBA

67 dBA
dBA change = 10 log(D1/D2)

Hard reflective ground surface

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Geometric Relationship Between Traffic and Receiver
D

70 dBA

Soft absorptive ground surface

2D

Attenuation increases by an additional

1.5 dBA for a total of 4.5 dB 65.5 dBA
dBA change = 15 log(D1/D2)

Soft absorptive ground surface

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Importance of Breaking Line of Sight

Source

Receiver

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Importance of Breaking Line of Sight

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Effect of Barrier on Attenuation Over Distance
L EQ(h)= 72 dBA

Line Source
100’

L EQ(h)= 63.5 dBA

Wall
Attenuation
10 dBA

Line Source
Field Insertion Loss = “Before” – “After” = 8.5 dBA
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Wall Attenuation = 10 dBA
Parallel Barrier Reflections

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Questions?

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