GLOSSARY OF IMPORTANT ACOUSTICAL TERMS
• absorption coefficient – the fraction of the incident sound energy absorbed by a surface.
• anechoic chamber – a sealed room in which all the surfaces are designed to completely
absorb all sound produced in the room.
• attenuation – a reduction in sound level. Sound attenuation in air-conditioning is
specified in terms of dB per meter.
• background noise – ambient noise
• break-in noise – transfer of noise from a space surrounding the duct into the duct through
duct walls.
• break-out noise – transfer of noise from the interior of a duct through duct walls into a
space outside the duct.
• dead room – a room containing an unusually large amount of sound absorption..
• decibel (dB) – a unit of measurement for sound pressure level, sound intensity level or
sound power level.
• diffraction – a change in the direction of propagation of sound as a result of bending
caused by a barrier in the path of a sound wave.
• diffuse sound (field) – a sound field in which the sound comes in equal intensity from all
directions.
• direct sound – the sound that arrives at a receiver along a direct line from the source
without reflection from any surface.
• echo – a sound that has been reflected with sufficient time delay.
• environmental noise – exterior background noise in a neighborhood (ie. traffic, aircraft).
• fidelity – faithful reproduction of a sound source.
• flutter echo – a rapid but repetitive succession of sound from a sound source usually
occurring as a result of multiple reflections in a space with hard, flat and parallel walls.
• frequency – the number of full cycles per second measured.
• impact noise – noise caused by the collision of two objects.
• infrasonic – a sound that is below the human audible frequency, below 20 Hz.
• insulation – see isolation
• intermittent sound – a sound which is discontinuous or fluctuates to such an extent that at
times its sound pressure level falls below a measurable level.
• inverse square law – a law which states that the sound intensity in a free field varies
inversely with the square of the distance from the source.
• isolation – a lack of acoustical connection.
• leak – a small opening in a barrier that allows airborne sound to pass through.
• live room – a room containing an unusually small amount of sound absorption.
• loudness – an auditory sensation that depends on sound pressure level and the frequency
of sound.
• masking – the increase in the threshold of audibility of a sound that is required so that the
sound can be heard in the presence of another sound.
• noise isolation class (NIC) – a single number rating derived from the measured value of
noise reduction between two rooms.
• noise reduction (NR) – the reduction in sound pressure level of noise.
• noise reduction coefficient (NRC) – a single number rating derived from measured values
of sound absorption coefficients of a material at 250, 500, 1000 and 2000 Hz.
• outdoor-indoor transmission class (OITC) – a weighted single number rating of the sound
reduction effectiveness of a partition that separates an indoor space from the outside.
• pitch – a listener’s perception of the frequency of a pure tone.
• reflection coefficient – a measure of the sound reflective property of a surface.
• resonance – the relatively large amplitude of vibration produced when the frequency of
the source of sound is equal to the natural frequency of a room.
• reverberant sound field – a sound field created by repeated reflections of sound from the
boundaries in an enclosed space.
• reverberation – the continuation of sound in an enclosed space after the initial source has
been terminated.
• reverberation time (RT) – the time it takes for sound intensity to decay by 1 millionth of
its steady state value after the sound source has been terminated.
• sabin – a unit of measure of sound absorption.
• scattering – an irregular diffraction of sound in many directions.
• sound insulation – the ability of a barrier to prevent sound from reaching a receiver.
• sound intensity (SI) – the average rate of sound energy flow through a unit area in a given
direction.
• sound intensity level (SIL) – a quantity expressed in decibels of airborne sound.
• sound lock – a small space that works as a buffer between a source room and a receiving
room.
• sound pressure – fluctuating pressure of sound superimposed on the static air pressure.
• sound pressure level – see sound intensity level
• sound transmission class (STC) – a single number rating of the sound insulation rating of
a partition.
• structure-borne sound – sound propagated through a solid structure.
• transmission coefficient – the ratio of transmitted sound energy to incident sound energy
• transmission loss (TL) – is the measure of sound insulation of a partition.
• wavelength – distance between two adjacent compressions or rarefactions in a sound
wave.
• white noise – a noise whose energy is uniform over a wide range of frequencies. This is
analogous to the term “white light”, which consists of almost equal amount of light of
different wavelength (colors). A white noise sounds hissy.