Development of a Panel Membrane Resonant Absorber

Abstract

The bass ratio describes the relationship between the reverberation energy in the low frequency region and that of the middle frequency. An appropriate bass ratio can create a warm sound; however, too much bass can influence speech clarity (C50) and work efficiency and can even cause listeners to feel tired or exhausted. Using perforated plate resonance theory and membrane resonance theory, this research developed the panel membrane resonant absorber (PMRA), which not only provides an outstanding continuous absorption spectrum in the broadband range of 100–800 Hz but also presents an aesthetic appearance at a low cost. We divided this study into two parts: (1) PMRA development and experiment and (2) field application and measurement to confirm the sound absorption performance of the PMRA. In part 1, PMRA was developed by combining different materials and thicknesses of the air cavity. In the field study of part 2, the PMRA with the appropriate sound-absorbing curve was installed in a small auditorium, where we conducted field measurements for reverberation time (RT) and speech clarity (C50). According to the experimental results, the PMRA had great absorption performance at a low frequency. In the field validation, the PMRA was found to effectively decrease the low-frequency RT while also maintaining the RT of middle-high frequency. The C50 of the auditorium was also improved.