Sustainability of acoustic materials and acoustic characterization of sustainable materials

Abstract

In the current western society, sustainable development becomes an increasingly significant goal in the evaluation and promotion of constructions. This paper briefly recalls the main methods for construction sustainability evaluation and the environmental impacts associated with various types of building techniques. It presents an evaluation of the sustainability of certain traditional insulating materials (glass, rock or wood wool), which are largely used in building acoustics, and presents the acoustic performances (airborne/impact sound insulation and sound absorption) of alternative materials recommended for their sustainable properties. These materials are either natural (cotton, cellulose, hemp, wool, etc.) or recycled (rubber, carpet, cork, etc.). A global comparison of the various characteristics is carried out for traditional and alternative materials.