Using a Shear Connector to Stiffen a Floor Structure to Reduce the Heavy-weight Floor-Impact Noise

The wall-slab structure is a common structural system of the apartment building in Asia. The floor slab in the wall-slab structure is shared between the top and bottom units, causing frequent complaints and disputes about the floor-impact noise. Heavyweight floor-impact noises, especially, have become a major source of complaint and a social issue. This study proposes reinforcing the floor slab, using a shear connector to increase the stiffness, as a means of high tuning the heavyweight floor-impact noise. The performance of the proposed floor slab was evaluated by directly applying it in an actual apartment with a wall-slab structure. The test parameter was the installation method of the shear connector, which was installed in directions 1 and 2. The heavyweight impact-noise was evaluated according to the measurement method in KS F 2863-2, the Korean Industrial Standards. The test result showed 47 dB in the living room area, in which the shear connector was installed in direction 1, which was superior to the 50 dB industrial standard. If this customized floor structure can be designed and installed such that the controlled vibration band corresponds to the target frequency, it can effectively reduce the heavyweight floor-impact noise.