Acoustic behavior of high acoustic performance window glazing

Urban development has led to increased traffic noise within cities in recent years. In addition, modern architectural tendencies include large glazed areas in the facades of buildings, and this requires the use of window solutions with higher acoustic performance to provide proper acoustic comfort. For windows composed of heavy frames and with very low air permeability, either without roller shutter boxes or fitted with duly treated ones, the sound insulation depends mainly on the acoustic behavior and area of the glazing. We have revisited this topic by testing single, double and triple glazing with the aim of finding window designs with higher acoustic performance. Parameters that influence the acoustic performance of glass are addressed, including the area, the type of glazing, thickness of the air-gap and the introduction of absorbing material around the edge. Particular attention is paid to acoustic phenomena such as coincidence, and the vibration modes and resonances of glazing.