Open Access Published by De Gruyter Open Access

Volume 3 Issue 1

January 2016

Issue of Noise Mapping

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Contents
Journal Overview

Special Issue on Environmental noise aspects in EU funded projects

Open Access October 26, 2016

Special Issue on Environmental noise aspects in EU funded projects

Gaetano Licitra

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Open Access February 22, 2016

Exploiting ground effects for surface transport noise abatement

Keith Attenborough, Imran Bashir, Shahram Taherzadeh

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Abstract

Growing demand on transportation, road and railway networks has increased the risk of annoyance from these sources and the need to optimise noise mitigation. The potential traffic noise reduction arising from use of acoustically-soft surfaces and artificial roughness (0.3 m high or less) is explored through laboratory experiments, outdoor measurements at short and medium ranges and predictions. Although the applicability of ground treatments depends on the space usable for the noise abatement and the receiver position, replacing acousticallyhard ground by acoustically-soft ground without or with crops and introducing artificial roughness configurations could achieve noise reduction along surface transport corridors without breaking line of sight between source and receiver, thereby proving useful alternatives to noise barriers. A particularly successful roughness design has the form of a square lattice which is found to offer a similar insertion loss to regularly-spaced parallel wall arrays of the same height but twice the width. The lattice design has less dependence on azimuthal source-receiver angle than parallel wall configurations.

Open Access February 23, 2016

The impact of environmental noise generated from ports: outcome of MESP project

Corrado Schenone, Ilaria Pittaluga, Davide Borelli, Walid Kamali, Yara El Moghrabi

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Abstract

Ports are characterized by several complex operations. Accordingly, the analysis of noise results is complicated due to the presence in the same area of diverse sound from ships, trade and also from industrial and shipyards activities aswell as auxiliary services producing negative effects on natural ecosystem and the urban population. The ENPI CBC MED project Managing the Environmental Sustainability of Ports for a durable development (MESP) addressed the pollution reduction from port activities through the implementation of a multidisciplinary approach in air, noise andwater sectors, encompassing technological, regulatory and administrative solutions to ensure natural and urban sustainability and high level of life quality in surrounding territories. To prevent a heterogeneous development, the “status quo” of ports in Northern and Southern Shores of the Mediterranean Sea was analyzed and a guideline on methodologies, good practices and measurement assessment, adaptable and transferable in different port contexts was elaborated. To assess the procedures, validation tests have been carried out to different real cases. In noise sector pilot projects in the ports of Patras, Greece, and Tripoli, Lebanon, have been implemented. Due to the dissimilar scenarios, in terms of orography, facilities and activities, different noise mitigation actions and interventions were consequently accomplished.

Open Access March 22, 2016

CITI-SENSE: methods and tools for empowering citizens to observe acoustic comfort in outdoor public spaces

Itziar Aspuru, Igone García, Karmele Herranz, Alvaro Santander

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Abstract

The purpose of this research was to design and deploy tools that apply the concept of citizen observatories and empowering citizens in the assessment of acoustic comfort in public places. The research applies an iterative cycle of design and this article presents the results of a demonstrative experiment carried out in situ using the first products developed. This work was undertaken as part of the CITI-SENSE project. A viable technical and procedural solution was designed and tested in a field demonstration, where 53 people were engaged to provide 137 observations in the city of Vitoria-Gasteiz, using environmental sensors connected to a smartphone. The results have been analyzed and discussed in terms of the product’s attractiveness for engaging citizens in the evaluation of acoustic comfort in urban places, the accuracy of the noise levels measured by the acoustic app service integrated into the smartphone, and its ability to obtain simultaneous acoustic and perception data. The results presented in this article are considered a step forward in the research into developing solutions for assessing acoustic comfort. Limitations of the proposed solution are discussed, as are suggestions for further research.

Open Access April 25, 2016

Multi-disciplinary, community-oriented design of low-noise aircraft: the COSMA project

Umberto Iemma

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Abstract

The EC-funded project COSMA (Community Oriented Solutions to Minimize aircraft noise Annoyance, 7th Framework Programme) started in June 2009 with an ambitious, twofold goal: improve the understanding of the annoyance induced by aircraft noise on the population and identify the engineering guidelines to establish appropriate design strategies and operational procedure to reduce these effects. The project was conceived within the context of the X-Noise Collaborative Network, a worldwide network of experts and institutions committed to the commercial aviation noise challenge. The COSMA objectives were addressed using a highly multi-disciplinary approach, integrating competences pertaining to psychoacoustics, sound engineering, and aeronautical engineering. The work of twenty-three research groups from nine European countries was structured in six, strongly interconnected work packages. Aim of the present paper is the review of this cross-disciplinary research from the point of view of the aircraft designer. The attention is focused on the Optimisation of Airport Noise Scenarios work package, where the aeronautical technology contextwas established in detail and where, eventually, the design criteria and operational recommendation were defined on the basis of the outcomes of the annoyance examination experimental campaign.

Open Access May 16, 2016

LIFE+2008 HUSH project results: a new methodology and a new platform for implementing an integrated and harmonized noise Action Plan and proposals for updating Italian legislation and Environmental Noise Directive

Francesco Borchi, Monica Carfagni, Lapo Governi, Salvatore Curcuruto, Rosalba Silvaggio, Raffaella Bellomini, Sergio Luzzi, Gaetano Licitra, Diego Palazzuoli, Arnaldo Melloni

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Open Access April 27, 2016

Review of recent EU funded research projects from the perspective of urban sound planning: do the results cope with the needs of Europe’s noise policy?

Sonia Alves, Joachim Scheuren, Beate Altreuther

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Abstract

Noise pollution is one of the major environmental problems affecting European citizens in urban areas. Although the Environmental Noise Directive is in force since 2002, there is still a gap between defined objectives and outcomes. The EU Seventh Environment Action Programme attempts to achieve the reduction of noise pollution by means of more effective European noise policies. This must be coupled with providing assistance to local administrations on dealing with existing noise problems, for example through Urban Sound Planners. The aim of this paper is to present the results of a systematic review of European projects addressing urban sound planning topics and furthermore an overview of the most relevant research results that can be applied by practitioners. In order to understand the European funding strategy, the most valued research topics (number of projects and funding support) are assessed. A key finding of this review is the disagreement between air traffic noise research funding and its importance on overall noise exposure. Another finding is that the scientific knowledge for urban sound planning exists but it requires adequately dissemination of results, among the policy makers and local authorities, who are usually responsible for policy implementation.

Open Access April 25, 2016

Holistic control of ship noise emissions

Davide Borelli, Tomaso Gaggero, Enrico Rizzuto, Corrado Schenone

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Abstract

The sustainability of anthropogenic activities at sea is recently gaining more and more attention. As regards shipping, emissions from ships into the environment of various nature (engine exhaust gases, anti-fouling paints leaching, ballast exchange, releases at sea of oil and other noxious liquid or solid cargoes, of sewage and of garbage) have been recognized as sources of pollution and therefore controlled and limited since a long time. The subject of noise emission has been identified only recently. To study the problem, the EU has funded, among others, the FP7 SILENV (Ship Innovative soLutions to rEduce Noise and Vibrations) project that run from 2010 to 2012. In the present work, the holistic approach followed within the project to characterize and control the ship as a source of noise is presented. Three types of noise emissions (in air, in water and inside the ship) are analyzed highlighting peculiarities and different strategies adopted to characterize the source, the impact on the receiver and the possible solutions to set limits to the ship emissions. The project outcome included a socalled “Green Label”: a set of new prenormative requirements defined for the three main areas mentioned above.

Open Access May 16, 2016

LIFE+2010 QUADMAP Project: a new methodology to select, analyze and manage Quiet Urban Areas defined by the European Directive 2002/49/EC

Itziar Aspuru, Igone Garcia, Chiara Bartalucci, Francesco Borchi, Monica Carfagni, Lapo Governi, Raffaella Bellomini, Sergio Luzzi, Henk Wolfert, Piotr Gaudibert

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Abstract

Concerning quiet areas, the definition provided by the Environmental Noise Directive (END) is intended to preserve the acoustic environment in those areas where it is considered good, according to general indicators and limits. However, the END is not clear enough to allow appropriate assessment and management in urban environments. The aim of QUADMAP project was to deliver a method and guidelines for the identification, delineation, characterization, improvement and management of Quiet Urban Areas (QUAs) as defined by the END. The Project also wanted to help clarify the definition of a QUA, its meaning and its added value for cities in terms of health, safety and lowering stress levels. In this article, after an introduction of the current European scenario on QUAs, the main aspects of the methodology introduced for the selection, analysis and management of QUAs are described. Eventually, the major results achieved by the Project, in terms of the guideline on QUAs, the implemented interventions and the achieved benefits, are reported and discussed.

Open Access May 4, 2016

Predicting Hourly Traflc Noise from Traflc Flow Rate Model: Underlying Concepts for the DYNAMAP Project

M. Smiraglia, R. Benocci, G. Zambon, H.E. Roman

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Abstract

The DYNAMAP project aims at obtaining a dynamic noise map of a large residential area such as the City of Milan (Italy), by recording traffic noise from a limited number of noise sensors. To this end,we perform a statistical analysis of road stretches and group them into different clusters showing a similar measured hourly traffic noise behavior. In the sameway,we group simulated hourly traffic flow rates and compare their compositions with those of the traffic noise groups. The best agreement with the traffic noise was found by using the so-called normal traffic flow rate, yielding overlaps between 68 and 97%. Finally, we derive a simple analytical model to predict the hourly traffic noise from the simulated normal traffic flow, in very good agreement with the measured values.

Open Access April 25, 2016

Noise mapping based on participative measurements

Gwenaël Guillaume, Arnaud Can, Gwendall Petit, Nicolas Fortin, Sylvain Palominos, Benoit Gauvreau, Erwan Bocher, Judicaël Picaut

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Abstract

The high temporal and spatial granularities recommended by the European regulation for the purpose of environmental noise mapping leads to consider new alternatives to simulations for reaching such information. While more and more European cities deploy urban environmental observatories, the ceaseless rising number of citizens equipped with both a geographical positioning system and environmental sensors through their smartphones legitimates the design of outsourced systems that promote citizen participatory sensing. In this context, the OnoM@p system aims at offering a framework for capitalizing on crowd noise data recorded by inexperienced individuals by means of an especially designed mobile phone application. The system fully rests upon open source tools and interoperability standards defined by the Open Geospatial Consortium. Moreover, the implementation of the Spatial Data Infrastructure principle enables to break up as services the various business modules for acquiring, analysing and mapping sound levels. The proposed architecture rests on outsourced processes able to filter outlier sensors and untrustworthy data, to cross- reference geolocalised noise measurements with both geographical and statistical data in order to provide higherlevel indicators, and to map the collected and processed data based on web services.

Open Access May 18, 2016

Global noise score indicator for classroom evaluation of acoustic performances in LIFE GIOCONDA project

Marco Chetoni, Elena Ascari, Francesco Bianco, Luca Fredianelli, Gaetano Licitra, Liliana Cori

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Abstract

The LIFE GIOCONDA is an ongoing project that aims to provide an innovative methodology to the authorities for supporting the environment & health policies by involving the young people in the decision-making processes. The project suggests a web platform able to relate air and noise pollution data in the schools with the students’ pollution awareness. GIOCONDA aims to enhance the awareness of students, teachers and local administrations on the noise issues in schools, presenting suitable tools to improve the public participative processes. This paper presents a new method that has been developed within the Project. It aims to evaluate the acoustic performances of a classroom and to suggest the use of a global indicator based on a group of acoustic parameters compared with their limit values. Whit the new method the comparison between different classrooms or different schools becomes possible, together with a homogeneous evaluation of the priority for planning noise mitigation actions. Several noise measurement campaigns have been performed to characterize the students’ exposure in eight Italian schools. The results are useful to describe the acoustic performances of classrooms.

Open Access May 16, 2016

DYNAMAP – Development of low cost sensors networks for real time noise mapping

Xavier Sevillano, Joan Claudi Socoró, Francesc Alías, Patrizia Bellucci, Laura Peruzzi, Simone Radaelli, Paola Coppi, Luca Nencini, Andrea Cerniglia, Alessandro Bisceglie, Roberto Benocci, Giovanni Zambon

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Abstract

The Environmental Noise Directive (END) requires that regular updating of noise maps is implemented every five years to check and report about the changes occurred during the reference period. The updating process is usually achieved using a standardized approach, consisting in collating and processing information through acoustic models to produce the updated maps. This procedure is time consuming and costly, and has a significant impact on the budget of the authorities responsible for providing the maps. Furthermore, END requires that simplified and easy-to-read noise maps are made available to inform the public about noise levels and actions to be undertaken by local and central authorities to reduce noise impacts. To make the updating of noisemaps easier and more cost effective, there is a need for integrated systems that incorporate real-time measurement and processing to assess the acoustic impact of noise sources. To that end, a dedicated project, named DYNAMAP (DYNamic Acoustic MAPping), has been proposed and co-financed in the framework of the LIFE 2013 program, with the aim to develop a dynamic noise mapping system able to detect and represent in real time the acoustic impact of road infrastructures. In this paper, after a comprehensive description of the project idea, objectives and expected results, the most important steps to achieve the ultimate goal are described.

Open Access May 25, 2016

Innovative Helicopter In-Flight Noise Monitoring Systems Enabled by Rotor-State Measurements

Lorenzo Trainelli, Massimo Gennaretti, Giovanni Bernardini, Alberto Rolando, Carlo E. D. Riboldi, Matteo Redaelli, Luca Riviello, Alessandro Scandroglio

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Abstract

The present contribution aims at providing a comprehensive illustration of a new approach to rotorcraft noise abatement, especially during terminal procedures, when the vehicle approaches the ground and the acoustic impact is higher. This approach pursues the development of technologies and tools for real-time, in-flight monitoring of the emitted noise. The effect of the acoustic radiation is presented to the pilot in a condensed, practical form on a new cockpit instrumentation, the Pilot Acoustic Indicator (PAI), to be used for performing quieter maneuvers. The PAI is based on the synergetic composition of pre-calculated acoustic data, which are used in a noise estimation algorithm together with the data gathered by an innovative contactless measurement system, capable of acquiring the main rotor blade motion. The paper reports on the current studies in unsteady and quasi-steady aeroacoustic prediction and tip-path-plane angle of attack and thrust coefficient observation. Results on novel methodologies are discussed, together with the main features of the PAI design and development process.

Special issue on Recent Advances on Soundscape Research

Open Access March 23, 2016

QUIETE: a scheme for a new index of the environmental quality of green areas

Giovanni Brambilla, Veronica Gallo

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Abstract

Notwithstanding the green areas are important for preserving and promoting the health of population, they are often exposed to noise pollution, especially in urban areas. However, the perceived quality of a green area does not depend only by its sonic environment, as all the human senses contribute to form the individual appraisal together with other features of the area. Thus, an holistic approach is required as that offered by the soundscape approach. The present paper proposes the scheme of a new index, QUIETE, to quantify the quality of a public park, taking into account its perceived overall quality and the relative sound level determined by the difference between the noise descriptor LA (i.e. LAeq, LA50, . . .) and a reference level Lref . By the QUIETE index it is easy to identify the areas requiring noise mitigation actions, and provide understandable information to the users of the park on the areas for their enjoyable fruition. The formulation of the QUIETE index is rather flexible and the reference level Lref has to be fixed considering the objective to accomplish. To evaluate the feasibility and potential of QUIETE, it has been applied to the data collected in 8 urban parks in Milan and Rome with different location (from downtown to suburban area) and size. The Lref value has been set at the noise limit issued by current Italian legislation for green areas (LAeq = 50 dBA for day-time). A “tentative” rating scale for QUIETE is also proposed and its values are reported by a colored scale on the map of the park to summarize the data and to pr

Open Access August 12, 2016

When soundscape meets architecture

Brigitte Schulte-Fortkamp, Pamela Jordan

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Abstract

The harmonization of noise indicators, noise mapping, and action plans delivers basic administrative information not only for noise abatement in highly noisepolluted areas, but also for comparisons across built environments regionally and internationally. However, such activities do not provide any tools or essential knowledge for the more demanding tasks required in designing and planning sustainable built environments that are supportive to wellbeing and health. Without knowing the determining factors behind dose-response curves [1, 2], the decision process for developing action plans is unnecessarily restricted. Optional courses of action for handling a noise problem cannot be sufficiently considered without understanding the full context—physical, cultural, emotional— of noise’s effect on people. Therefore, an approach for considering these many angles must involve diverse fields of practice and interdisciplinary approaches. One such methodology is the multidimensional Soundscape Approach, which emphasizes how the acoustic environment is perceived, experienced, and/or understood by a person or people in context. Relying on principles of the Soundscape Approach, two urban green spaces will be examined regarding noise abatement strategies in relation to visitors’ experiential expectations. It will be shown how and why soundscape is an invaluable tool in detecting and analyzing needs for an adequate acoustic environment, accounting for people’s concerns and integrating their local expertise to guide the process of planning, designing and maintaining sites.

Open Access August 30, 2016

Urban park soundscape in distinct sociocultural and geographical contexts

Antonio Carlos Lobo Soares, J. Luis Bento Coelho

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Abstract

The importance of soundscape in urban public parks has galvanised researchers concerned with improving the sound environment in cities. Existing literature reveals, however, a relative paucity of studies on soundscape in particular sociocultural and environmental contexts, and on the influence of these contexts in the perception of the urban sound space.Within this framework, this paper investigates the soundscape of parks in the cities of Belém, Brazil, and Lisbon, Portugal. The influence of geography and climate as determinant of activities and behaviors, the emission of natural and man-made sounds that characterise the soundscape of urban parks, the way park users evaluate the quality of sound environments were analysed, as were other elements that contribute for such an appreciation. The methodology encompassed sound measurements inside and outside the parks, analysis of the audibility of identifiable sound sources, study of local uses and activities through soundwalks and interviews, and assessment of responses to enquiries. The results shows that the soundscape of park depends on different features such as geography, climate, urban architecture, park infrastructure, sound sources, and most importantly the visitors’ expectations for the planned activities, together with their other sensorial responses, which proved to be different in distinct sociocultural and environmental contexts.

Open Access September 12, 2016

Progress in the understanding of soundscape: objective variables and objectifiable criteria that predict acoustic comfort in urban places

Karmele Herranz-Pascual, Igone García, Itziar Aspuru, Itxasne Díez, Álvaro Santander

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Abstract

The overall aim of this research was to find a group of easy-to-access variables, that are measurable or assessable, and which help predict acoustic comfort in urban places, in order to make further progress in developing a soundscape indicator based on indices readily available in urban environments. Our main conceptual framework has been the Environmental Experience Model and the ISO of Soundscape, together with the most up-to-date information and technology, where parameters that influence the soundscape and comfort in urban public places have been identified. This work has been undertaken as part of the CITI-SENSE project. A viable technical and procedural solutionwas designed and tested in a field demonstration, where 53 people were engaged to provide 120 observations in the city ofVitoria-Gasteiz, using environmental sensors connected to a smartphone. The results were analysed and are discussed here with the aim of defining an indicator that permits an easy evaluation of acoustic comfort in urban places. The results presented in this article are considered a step forward in the development of a soundscape indicator based on indices readily available in urban environments. The limitations of the findings are also discussed, as are suggestions for further research.

Open Access September 12, 2016

A soundscape approach to exploring design strategies for acoustic comfort in modern public libraries: a case study of the Library of Birmingham

Jieling Xiao, Francesco Aletta

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Abstract

Taking the soundscape approach to a study of the Library of Birmingham, this paper explored acoustic comfort in modern public libraries and measured the quality of the perceived sound environment, focusing on the appropriateness of the spatial organisation to facilitate users’ activities of reading and writing. The research involved four groups of participants taking soundwalks which provided data at four main floors in the Library, identifying types of sounds, measuring sound pressure levels and evaluating the overall quality and appropriateness of perceived sound environment. A human sound dominated sound environment was found in the studied case. The overall soundscape quality varied among different levels and different functional spaces. However, the results showed that the overall soundscape quality of each floor varied and was not necessarily determined by the overall appropriateness and sound pressure level. The participants in the study were found influenced by their soundscape cognitions of spaces through visual and acoustic perceptions, as well as by their purposes of using the space. From these results, the layout of spaces is suggested as a determining factor of acoustic comfort, and design strategies were discussed to achieve acoustic comfort in modern public libraries.

Open Access October 28, 2016

Urban soundscape maps modelled with geo-referenced data

Catherine Lavandier, Pierre Aumond, Saul Gomez, Catherine Dominguès

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Abstract

The noise maps that are currently proposed as part of the EU Directive are based on the calculation of the Lday, Levening and Lnight. These levels are calculated from emission and propagation models that are expensive in time. These noise maps are criticized for being distant from the perception of city users. Thus, calculation models of sound quality have been proposed, for being closer to city users’ perception. They are either based on perceptual variables, or on acoustic measurements, or on georeferenced data, the latter being often already integrated into the Geographic Information Systems of most French metropolises. Considering 89 Parisian situations, this article proposes to compare the sound quality really perceived, with those from models using geo-referenced data. It also looks at the modeling of perceptual variables that influence the sound quality, such as perceived loudness, the perceived time ratio of traffic, voices and birds. To do this, such geo-referenced data as road traffic, the presence of gardens, food shops, restaurants, bars, schools, markets, are transformed into core densities. Being quick and easy to calculate, these densities predict effectively sound quality in the urban public space. Visualization of urban soundscape maps are proposed in this paper.

Open Access December 23, 2016

Ship propeller side effects: pressure pulses and radiated noise

Stefano Gaggero, Tomaso Gaggero, Enrico Rizzuto, Giorgio Tani, Diego Villa, Michele Viviani

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Abstract

The present paper deals with the side effects of propellers cavitation, i.e. pressure pulses and radiated noise. These effects are gaining more and more importance for commercial ships for different reasons. Pressure pulses significantly affect comfort onboard, thus their reduction is of utmost importance for all ships carrying passengers. As regards the underwater radiated noise, in the last decade interest has shifted from navy applications to commercial ships, due to the concern for the rising background noise in the oceans. The propellers, generating noise directly in water, represent one of the main contributions to the overall underwater noise emitted from ships. Due to the complexity of the mechanisms of propeller noise generation, different complementary strategies have to be followed to properly analyze the problem, ranging from induced pressure pulses to broadband noise and cavitation. In the present work, part of the activities carried out in the framework of the collaborative EU FP7 project AQUO (Achieve QUieter Oceans by shipping noise footprint reduction, www.aquo.eu) are reported. The paper presents the investigations carried out on a specific test case represented by a single screw research vessel, which is analyzed with three different strategies: numerical calculations, model scale investigations and fullscale measurements.

About this journal

Call for papers for the Special Issue:

Strategic noise mapping in the CNOSSOS-EU era
Guest Editors:
César Asensio, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, ETSI Sistemas de Telecomunicación (c.asensio@upm.es)
Gaetano Licitra, ARPAT, Environmental Protection Agency of Tuscany Region (g.licitra@arpat.toscana.it)
Deadline: December 2024

Living with the Pandemic: Reflections on the Urban Sound Consequences of 2 years of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Guest Editors:
Dr Edda Bild, School on Information Studies, McGill University, Canada (edda.bild@mcgill.ca)
Andrew Mitchell, Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering, University College London, UK (andrew.mitchell.18@ucl.ac.uk)
Dr Simone Torresin, Department of Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, University of Trento, Italy (simone.torresin@unitn.it).

Deadline: Open-ended

Please see the latest table of contents to have access to all the papers published in Noise Mapping in Issues 2022 and 2021!
Table of contents: Issues 2022 and 2021

You are welcome to submit your paper to our journal!
The publication fee (APC – Article Processing Charges) amounts to €500.

The journal aims to promote and disseminate knowledge on noise mapping through the publication of high quality peer-reviewed papers focusing on the following aspects:

noise mapping and noise action plans: case studies;
models and algorithms for source characterization and outdoor sound propagation: proposals, applications, comparisons, round robin tests;
local, national and international policies and good practices for noise mapping, planning, management and control;
evaluation of noise mitigation actions;
evaluation of environmental noise exposure;
actions and communications to increase public awareness of environmental noise issues;
outdoor soundscape studies and mapping;
classification, evaluation and preservation of quiet areas.

Papers concerning noise mapping of emissions from the following sources are welcome for publication:

roads;
railways;
airports and aircrafts;
harbours and ships;
industrial plants;
leisure and night-life activities;
urban areas;
natural sound sources.