Track: Product Development

Abstract

Manufacturing of sound absorbing panels typically uses synthetic materials such as fiberglass and wool fibers. In this

paper, biomass as acoustic absorbing materials were considered as an alternative to synthetic materials because it can provide a more economical perspective to the supply of sound absorbing materials. Three fibrous materials were used as the main component of the sound absorbing panels. These materials include: coconut (cocos nucifera), corn (zea mays), and banana (musa balbisiana). Moreover, this paper aims to manufacture sound absorbing panels made from local biomass materials and determine its characteristic potential as acoustic sound absorbers using a custom-made impedance tube. To test the potential of the biomass materials as sound absorbers, its individual sound absorbing coefficients were measured. In the impedance tube results, the data obtained from the biomass materials were compared to the data obtained from the conventional material. All the panels made from biomass materials were able to absorb sound significantly and level the characteristic qualities of sound absorbers made from conventional materials. Therefore, improving the design of the impedance tube and fabrication of panels can increase the sound absorption coefficient of the manufactured materials.