5.1 There are several purposes of this test:
5.1.1 For transmission loss: (a) to characterize the sound insulation characteristics of materials in a less expensive and less time consuming approach than Test Method E90 and ISO 140-3 (“reverberant room methods”), (b) to allow small samples tested when larger samples are impossible to construct or to transport, (c) to allow a rapid technique that does not require an experienced professional to run.
5.1.2 For transfer matrix: (a) to determine additional acoustic properties of the material; (b) to allow calculation of acoustic properties of built-up or composite materials by the combination of their individual transfer matrices.
5.2 There are significant differences between this method and that of the more traditional reverberant room method. Specifically, in this approach the sound impinges on the specimen in a perpendicular direction (“normal incidence”) only, compared to the random incidence of traditional methods. Additionally, revereration room methods specify certain minimum sizes for test specimens which may not be practical for all materials. At present the correlation, if any, between the two methods is not known. Even though this method may not replicate the reverberant room methods for measuring the transmission loss of materials, it can provide comparison data for small specimens, something that cannot be done in the reverberant room method. Normal incidence transmission loss may also be useful in certain situations where the material is placed within a small acoustical cavity close to a sound source, for example, a closely-fitted machine enclosure or portable electronic device.
5.3 Transmission loss is not only a property of a material, but is also strongly dependent on boundary conditions inherent in the method and details of the way the material is mounted. This must be considered in the interpretation of the results obtained by this test method.
5.4 The quantities are measured as a function of frequency with a resolution determined by the sampling rate, transform size, and other parameters of a digital frequency analysis system. The usable frequency range depends on the diameter of the tube and the spacing between the microphone positions. An extended frequency range may be obtained by using tubes with various diameters and microphone spacings.
5.5 The application of materials into acoustical system elements will probably not be similar to this test method and therefore results obtained by this method may not correlate with performance in-situ.
