While reflective products like concrete have been the traditional material for outdoor noise barrier walls & enclosures, the advanced sound-absorptive materials found in Sound Fighter® Systems’ products present a much more effective abatement option. Products like concrete or brick simply bounce sound waves off their surface in different directions. Sound Fighter’s products actually absorb or completely eliminate the sound waves that hit them…significantly reducing overall noise.
A breakdown of the science behind absorptive and reflective materials:
A sound-reducing barrier wall with a porous surface material and sound-dampening content material is said to be absorptive. This means little or no noise is reflected back towards the source or elsewhere. Hard surfaces such as masonry or concrete are considered to be reflective. This means much of the noise is reflected back towards the noise source and beyond.
A noise barrier without any added absorptive treatment is by default reflective. In highway applications for example, a reflective noise barrier on one side of the roadway can result in some sound energy being reflected back across the roadway to receivers on the opposite side. In this situation, it is a common phenomenon for one to perceive a difference in sound after a noise barrier is installed on the opposite side of a roadway. Individuals on the opposite side of the roadway may perceive a change in the quality of the sound; the signature of the reflected sound may differ from that of the source due to a change in frequency content upon reflection.
The patented design of the LSE® Absorptive Noise Barrier System enabled Sound Fighter® Systems to pioneer the use of sound-absorbing barriers for outdoor applications.