Numerical study of the accuracy and reproducibility of sound absorption measurements in reverberation rooms at low frequencies

Standardised absorption measurements in reverberation rooms suffer from relatively low reproducibility, especially at low frequencies and for highly absorptive samples. In these conditions, complete sound field diffusivity cannot be achieved. However, recent research has demonstrated that the theoretical diffuse absorption emerges as the ensemble average across a wide range of rooms with different geometries, even at very low frequencies. The present study aims to investigate the influence of the room geometry, sound source positioning, and presence of panel diffusers on the sound absorption values obtained in a specific reverberation room, as well as on the difference between those values and the theoretical diffuse values. The focus is on the lowest frequency bands. A numerical simulation approach is proposed, in which the room without sample is modelled in full detail using the finite element method and coupled to the sample with a Rayleigh–Ritz approach. The measurement of diffuse sound absorption is simulated in an efficient way using a stationary power balance approach. This approach is validated against measured data and against a detailed simulation of the impulse response. From the parametric study conducted with the model, it can be concluded that, for highly absorptive samples, good agreement with the theoretical diffuse absorption values can be obtained for certain room designs. In these rooms, the measured absorption is also less sensitive to the number and positioning of sources and diffusing elements.