Acoustics and lighting of buildings

Part A

Course description :
This course is an introduction to building acoustics and interior lighting techniques. The basic principles of applied acoustics are presented and explained. It is then shown how to evaluate discomfort and annoyance through specific indicators. This first part ends with some notions in room acoustics. The introduction to lighting techniques begins with the basic principles of photometry, then the properties of the different lamps and luminaires are described. Finally, the problems in interior lighting design are briefly discussed.

Part B

Course description :
This course is an introduction to building acoustics and interior lighting techniques. The basic principles of applied acoustics are presented and explained. It is then shown how to evaluate discomfort and annoyance through specific indicators. The main subjects of this first part are room and architectural acoustics and the problems of sound transmission through walls and floors. The introduction to lighting techniques begins with the basic principles of photometry, then the properties of the different lamps and luminaires are described. Finally, the methods for interior lighting design are presented and practiced. A student project will be organised in room acoustics or interior lighting.

Part A

At the end of the course, it is intended that the student will be able to: - understand the basics of sound propagation and its different modes, - evaluate and measure sound levels in decibels and combine the contribution of several sound sources, - understand the basics of psychoacoustics and the origin of the dBA, - understand and apply some noise indicators describing discomfort, in particular equivalent noise levels, - calculate and measure reverberation times (absorption necessary to reach a given RT),
- understand and apply the basic photometric quantities used in lighting techniques, - understand recommendations, technical documentations or standards published in the lighting techniques literature, - apply the basic laws of photometry (for example to calculate the illuminance in simple situations), - identify the different types of lamps, their properties and applications, - propose a quick evaluation of an artificial lighting installation for an interior space.

Part B

At the end of the course, it is intended that the student will be able to: - understand the basics of sound propagation and its different modes, - evaluate and measure sound levels in decibels and combine the contribution of several sound sources, - understand the basics of psychoacoustics and the origin of the dBA, - understand and apply some noise indicators describing discomfort, in particular equivalent noise levels, - understand the effects of eigenmodes in rooms and determine their frequencies, - calculate and measure reverberation times (absorption necessary to reach a given RT), - identify the most frequent problems in architectural acoustics and propose solutions, - propose and apply simulation models in room acoustics, in order to reach well-defined quality criteria (RT, EDT, D50, C80, etc...), - identify the most frequent problems in building sound insulation and propose solutions, - evaluate the transmission loss index of simple walls,
- understand and apply the basic photometric quantities used in lighting techniques, - understand recommendations, technical documentations or standards published in the lighting techniques literature, - apply the basic laws of photometry (for example to calculate the illuminance in simple situations), - identify the different types of lamps, their properties and applications, - design an artificial lighting installation for an interior space, - evaluate the amount of daylight available in an interior space, depending on its dimensions, the location and area occupied by the windows.

Part A

Basic mathematics and physics for engineers.

Part B

Basic mathematics and physics for engineers.

Part A

First of all, this course is organised in modules, each of them consisting in a general presentation ex cathedra, followed by applications and exercices with the teacher.
Lab' demonstrations will be organised, when possible.

Part B

First of all, this course is organised in modules, each of them consisting in a general presentation ex cathedra, followed by applications and exercices with the teacher.
Lab' demonstrations will be organised, when possible.

Part A

Face-to-face learning.

Part B

Face-to-face learning.

Part A

The documents and slides will be made available to the students who are registered to this course via myULg.

Part B

The documents and slides will be made available on-line (via myULg) for the students who are registered to this course.

Part A

The evaluation is first based on an oral examination during which the student will answer to questions concerning the theory that has been exposed during the presentations ex-cathedra. He/she will also solve some exercises (bringing a calculator is essential).

Part B

The evaluation is first based on an oral examination during which the student will answer to questions concerning the theory that has been developed during the ex-cathedra presentations . He/she will also solve some exercises (bringing a calculator is essential).
The final mark includes:

• the result of the oral examination
• the mark obtained for the project's report.

Part A

This course is organised during the spring semester.
Site: Montefiore Institute B28.
The official language is French.

Part B

This course is organised during the spring semester.
Site: Montefiore Institute B28.
Official language is French.

Part A

J.J. Embrechts

Part B

J.J. Embrechts