Sandstone Acoustic Panels Enhance the Acoustic Quality of Exhibition Halls.
In exhibition halls, sound is crucial for conveying information, but can also create noise that disrupts the experience. Overlapping explanations with background music, crowd chatter, and exhibit demonstration sounds lead to reverberation that distracts visitors and reduces information retention. The original venue featured smooth cement walls, which, while industrial in appearance, caused severe echoes that hindered listening to exhibit explanations and negatively impacted the overall experience.
The project team ultimately selected sandstone acoustic panels. These panels utilize inorganic materials like natural sand grains and slag particles as core components. Through the special polymerization of cementitious materials, they form a micro-particle structure with surface coatings. This results in numerous irregular interconnected tiny pores between particles, granting excellent sound absorption capabilities for medium and high-frequency waves. Additionally, they meet A-level fire protection standards with non-combustible performance and an E1 environmental grade featuring extremely low formaldehyde emissions—ensuring a safe environment for museum visitors. With effective acoustic design, the exhibition hall maintains vibrancy while providing a comfortable auditory atmosphere.
After installation, the echo in the museum was significantly reduced, making explanations clearly audible and allowing visitors to focus more on the exhibits. The sandstone sound-absorbing panels seamlessly integrated with the smooth cement walls, as the designer chose a board surface color that matched the wall. Customized dimensions and installation techniques ensured that the acoustic panels blended naturally into the space, preserving an industrial texture while adding refinement to modern acoustic materials.
This renovation demonstrated that sandstone acoustic panels are ideal for cultural venues like exhibition halls and museums, enhancing acoustic quality without compromising spatial aesthetics.
The Acoustic Problems of Exhibition Halls
Exhibition halls differ from traditional enclosed spaces due to their openness and multifunctionality, leading to three main acoustic challenges:
1. Conflict Between Dynamic Flow of People and Static Sound Fields: Visitors frequently move around, generating varying sounds from conversations and equipment operation. For example, at a technology exhibition, mechanical noises in robot demonstration areas can drown out audience discussions.
2. Interaction Between Exhibit Sound Effects and Spatial Reverberation: Some exhibits (like multimedia installations) require clear audio output; however, hard surfaces (glass, metal) reflect sound waves, causing echoes. Experiments show that when reverberation time exceeds 0.8 seconds, speech intelligibility decreases by 25%.
The value of acoustic panels lies in their ability to absorb excess sound energy and minimize reflection, thereby creating a comfortable acoustic environment in exhibition halls. This transformation of sound from interference into a useful tool enhances the overall experience.