Simulation of sound insulation properties of 'Vacuum Zappi Facade Panels'

This paper reports on an ongoing research project aiming at prediction of the sound insulation proper- ties of a specific type of facade panel by means of computational tools and experiments. Mentioned facade panels consist of two parallel sheets with a cavity in between. To improve the sound insulation properties the air pressure in the cavity will be low- ered. To avoid unacceptable distortion the sheets will be connected by means of so-called ‘spacers’. For these facade elements no formulae are available to predict the sound insulation properties. Therefore the applicability of the computer simulation tool ANSYS has been investigated. First simulation attempts and related results will be discussed..