Modelling the impact sound reduction of floating floors applied on cross-laminated timber floors

Timber is growing more popular as a construction material nowadays. Indeed, it is sustainable, user-friendly and widely available. However, homeowners of timber buildings still complain of perceived indoor noise, specifically upon impact. Thus far, very little research has been conducted into this issue. This paper reports the results of the acoustic measurement campaign, conducted in a laboratory, on 14 different floating floors laid on a 200 mm cross-laminate timber slab. Results clearly demonstrate that neither the literature nor existing standards are applicable, as both refer to bare heavyweight floors (like concrete). Hence, new models for the prediction of noise reduction are proposed and validated using the tapping machine and the rubber ball as impact sources. Proposed models are then compared to literature measurements, confirming their effectiveness and their capability of predict impact noise reduction of a floating floor (concrete screed coupled with resilient layer) laid on a cross laminated timber floor.