Conveners
A03.08/A05.07 Heat pump acoustics in residential environments: P463
- Christoph Reichl (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology)
- Jack Havie-Clark
A03.08/A05.07 Heat pump acoustics in residential environments: S020
- Christoph Reichl (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology)
- Jack Havie-Clark
A03.08/A05.07 Heat pump acoustics in residential environments: S382
- Jack Havie-Clark
- Christoph Reichl (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology)
A03.08/A05.07 Heat pump acoustics in residential environments: S387
- Jack Havie-Clark
- Christoph Reichl (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology)
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Katie Salter (Acoustics Innovation Institute)11/09/2026, 09:00A03 Building Acoustics
Net Zero targets in the UK require a shift to low or zero carbon emission technology, which is supported by the UK government funding to support the installation of Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs) for domestic heating provision. ASHPs offer better thermal efficiency than traditional boiler systems and have no direct carbon emissions. Research and planning policy is needed, however, to ensure...
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Christoph Reichl (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology)11/09/2026, 09:00A03 Building Acoustics
Accurate prediction of heat pump noise requires acoustic source data that go beyond A-weighted overall sound power levels. For outdoor units of air source heat pumps, frequency-dependent directivity is particularly relevant, since fan openings, heat exchangers, blind faces and top surfaces can radiate differently and therefore influence receiver levels depending on installation...
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Jack Harvie-Clark (Apex Acoustics Ltd)11/09/2026, 09:20A03 Building Acoustics
The joint IOA / CIEH practitioner note refers to “appropriate sound propagation modelling carried out by an SQA”. The industry and international standard model for outdoor sound propagation modelling is ISO 9613-2, despite not being proven to be suited to modelling complex urban morphologies. Variability in how practitioners build and configure these models can lead to materially different...
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3905. Linking 2D Noise Mapping and 3D Augmented Reality for Heat Pump Acoustic Planning (FA2026/409)Christoph Reichl (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology)11/09/2026, 09:40A03 Building Acoustics
The increasing deployment of air-to-water heat pumps and other outdoor technical systems in residential areas introduces new challenges for environmental noise, acoustic comfort, and public acceptance. Conventional planning approaches often rely on single-number sound power levels and simplified distance-based conversions to sound pressure levels. However, these methods typically neglect...
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Jack Harvie-Clark (Apex Acoustics Ltd)11/09/2026, 10:20A03 Building Acoustics
In the planning of noise impacts from domestic air source heat pumps (ASHPs), compliance criteria typically refer to a single value in dB(A). Manufacturers provide laboratory test data based on reference thermal conditions, defined flow and return temperatures and single operating points, but in-situ environmental conditions vary widely and continuously, while system characteristics, settings...
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Lara Stürenburg (IHTA, RWTH Aachen University)11/09/2026, 10:40A03 Building Acoustics
Air-to-water heat pumps are increasingly used for heating, making their acoustic emissions an important factor in public acceptance. The perceived annoyance of heat pump noise depends not only on the sound characteristics of the unit but also on the installation location. The aim of this study was to investigate how simulated propagation scenarios (garden, living room with tilted window, and...
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Christian Kasess (Acoustics Research Institute, OeAW)11/09/2026, 11:00A03 Building Acoustics
At low temperatures, air-source heat pumps (ASHPs) regularly perform a so-called defrosting cycle where the compressor of the ASHP is switched off, the circuit reversed, and the compressor switched on to defrost the heat exchanger. After a brief period the circuit is reversed back and the ASHP returns to regular operation. During this cycle the characteristics of the noise produced by the ASHP...
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Julian Becker (HEAD acoustics GmbH)11/09/2026, 14:40A03 Building Acoustics
This study presents a detailed analysis of how sound character influences the annoyance ratings of heat pump noise, based on data from a listening experiment conducted as part of the IEA/HPT Annex 63 on Placement Impact on Heat Pump Acoustics. This large-scale listening experiment was originally designed to investigate the impact of heat pump placement in residential environments, considering...
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Katie Salter (Acoustics Innovation Institute)11/09/2026, 15:00A03 Building Acoustics
Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs) represent an essential technology for the decarbonisation of home heating across Europe. As ASHP deployment becomes more widespread, the introduction of this relatively new noise source may increase community noise annoyance. Current standards for assessing ASHP noise often do not consider acoustic character, for example, tonality (the prominence of discrete...
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Gioia Fusaro (University of Bologna)11/09/2026, 15:20A03 Building Acoustics
Residential heat pumps introduce significant low‑frequency aerodynamic and mechanical noise into indoor and outdoor environments, especially through compact ventilation ducts. Conventional duct silencers are often too bulky, prone to degradation, or introduce unacceptable pressure drops. Acoustic metamaterials (AMMs) offer a promising alternative due to their subwavelength behaviour, design...
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