A hybrid geostatistical-acoustical model for estimating single-event noise levels from noise monitor data
Open Access
Author:
Nykaza, Edward Thomas
Graduate Program:
Acoustics
Degree:
Doctor of Philosophy
Document Type:
Dissertation
Date of Defense:
June 19, 2013
Committee Members:
Anthony A Atchley, Dissertation Advisor/Co-Advisor Anthony A Atchley, Committee Chair/Co-Chair Victor Ward Sparrow, Committee Member Thomas B Gabrielson, Committee Member Dennis W Thomson, Committee Member Michael Joseph White, Special Member Dr D Keith Wilson, Special Member
A hybrid geostatistical-acoustical (geo-acoustic) model is proposed as a method for estimating single-event noise levels over a large region from data obtained from a small number of noise monitors. The geo-acoustic model is developed using geostatistical theory and an environmental acoustic-propagation-based regression (EAR) model. The model is compared to several benchmark models and is evaluated under controlled meteorological conditions, noise monitor geometries, and areal sensor densities. The results show that it is possible to obtain accurate estimates of the sound pressure level (SPL) and the variance — associated with the SPL estimates — over a large region with a small number of noise monitors. The proposed geo-acoustic model is significantly more accurate than other commonly used spatial interpolation models, especially when there are few noise monitors and when the estimation point is extrapolated from the noise monitor data. The accuracy of the models evaluated in this dissertation vary by model, the number of noise monitors (data points), meteorological conditions at the time of the noise event, and the location of the estimation point relative to the noise monitor locations.
