Analyzing multiple acoustic diffraction over a wide barrier using equivalent knife-edge geometries and Babinet's...

We present a new method for the calculation of the multiple acoustic diffraction caused by the presence of a wide barrier. Our solution decomposes the initial scenario into an equivalent sum of geometries that only consider knife-edges. Then, by applying Babinet's principle, the total acoustic field that reaches the receiving point, which can be located at an arbitrary position, can be calculated via the uniform theory of diffraction. This method is mathematically less complex and computationally more efficient than most existing techniques. The results are validated (with and without ground reflection) by the solid agreement obtained with other solutions that solve the problem by considering the wide barrier as such, with our proposed method yielding a lower computational time (except against semi-empirical formulations) and better accuracy when compared with measurements. The presented solution can be applied in urban environments where the impact of traffic noise on residential buildings located along roads or highways needs to be evaluated, as well as in scenarios in which the insertion loss caused by a rectangular obstacle, such as a noise barrier, is to be calculated.