A case study on variability and reproducibility issues in the acoustic testing of biodegradable materials

Abstract Biodegradability is a key factor in sustainability. Materials used in engineering approaches that degrade naturally contribute to sustainable production. Some of them are based on organic waste, while others are grown explicitly for a given purpose. However, design, large-scale (industry-grade) production, production time, and resistance against environmental changes (i.e., moisture, temperature, force) hinder their applications. Furthermore, measurement issues arise during the determination of technical properties because of the larger variability. In acoustics, measurements in sound transmission and absorption suffer from reproducibility problems, especially through the introduction of natural materials to room acoustics.