European News (Dec 2017)

Euronoise 2018, the 11th European Congress and Exposition on Noise Control Engineering, will be held in Crete on May 27–31, 2018. Euronoise is one of the main conferences organized by the EAA European Acoustics Association, an association gathering more than 30 national acoustic societies from all over Europe. Acousticians and noise experts from all over the world will gather in Crete to discuss recent research outcomes and innovations in noise pollution, noise and vibration control, soundscape, and many related topics.

The EAA will offer grants for the participation and Best Paper and Presentation Awards to young researchers who will present a paper as first author during Euronoise 2018.

The Hellenic Institute of Acoustics warmly welcomes you to Crete for Euronoise 2018. Visit http://www.euronoise2018.eu/.

The John Connell Awards 2017

The John Connell Awards were established in 2001 by the Noise Abatement Society to recognize local authorities, industry, individuals, and organizations judged to have been outstanding in their efforts to both reduce the impact of noise nuisance and seek to pioneer practical and innovative solutions to noise pollution. So far, over 160 recipients from local authorities, industry, organizations, and individuals have been honored for the significant impact they have made to improve the aural environment.

The 2017 John Connell Awards Ceremony was held on October 31 at the Palace of Westminster, London, UK. The awards assigned refer to 6 categories: local authority, soundscape, innovation, quiet logistics, silent approach, and quiet mark. Visit http://noiseabatementsociety.com/john-connell-awards/john-connell-awards-2017/.

New EU Research Projects

Under the funding program H2020-EU.3.4.5.9.—Technology Evaluator, on October 1, 2017, started the research project CLAIRPORT (Clean Sky 2—Airport Environmental Impact Assessments for Fixed-wing Aircraft) with the aim to quantify the environmental impact at airport level of technologies developed in Clean Sky 2 for fixed-wing aircraft. This impact includes noise on ground and population exposed to noise, and emissions and their contribution to air quality. Quantifications are carried out for real European and generic airports, and timescales 2015/2020/2035/2050. CLAIRPORT also aims to impact target stakeholders through customized communication means. Two innovative means are investigated: a noise simulator enabling people to realistically experience sound and visuals of an aircraft flyover in a virtual reality environment, and a serious game addressing the relationship between air traffic volume and environmental impact using reference aircraft versus Clean Sky 2 aircraft. More information can be found here: http://www.cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/211580_en.html.

Under the funding program H2020-EU.1.3.2.—Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility, on October 1, 2017, started the research project DysTrack (Brain-speech tracking in noisy conditions: toward the identification and remediation of dyslexia). Dyslexia is a developmental disorder leading to reading difficulties. It affects 5–12 % of children and young adults. Dyslexia appears to be frequently linked to hindered phonological processing at the cortical level, with drastic consequences in the presence of noise. The overarching goal of this project is to better understand cortical speech processing in the presence of noise, in order to provide novel identification and remediation methods for dyslexia. More information can be found here: http://www.cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/209523_en.html.

Under the funding program H2020-EU.3.4.—SOCIETAL CHALLENGES—Smart, Green And Integrated Transport, on December 1, 2017, will start the research project ARTEM (Aircraft noise Reduction Technologies and related Environmental impact). ARTEM aims at the maturing of promising novel concepts and methods that are directly coupled to new low noise and disruptive 2035 and 2050 aircraft configurations. A core topic of ARTEM is the development of innovative technologies for the reduction of aircraft noise at the source. The approach chosen moves beyond the reduction of isolated sources as pure fan or landing gear noise and addresses the interaction of various components and sources, which often contributes significantly to the overall noise emission of the aircraft.

Secondly, ARTEM addresses innovative concepts for the efficient damping of engine noise and other sources by the investigation of dissipative surface materials and liners. More information can be found here: http://www.cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/212367_en.html.

Under the funding program H2020-EU.3.4.—SOCIETAL CHALLENGES—Smart, Green And Integrated Transport on October 1 started the research project ANIMA (Aviation Noise Impact Management through Novel Approaches). Aircraft noise continues to cause adverse effects on quality of life and public health in airports’ neighborhood. To address this challenge and ensure airports will have the capability to respond to the growing traffic demand, ANIMA aims to develop new methodologies and tools to manage and mitigate the impact of aviation noise, improving the quality of life near airports while facilitating airports growth and competitiveness of the EU aviation sector within the environmental limits, also considering 24/7 operations. More information can be found here: http://www.cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/212369_en.html.

EU Research Projects—Results in Brief

The EU-funded project DREAMS (Dereverberation and reverberation of audio, music, and speech) combined research and training in the field of reverberation and dereverberation. Specifically, the team studied problems concerning modelling, controlling, removing, and synthesizing acoustic reverberation. The purpose was to enhance the quality and intelligibility of audio, music, and speech signals. Researchers developed new algorithms that either remove or add reverberation to audio signals and improve sound quality. More information can be found here: http://www.cordis.europa.eu/result/rcn/203933_en.html.

The EU-funded project ROSANNE (Rolling resistance, skid resistance, and noise emission measurement standards for road surfaces) shows that controlling skid resistance, noise emission, and rolling resistance of pavements can make road transport safer and more environmentally friendly. More information can be found here: http://www.cordis.europa.eu/result/rcn/202139_en.html.

EU-funded scientists have been working on the project ACcTIOM (Advanced pylon noise reduction design and characterization through flight worthy PIV). Addressing this challenge, they invented new active flow control strategies to minimize contra-rotating open rotor CROR-induced noise through a combination of aerodynamic optimization of the propeller pylon shape and the development of an innovative active flow control system to erase the pylon wake before it interacts with the CROR blades. More information can be found here: http://www.cordis.europa.eu/result/rcn/147211_en.html.

The EU-funded ENNAH (European network on noise and health) project established a research network of experts and reviewed existing literature on noise exposure and health to determine the impact of environmental noise. The aim was to identify knowledge gaps in research and examine whether noise maps can be used to establish the adverse health effects of exposure to noise.

Project partners reviewed the advantages and disadvantages of noise maps and recommended future changes to make the maps more appropriate for health research. Researchers also considered new methods for acoustic measurement and modelling to help develop innovative exposure measurement techniques for future studies. Standardization of health outcome measures in noise research was discussed and the priorities for future research on environmental noise and health were defined. More information can be found here: http://www.cordis.europa.eu/result/rcn/90480_en.html.