Expectations of the acoustic environment in the national library of technology – Case study

The function of libraries has changed considerably in recent decades. This article presents the case study of the acoustic properties of the National Library of Technology (NTK), built in 2009, visited by more than 2000 users daily. From the acoustic point of view, these are coupled spaces, with horizontally structured spaces, which allow for dividing the space into zones according to the function of use. Through their openness, the individual floors can partially be viewed as open-space offices. Moreover, all floors are connected by a common central atrium, which is the cause of the mentioned acoustic coupling. Undesirable and annoying noise is one of the fundamental problems of these spaces. This article deals with the relationship between the number of visitors, noise in a given space and its acoustic parameters and the impact of these parameters on acoustic comfort, which is a compromise between RT, STI and noise.