In an increasingly noisy world, where resting indoors becomes a real challenge, science is looking for new solutions to restore silence to everyday life. A simple screw promises to reduce noise from neighbors by half and is attracting the attention of the international scientific community. Called Sound Screw, it was created by researchers at Malmö University, in Sweden, and has the endorsement of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences. The system, still in the testing phase, could revolutionize the way walls and ceilings are soundproofed in houses and apartments.
According to Swedish researchers, traditional sound insulation methods take up a lot of space, while this new system allows plaster panels to be fixed directly to the wall, saving useful area and, in an urban context, each square meter can be worth thousands of euros, recalls the study’s main author, Håkan Wernersson, professor at Malmö University.
According to the newspaper El Confidencial, the secret is in the screw design. It’s as if it had been cut in half and held together by a small spring, placed in the center.
When installed, the tip attaches to the wooden structure and the head remains on the surface of the plaster panel, creating a mechanical connection that dampens sound vibrations and prevents their propagation between the compartments.
Reduce sound up to nine decibels
In laboratory tests, the team found that the system managed to reduce noise by around nine decibels, the equivalent of halving the sound perceived through a conventional wall.
The researchers also applied the screws in a hairdressing salon, replacing the normal fasteners with Sound Screw, and obtained satisfactory results without the need to remove the existing plasterboards.
Wernersson explains that the mechanism is simple to install and can be used by anyone, without special tools or technical training. “In multi-family buildings there are legal noise limits between apartments, but in single-family houses these requirements do not apply. Our system would be an excellent solution to reduce noise between rooms”, says the researcher, cited by the same source.
Scientific recognition and commercial future
The innovation was included in the list of the 100 most promising scientific projects of 2021 by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, a distinction that highlights inventions with the greatest potential impact on sustainability.
Although it is not yet available on the market, researchers created the company Akoustos, responsible for bringing the product to market, according to .
Sound Screw has already sparked interest in Japan and several countries in North and South America, which demonstrates the global potential of a project that was born in a Swedish university laboratory and can change the way we experience silence at home.
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