Table 17.1 Speed of Sound in Various Media Medium Vw(m/s) Gases at 0°C Air 331 Carbon dioxide Oxygen 259 316 Helium 965 Hydrogen Liquids at 20°C 1290 Ethanol 1160 Mercury Water, fresh Sea water 1450 1480 1540 Human tissue 1540 Solids (longitudinal or bulk) Vulcanized rubber 54 Polyethylene 920 Marble 3810 Glass, Pyrex 5640 Lead 1960 Aluminum 5120 Steel 5960
Properties of sound
A sound wave is a mechanical wave (or mechanical vibration) that transit through media such as gas (air), liquid (water), and solid (wood).
Quality Of Sound
A sound or a sound wave is defined as the energy produced due to the vibrations of particles in a medium. When any medium produces a disturbance or vibrations, it causes a movement in the air particles which produces sound waves. Molecules in the air vibrate about a certain average position and create compressions and rarefactions. This is called pitch which is defined as the frequency of sound. The frequency is defined as the number of oscillations in pressure per second.
Categories of Sound Wave
People perceive sound in different ways, like a medico student takes sound as vibration produced by objects reaching the human eardrum. A physicist perceives sound as vibration produced by an object, which produces disturbances in nearby air molecules that travel further. Both of them describe it as vibration generated by an object, the difference is one talks about how it is received and other deals with how it travels and propagates across various mediums.
(a) What is the speed of sound in a medium where a 100-kHz frequency produces a 5.96-cm wavelength?
(b) Which substance in the table shown is this likely to be?
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