Determining the speed of sound in the air by sound wave interference

Mechanical waves propagate through material media. Sound is an example of a mechanical wave. In fluids like air, sound waves propagate through successive longitudinal perturbations of compression and decompression. Audible sound frequencies for human ears range from 20 to 20 000 Hz. In this study, t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of physics 2017-07, Vol.38 (4), p.45802
Main Author: Silva, Abel A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
central limit theorem
interference
speed of sound
waves
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Summary:Mechanical waves propagate through material media. Sound is an example of a mechanical wave. In fluids like air, sound waves propagate through successive longitudinal perturbations of compression and decompression. Audible sound frequencies for human ears range from 20 to 20 000 Hz. In this study, the speed of sound v in the air is determined using the identification of maxima of interference from two synchronous waves at frequency f. The values of v were correct to 0 °C. The experimental average value of ¯ exp = 336 4 m s − 1 was found. It is 1.5% larger than the reference value. The standard deviation of 4 m s−1 (1.2% of ¯ exp ) is an improved value by the use of the concept of the central limit theorem. The proposed procedure to determine the speed of sound in the air aims to be an academic activity for physics classes of scientific and technological courses in college.
ISSN:0143-0807
1361-6404
DOI:10.1088/1361-6404/aa6d30