AR 363 BUILDING UTILITIES 3

SOUND
THEORY
GROUP 1
 OVERVIEW
2. LONGITUDINAL AND
1. SOUND THEORY 3. FREQUENCY
TRANSVERSE WAVES

4. VELOCITY OF SOUND WAVE 5. WAVELENGTH, SOUND 6. SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL

PROPAGATION INTENSITY (FREE FIELD AND TRANSVERSE SOUND
PROPAGATION WAVES

7. INVERSE SQUARE 8. SOUND PRESSURE

9. INTENSITY LEVEL
LAW (FREE FIELD AND SOUND PRESSURE
CHANGES
CONDITION) LEVEL
 SOUND THEORY

WHAT IS SOUND THEORY?

-Sound is a series of vibrations in elastic media such as air, water,
building materials, and soil.
-Sound is a physical phenomenon that encourages the sense of hearing.
-Sound energy propagates under atmospheric pressure and travels long
distances.

 LONGIITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE WAVES

TWO BASIC TYPES OF WAVES

LONGITUDIDAL WAVES
Longitudinal waves, also called pressure
waves and compressional waves,
oscillate parallel to the direction of the
motion of the wave. If a wave travels
from left to right, the displacement of the
medium is also left to right but
oscillating in place by compressing and
stretching.
TRANSVERSE WAVES
Transverse wave motion occurs when
points in the medium oscillate at right
angles to the direction of the wave's
travel. If a wave travels from left to right,
the particles of the medium will vibrate
up and down in place.
 LONGIITUDINAL AND Examples of longitudinal waves
TRANSVERSE WAVES include:

-sound waves
-ultrasound waves
-seismic P-waves
Demonstrating longitudinal waves:

Longitudinal waves show areas of

compression and rarefaction:

Compressions- are regions of high pressure

due to particles being close together.
LONGITUDINAL
Rarefactions- are regions of low pressure
WAVES due to particles being spread further apart.
LONGIITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE WAVES

COMPRESSION AND RAREFRACTION

 LONGIITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE WAVES Examples of transverse
waves include:

-ripples on the surface of

water
-vibrations in a guitar
string
-electromagnetic waves
TRANSVERSE -light waves, microwaves,
WAVES radio waves
LONGIITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE WAVES

LONGITUDINAL AND TRANSVERSE

WAVE IN A SLINKY
 FREQUENCY

FREQUENCY
It is number of cycles made per second by alternating
quantity called frequency. It is measured in cycle per
second (c/s) or hertz (Hz) and is denoted by (f).In sound, the
frequency is term borrowed from musical concept "pitch"
which is the higher the frequency the higher the pitch.

 FREQUENCY
FREQUENCY
DID YOU KNOW?
Did you know that a healthy young person's hearing is capable of
responding to frequencies in the range of 20 Hz - 20,000 Hz.The upper
limit decreases with age as a result of process called presbycusis. Most
common sounds are complex combinations of frequencies are pure
tones, musical tones and common sounds.
 VELOCITY OF SOUND WAVE
PROPAGATION

VELOCITY OF SOUND WAVE PROPAGATION

PROPAGATION OF SOUND

Sound is a sequence of waves of pressure which propagates through

compressible media such as air or water. (Sound can propagate through solids as
well, but there are additional modes of propagation). During their propagation,
waves can be reflected, refracted, or attentuated by the medium.

PHYSICAL DISTURBANCE - an alteration or pulsation in pressure that may be

heard by a normal ear while passing through air.

“Sound waves do not travel through a vacuum”

 VELOCITY OF SOUND WAVE
PROPAGATION

VELOCITY OF SOUND WAVE PROPAGATION

PROPAGATION OF SOUND

SOUND SENSATION - The auditory sensation produced by sound waves.

WAVE MOTION - the succession of outwardly traveling layers of

compression and rarefaction.

The speed of propagation is determined by the compressibility and

density of the medium the less the compressibility of the medium and the
less its density, the faster will the wave motion be propagated.
 VELOCITY OF SOUND WAVE
PROPAGATION

VELOCITY OF SOUND WAVE PROPAGATION

VELOCITY OF PROPAGATION

Sound travels at different velocities depending upon the

medium. In air, at sea level, sound velocity is 344m/sec or
1130 fps. Since sound travels not only in air but also through
parts of the structure it is of interest to know the velocities in
other media. Sound travels much faster in liquids and solids
than it does in air.
 Meters Per Second Feet Per Second
VELOCITY OF SOUND 20,000
WAVE PROPAGATION

SOUND 15,000
PROPAGATION
VELOCITY IN 10,000

VARIOUS
MEDIA 5,000

AT 22 °C 0

er

te

l
Al ass

um
ee
Ai

ic
oo

re
at
AT 72 °F

Br

St

in
Gl
W

nc
W

um
Co
 VELOCITY OF SOUND Medium Meters/s Feet/s
WAVE PROPAGATION

Air 344 1130

SOUND Water 1410 4625
Wood 3300 10,825
PROPAGATION Brick 3600 11,800
VELOCITY IN Concrete 3700 12,100
Steel 4900 16,000
VARIOUS
Glass 5000 16,400
MEDIA Aluminum 5800 19,000

at 22 °C at 72 °F
 WAVELENGTH, SOUND INTENSITY
(FREE FIELD PROPAGATION)

WAVELENGTH, SOUND INTENSITY (FREE FIELD PROPAGATION)

WAVELENGTH SOUND INTENSITY

The wavelength of a sound may be defined as the distance between

similar points on successive waves or the distance the sound travels in
one cycle of vibration, that is, in 1/second
λ = C / fOR λf = C
Low-frequency sounds are characterized by long wavelengths and high-
frequency sounds by short wavelengths.
Sounds with wavelengths ranging from ½ inch to 50 feet or 1.25 cm to
15.25 m can be heard by humans.

 SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND

TRANSVERSE SOUND WAVES

SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND TRANSVERSE

SOUND WAVES
LONGITUDINAL WAVE

Longitudinal waves are a series of compressions and

rarefactions . The wavelength is measured by the
distance separating the densest compressions. The
amplitude is the difference in media density between the
undisturbed density to the highest density in a
Thesis Defense Presentation Template
BY CLAUDIA ALVES

compression.
 SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE SOUND WAVES

LONGITUDINAL WAVE

Example Problem:
A sound wave of wavelength 0.70 m and velocity 330 m/s is produced for
0.50 s.

a) What is the frequency of the wave?

b) How many complete waves are emitted in this time interval?

Thesis Defense Presentation Template

c) After 0.50 s, how far is the wave front from the source of the sound?
BY CLAUDIA ALVES
 SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE SOUND WAVES

Solution:
a) f=vλ=330 m/s0.70 m=470 s−1

b) complete waves=(470 cycles/s)(0.50 s)=235 cycles

c) distance=(330 m/s)(0.50 s)=115 m

Summary
Longitudinal waves cause the particles of medium to move parallel
Thesis Defense Presentation Template
to the direction of the wave.
BY CLAUDIA ALVES
 SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE SOUND WAVES

SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND TRANSVERSE

SOUND WAVES
TRANSVERSE WAVES

The distance travelled by a transverse wave in unit time

describes its speed. Hence, the distance between two
crests or troughs in the transverse wave is calculated as
one wavelength, whereas the unit time is one period.
Therefore, the speed of the transverse wave formula is
Thesis Defense Presentation Template
BY CLAUDIA ALVES

the ratio of its wavelength to period v = λ/t ……………..(*)

 SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE SOUND WAVES

TRANSVERSE WAVES

But as per definitions, the period (T) and frequency (f) are
reciprocal. i.e., f = 1/T

Equation (*) becomes,

v = λ/T

TheBYspeed of a transverse wave formulaThesis

CLAUDIA ALVES is,v = λ/f
Defense Presentation Template
 SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE SOUND WAVES

TRANSVERSE WAVES

Example:
The speed of a transverse wave is 500m/s.
If the sound wave has a frequency of 200Hz, what is its time period
to pass successive wave crests? Also, calculate the speed of a
sound wave if its wavelength is 80m.

Given:
f = 200Hz
BY CLAUDIA ALVES Thesis Defense Presentation Template

λ = 80m
 SPEED OF LONGITUDINAL AND
TRANSVERSE SOUND WAVES

TRANSVERSE WAVES

To Find: Formula: The time period of a transverse sound

T =? f =1/T wave is 5ms.
The speed of a transverse wave is
v =? v = λ/f
calculating as,
Solution: v =λf
The time period Substituting Substituting all values,
of sound wave is values, v = 80 x 200
calculated as, T= 1/200 v = 1600
f = 1/T T = 5 x 10-3 The speed of a sound waves is
T= 1/f T = 5ms 1600m/s.
 INVERSE SQUARE LAW
(FREE FIELD CONDITION)

INVERSE SQUARE LAW (FREE FIELD CONDITION)

The Inverse Square Law teaches us that for every

doubling of the distance from the sound source in a free
field situation, the sound intensity will diminish by 6
decibels.
 INVERSE SQUARE LAW
(FREE FIELD
CONDITION)

DECIBEL
decibel (dB), unit for
expressing the ratio
between two physical
quantities, usually
amounts of acoustic or
electric power, or for
measuring the relative
loudness of sounds.
DECIBEL LEVELS
 INVERSE SQUARE LAW
(FREE FIELD
CONDITION)

In audio production,
the inverse square
law describes the
reduction of a
sound’s intensity over
distance.
EXAMPLE
 SOUND PRESSURE AND SOUND PRESSURE LEVEL

SOUND PRESSURE AND SOUND PRESSURE LEVEL

Sound pressure is the local pressure

from the ambient (average or
equilibrium) atmospheric pressure, produced when a sound wave
propagates through the air. It is the sound force (N) acting on the
surface area (m2) perpendicular to the direction of the sound.
the SI-unit for sound pressure is Pa or N/m2

Pressure is one of two components of a sound wave, the other being

velocity. There’s a need for the pressure of the medium to already
exist before sound can propagate through it.

 SOUND PRESSURE AND SOUND

PRESSURE LEVEL

SOUND PRESSURE

What’s the pressure values of sound we normally hear?

Normal conversation 1 meter 2 mpa/.002 pa
1 meter 20 mpa/.02pa
10 meters away 2 mpa/.00002 pa

Range of pressure that human ear can perceive:

-20 micro pascal to 20 pascal
Pascal- international unit for pressure
 SOUND PRESSURE AND SOUND
PRESSURE LEVEL

To measure the sound pressure level,

we have SPL meter. To use pascal to
measure some pressure is not very
practical because our ear is not linear,
so it’s better to use another unit called
decibel, the decibel spl. The same range
from 20 micro pascals to 20 pascals
could be represented with decibels
from 0 dB spl to 120dB spl.

SPL METER
SOUND PRESSURE AND
SOUND PRESSURE LEVEL

laptop's cooling fan

air conditioning noise
ambient noise floor wind noise

threshold of hearing
 SOUND PRESSURE AND SOUND
PRESSURE LEVEL

EQUATION FOR SOUND PRESSURE LEVEL

SPL =

Where;
SPL – decibel
Prms – root mean square pressure
Pref – 20 x Pa = 20 mPa

Doubling sound pressure (in Pa) - increases sound pressure level (in dB) with
6 dB (or 20 log (2)).
The chart below shows the sound pressure level decibel scale compared to
the sound pressure Pascal scale.
 SOUND PRESSURE AND SOUND
PRESSURE LEVEL

EQUATION FOR SOUND PRESSURE LEVEL

The chart below shows the sound pressure level decibel scale compared to
the sound pressure Pascal scale.
 SOUND PRESSURE AND SOUND
PRESSURE LEVEL

EQUATION FOR SOUND PRESSURE LEVEL

Sound pressure sample equation

If sound pressure is 0.02 Pa. what is the sound pressure level?
20 x log = 60 dB

Adding Sound Pressure Levels

Since SPLs are based on a log scale they cannot be added directly
l.e., 80 dB + 80 dB ≠ 160 dB

Where;
) – total sound pressure level
– is the ith sound pressure level to be summed
 SOUND PRESSURE AND SOUND
PRESSURE LEVEL

Adding Sound Pressure Level

Given two machines producing 80 dB each, what is the total SPL?

=10 x log (2 x )
=83 Db

Given four machines producing 100 dB, 91 dB, 90 dB, and 89 dB respectively, what is the total
sound pressure level?

= 101.2 dB
 INTENSITY LEVEL
CHANGES

INTENSITY LEVEL CHANGES

Sound Intensity
The sound intensity at a point is the rate at which sound energy is
passing through a unit area at right angles to the direction in which
the sound is travelling.

Formula: 𝐼= 𝑃 𝐴
𝐼=𝑠𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦, 𝑃=𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟, 𝐴=𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎
 INTENSITY LEVEL
CHANGES

INTENSITY LEVEL CHANGES

It is measured in watts per square meter (W m-2). Sound spreads

out in a sphere, so the total area at a given distance is 4𝜋 𝑟 2
(surface area of a sphere). This also implies that sound intensity
has an inverse square relationship with distance:

∝1𝑟2
𝐼
 INTENSITY LEVEL
CHANGES

Example:
What is the sound intensity of a 50 W speaker at a distance of 10
m?
𝐼= 𝑃 𝐴
Which A= 4𝜋 𝑟 2
P= 50 W r= 10m
I=P/4πr2
I= 50/ 4π(10)2
I= 0.040 w/m2
 INTENSITY LEVEL
CHANGES

Frequency Response of the Ear

The ear is not like a microphone – it picks up some sounds easier than
others.
Certain frequencies sound louder than others at the same sound intensity.
The ear is particularly sensitive to sounds in the 2000 to 4000 Hz frequency
range
Our ears do not detect differences in sound intensity linearly (e.g. a sound
which doubles in intensity does not sound twice as loud).
The highest sound intensity we can safely hear is about times as intense as
the lowest.
 INTENSITY LEVEL
CHANGES

SOUND
INTENSITY
LEVEL
 INTENSITY LEVEL
CHANGES Sound Level (dB) Max. Hours per Day

HEARING IMPAIRMENT 90 8
Exposure to sounds above
a certain level can 93 4
permanently damage

hearing over time. 96 2

Health and safety

regulations usually require 99 1

a maximum exposure to

sound levels without ear 102 1/2

protection.

Ear protection is required

105 1/4
for longer periods.

AR 363 BUILDING UTILITIES 3

THANK
YOU