Stokes's law of sound attenuation is a formula for the
attenuation
In physics, attenuation (in some contexts, extinction) is the gradual loss of flux intensity through a medium. For instance, dark glasses attenuate sunlight, lead attenuates X-rays, and water and air attenuate both light and sound at variabl ...
of
sound
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' b ...
in a
Newtonian fluid
A Newtonian fluid is a fluid in which the viscous stresses arising from its flow are at every point linearly correlated to the local strain rate — the rate of change of its deformation over time. Stresses are proportional to the rate of chang ...
, such as water or air, due to the fluid's
viscosity
The viscosity of a fluid is a measure of its resistance to deformation at a given rate. For liquids, it corresponds to the informal concept of "thickness": for example, syrup has a higher viscosity than water.
Viscosity quantifies the inte ...
. It states that the
amplitude
The amplitude of a periodic variable is a measure of its change in a single period (such as time or spatial period). The amplitude of a non-periodic signal is its magnitude compared with a reference value. There are various definitions of am ...
of a
plane wave
In physics, a plane wave is a special case of wave or field: a physical quantity whose value, at any moment, is constant through any plane that is perpendicular to a fixed direction in space.
For any position \vec x in space and any time t, ...
decreases
exponentially
Exponential may refer to any of several mathematical topics related to exponentiation, including:
*Exponential function, also:
**Matrix exponential, the matrix analogue to the above
*Exponential decay, decrease at a rate proportional to value
*Expo ...
with distance traveled, at a rate
given by
:
where
is the
dynamic viscosity coefficient of the fluid,
is the sound's
angular frequency
In physics, angular frequency "''ω''" (also referred to by the terms angular speed, circular frequency, orbital frequency, radian frequency, and pulsatance) is a scalar measure of rotation rate. It refers to the angular displacement per unit tim ...
,
is the fluid
density
Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' can also be used. Mathematical ...
, and
is the
speed of sound in the medium.
[Stokes, G.G.]
On the theories of the internal friction in fluids in motion, and of the equilibrium and motion of elastic solids
, ''Transactions of the Cambridge Philosophical Society'', vol.8, 22, pp. 287-342 (1845)
The law and its derivation were published in 1845 by the Anglo-Irish
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe.
Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
G. G. Stokes, who also developed
Stokes's law for the
friction
Friction is the force resisting the relative motion of solid surfaces, fluid layers, and material elements sliding against each other. There are several types of friction:
*Dry friction is a force that opposes the relative lateral motion of ...
force in fluid motion. A generalisation of Stokes attenuation taking into account the effect of
thermal conductivity
The thermal conductivity of a material is a measure of its ability to conduct heat. It is commonly denoted by k, \lambda, or \kappa.
Heat transfer occurs at a lower rate in materials of low thermal conductivity than in materials of high thermal ...
was proposed by the German physicist
Gustav Kirchhoff
Gustav Robert Kirchhoff (; 12 March 1824 – 17 October 1887) was a German physicist who contributed to the fundamental understanding of electrical circuits, spectroscopy, and the emission of black-body radiation by heated objects.
He ...
in 1868.
[G. Kirchhoff, "Ueber den Einfluss der Wärmeleitung in einem Gase auf die Schallbewegung", Ann. Phys. , 210: 177-193 (1868)]
Link to paper
/ref>[S. Benjelloun and J. M. Ghidaglia, "On the dispersion relation for compressible Navier-Stokes Equations,]
Link to Archiv e-printLink to Hal e-print
/ref>
Sound attenuation in fluids is also accompanied by acoustic dispersion Acoustic dispersion is the phenomenon of a sound wave separating into its component frequencies as it passes through a material. The phase velocity of the sound wave is viewed as a function of frequency. Hence, separation of component frequencies ...
, meaning that the different frequencies are propagating at different sound speeds.
Interpretation
Stokes's law of sound attenuation applies to sound propagation in an isotropic and homogeneous Newtonian medium. Consider a plane sinusoidal pressure wave that has amplitude at some point. After traveling a distance from that point, its amplitude will be
:
The parameter is dimensionally the reciprocal of length.
In the International System of Units (SI), it is expressed in neper per meter
The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...
or simply reciprocal
Reciprocal may refer to:
In mathematics
* Multiplicative inverse, in mathematics, the number 1/''x'', which multiplied by ''x'' gives the product 1, also known as a ''reciprocal''
* Reciprocal polynomial, a polynomial obtained from another pol ...
of meter (). That is, if , the wave's amplitude decreases by a factor of for each meter traveled.
Importance of volume viscosity
The law is amended to include a contribution by the volume viscosity Volume viscosity (also called bulk viscosity, or dilatational viscosity) is a material property relevant for characterizing fluid flow. Common symbols are \zeta, \mu', \mu_\mathrm, \kappa or \xi. It has dimensions (mass / (length × time)), and the ...
:
The volume viscosity coefficient is relevant when the fluid's compressibility
In thermodynamics and fluid mechanics, the compressibility (also known as the coefficient of compressibility or, if the temperature is held constant, the isothermal compressibility) is a measure of the instantaneous relative volume change of a f ...
cannot be ignored, such as in the case of ultrasound in water. The volume viscosity of water at 15 C is 3.09 centipoise
The poise (symbol P; ) is the unit of dynamic viscosity (absolute viscosity) in the centimetre–gram–second system of units (CGS). It is named after Jean Léonard Marie Poiseuille (see Hagen–Poiseuille equation). The centipoise (1 cP = 0 ...
.[Litovitz, T.A. and Davis, C.M. In "Physical Acoustics", Ed. W.P.Mason, vol. 2, chapter 5, ''Academic Press'', NY, (1964)]
Modification for very high frequencies
Stokes's law is actually an asymptotic approximation for low frequencies of a more general formula involving relaxation time
In the physical sciences, relaxation usually means the return of a perturbed system into equilibrium.
Each relaxation process can be categorized by a relaxation time τ. The simplest theoretical description of relaxation as function of time ' ...
:
The relaxation time for water is about per radian
The radian, denoted by the symbol rad, is the unit of angle in the International System of Units (SI) and is the standard unit of angular measure used in many areas of mathematics. The unit was formerly an SI supplementary unit (before tha ...
, corresponding to an angular frequency
In physics, angular frequency "''ω''" (also referred to by the terms angular speed, circular frequency, orbital frequency, radian frequency, and pulsatance) is a scalar measure of rotation rate. It refers to the angular displacement per unit tim ...
of radians (500 gigaradians) per second and therefore a frequency
Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. It is also occasionally referred to as ''temporal frequency'' for clarity, and is distinct from ''angular frequency''. Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz) which is eq ...
of about .
See also
* Acoustic attenuation Acoustic attenuation is a measure of the energy loss of sound propagation in media. Most media have viscosity and are therefore not ideal media. When sound propagates in such media, there is always thermal consumption of energy caused by viscosity ...
References
{{reflist
Colloidal chemistry
Fluid dynamics
Acoustics