Particle acceleration explained

In acoustics, particle acceleration is the acceleration (rate of change in speed and direction) of particles in a sound transmission medium. When sound passes through a medium it causes particle displacement^[1] and as such causes changes in their acceleration.

The acceleration of the air particles of a plane sound wave is given by:$$a\; =\; \backslash delta\; \backslash cdot\; \backslash omega^2\; =\; v\; \backslash cdot\; \backslash omega\; =\; \backslash frac\; =\; \backslash omega\; \backslash sqrt\; \backslash frac\; =\; \backslash omega\; \backslash sqrt\; \backslash frac\; =\; \backslash omega\; \backslash sqrt\; \backslash frac$$

Symbol	Units	Meaning
a	m/s^2	particle acceleration
v		particle velocity
δ	m, meters	particle displacement
ω = 2πf		angular frequency
f		frequency
p	Pa, pascals	sound pressure
Z	N·s/m^3	acoustic impedance
J	W/m^2	sound intensity
E	W·s/m^3	sound energy density
Pac	W, watts	sound power or acoustic power
A	m^2	area

See also

• Sound
• Sound particle
  • Particle displacement Particle velocity

External links

• Relationships of acoustic quantities associated with a plane progressive acoustic sound wave - pdf

Notes and References

1. Book: Arthur Schuster . An Introduction to the Theory of Optics . London: Edward Arnold . 1904 . An Introduction to the Theory of Optics By Arthur Schuster. .