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The speed of sound in a gas does not depend on pressure.

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There are limits to the validity of this statement because it is valid for gasses that behave as "ideal" gasses. Thus, when near a pressure and temperature that is close to the point that the gas will condense into a liquid, this statement fails. For air, at all the temperatures which we experience, the speed of sound in air is independent of pressure.


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Q: Does the pressure of a gas affect the speed of sound?
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How does the pitch of a sound affect its speed?

Pitch of sound in air does not affect the speed of sound.The speed of sound in air is also not affected by atmospheric pressure.Temperature does affect the speed of sound in air.Similar statements are not true for liquids or solids. It stops being true for gasses when pressure and temperature are near the point that the gas will liquify.


Does the speed of sound depend on the loudness?

The answer is: No! In an ideal gas, which air can be considered, the speed of sound is given by:- c= √(γ(p/ρ)) where γ is the abiabatic index, p is the pressure and ρ is the density. and p= ρRT/M where R is the ideal gas constant, M is the Molar mass and T is the absolute temperature. From his equation, if temperature and mass are constant -, one can see that p is proportional to ρTherefore if atmospheric pressure is doubled so is the density Hence p/ ρ is constant. Therefore atmospheric pressure does not affect the speed of sound. However, increase in temperature will lead to an increase in speed. At high altitudes, the temperature is significantly lower, and hence the speed of sound is lower.


How does the decreasing the gas volume affect the pressure of a gas?

The pressure increase.


How does the speed of sound relate to temperature elasticity and density?

The speed of any mechanical wave depends on the density of the medium. Since solids are the densest, the speed of sound is minimum in solids. It is the maximum in gases, since the medium is the least densest.


Does the speed of sound depend on its density?

The speed of sound c in air under normal conditions is only dependent on the temperature. It is independent of the air pressure p.Reason: The air pressure p and the air density rho are proportional to each other at the same temperature. Hence, the speed of sound in air, which depends on the ratio of p to rho, is constant. Therefore the speed of sound in air is the same on a mountain peak as it is at sea level, provided that the temperature is the same.On the other hand, if you change from one gas to another, the speed will depend on density. For example, Argon gas and Helium gas at the same temperature and pressure will have very different densities and this will result in very different speeds for sound. In that case, the speed of sound is proportional to the inverse of the square root of the molecular mass. For more details see the related links.The speed of sound in solids will be much faster than in a liquid, but there is no simple relationship to the density in that case. For example, iron and aluminum have very different densities, but almost the same speed for sound.

Related questions

How can the speed of sound through a gas increase?

The speed of sound may vary, depending on:* On the type of gas * On the temperature * On the pressure


How does the pitch of a sound affect its speed?

Pitch of sound in air does not affect the speed of sound.The speed of sound in air is also not affected by atmospheric pressure.Temperature does affect the speed of sound in air.Similar statements are not true for liquids or solids. It stops being true for gasses when pressure and temperature are near the point that the gas will liquify.


What speed does sound travel through a gas?

Sound travels through each medium (and each gas) at different velocities.In air, sound travels at an approximate speed of 330 m/s.Factors such as temperature and humidity also affect the speed of sound.


Do sound waves travel in high pressure?

Yes, the travel in all sorts of pressures. The speed of sound is not greatly affected by pressure in an ideal gas.


What is called the ratio of gas velocity and the speed of sound in the gas at the same condition of pressure and temperature?

The Mach number


Does sound travel faster in desert or mountain air?

The speed of sound depends only on the temperature of the gas for an ideal gas. This implies that the ambient pressure on top of a mountain doesn't affect the propagation of sound in air. So the speed of sound should be larger in hot desert air compared to cold air on a mountain top.


What is the speed of sound in gas?

speed of sound in gas is 332m per second


Does the speed of the sound change from medium to medium?

Dependence of the speed of sound on the properties of the medium: The speed of sound is variable and depends mainly on the temperature and the properties of the substance through of which the wave is traveling. For example, in low molecular weight gases, such as helium, sound propagates faster compared to heavier gases, such as xenon. In a given ideal gas the sound speed depends only on its temperature. At a constant temperature, the ideal gas pressure has no effect on the speed of sound, because pressure and density (also proportional to pressure) have equal but opposite effects on the speed of sound, and the two contributions cancel out exactly. In non-ideal gases, such as a van der Waals gas, the proportionality is not exact, and there is a slight dependence on the gas pressure, even at a constant temperature. Humidity also has a small, but measurable effect on sound speed (increase of about 0.1% to 0.6%), because some oxygen and nitrogen molecules of the air are replaced by the lighter molecules of water. Cheers ebs


How fast does the smell of gas travel?

The odour of a gas is the gas itself, the speed of the gas moving is dependant on the various factors such as wind and pressure difference.


How does the temperature of a material affect the speed of a sound passing through?

on increasing of temperature, density goes low and it is known that density and speed of sound both are directly proportional hence speed of sound decrease when temperature increases esp in gas.


Does the speed of sound depend on the loudness?

The answer is: No! In an ideal gas, which air can be considered, the speed of sound is given by:- c= √(γ(p/ρ)) where γ is the abiabatic index, p is the pressure and ρ is the density. and p= ρRT/M where R is the ideal gas constant, M is the Molar mass and T is the absolute temperature. From his equation, if temperature and mass are constant -, one can see that p is proportional to ρTherefore if atmospheric pressure is doubled so is the density Hence p/ ρ is constant. Therefore atmospheric pressure does not affect the speed of sound. However, increase in temperature will lead to an increase in speed. At high altitudes, the temperature is significantly lower, and hence the speed of sound is lower.


How does the decreasing the gas volume affect the pressure of a gas?

The pressure increase.