Use the acoustic velocity potential convention
For a spherically symmetric outgoing wave with time dependence and , write
Linearizing the boundary condition at the mean surface gives
Since
we find
Thus the outgoing acoustic field of a pulsating sphere is
For real harmonic quantities
define the period average by
This is the time average of harmonic power.
At , put . The velocity and pressure amplitudes are
Hence the mean outward work rate per unit area is
Multiplication by the area yields
This is the mean acoustic power of a pulsating sphere.
For a harmonic field, the time-averaged energy densities at are
From part (ii),
Consequently
This is the surface acoustic energy-to-flux ratio of a pulsating sphere.
If , then . The sphere is acoustically large, and
Pressure and velocity are nearly in phase, so the near-surface field behaves locally like a progressive radiating wave. The power approaches
If , then . The sphere is acoustically compact, and
The surface field is mainly reactive kinetic energy: pressure and velocity are nearly in quadrature, energy is stored and returned during each cycle, and only a small mean acoustic energy flux is radiated. The mean power scales as

Articles by others on the same topic (0)

There are currently no matching articles.