On the Propagation of Sound in a Liquid Containing Gas Bubbles

Abstract

The theory of the propagation of sound in a homogeneous gas including the effect of heat conduction is presented for the purpose of clarifying the underlying thermodynamic process. The propagation of sound in a liquid with a homogeneous and isotropic distribution of gas bubbles is then considered. The bubbles are assumed to be sufficiently small and numerous so that the mixture can be taken to be a uniform medium. The effect of heat conduction is included. If f is the ratio of gas volume in the mixture to liquid volume, it is shown for the range of f of general interest that the acoustic condensations and rarefactions of the gaseous portion of the medium are essentially isothermal. It is also found that the attenuation of an acoustic disturbance by heat conduction is quite small.