Principles of Underwater Sound

LO: Apply characteristics of sound in water to calculate sound levels.

 What is Sound?
A disturbance propagated through an elastic medium causing a
detectable alteration in pressure or a displacement of the particles.

. . . . . . .
D
Ρ
… . . . .
Ρ

. . . … . . .
D
Ρ
. . . . … . .
D Ρ
… . . …
 Measuring Sound
Pressure (p): force/area
p = force/area, units Newton/m2 (Pascal), [MLT-2/L2] = [MT-2L-1]
Imperial to SI conversion: 1 µBar = 105 µPa

Power (P): force * velocity

P = force * velocity, units watts, [MLT-2*LT-1] = [ML2T-3]

Intensity (I): power/area

I = power/area = p2/ρc
where ρ = density, mass/volume, units kg m-3 [ML-3]
 Quantity Relationships

Intensity is proportional to pressure squared

I ∝ p2

Pressure squared is proportional to power

p2 ∝ P
What is relationship between Intensity and Power?
 What is a Decibel ?

A ratio in logarithmic form.

Intensity ratio: 10 log (I/Io) where Io is the reference intensity at 1 m

Pressure ratio: 10 log (p2/ρc/ po2/ρc) = 20 log (p/po) where po is a

reference pressure (1 µPa) at 1 m
Example:
If Io = 1 Wm-2
Then I = 100 Wm-2 becomes 10 log(100/1) = 20 dB || 1 Wm-2
If po = 1 µPa
Then p = 100,000 µPa becomes 20 log(100,000/1) = 100 dB || 1 µPa
Air ref. = 0 dB
Water ref. = 26 dB
 Animal Hearing Thresholds & Ranges
Human Hearing: 20 Hz to 20 kHz

courtesy of R. Mitson

a) lobster
b) Atlantic salmon
c) Atlantic cod
d) soldier fish
e) bottle-nose dolphin

MacLennan & Simmonds 1992

Killer Whale Hearing Thresholds

Szymanski et al. 1999

ABR = Auditory Brainstem Response
Steller Sea Lion Hearing

Kastelein et al. 2005

 Vessel Noise: ICES 209
‘Noisy’ Research Vessels
170

160
dB re 1 µPa (1Hz band)@1m

150

140 ‘Quiet’ Research Vessels

130 Vizconde de Eza
160
ICES CRR 209
120 W.E. Ricker
150

dB re 1 µPa (1Hz band) @1m

Tridens
110 140
Walter Hervig III
Johan Hjort 130
100 ICES 209
120
90
110
0.01 0.1 1 10 100
Frequency (kHz) 100
Scotia
90 CEFAS Endeavour Corystes

plots courtesy of R. Mitson 80 G.O.Sars Celtic Explorer

70
0.01 0.1 1 10 100
Frequency (kHz)
NOAA Vessels
Vessel Noise α Vessel Speed
 Sound Propagation

amplitude
Longitudinal
Compression Wave
λ

compression rarefaction compression

λ = wavelength, units m
λ = c/f where: c = speed of sound (ms-1)
f = frequency (cycles s-1, Hz)
 Speed of Sound
Speed of sound (c) = f (temperature (T), salinity (S), depth (z)), units ms-1
c = 1449.2 + 4.6 (T) – 0.055(T)2 + 0.00029(T)3 + (1.34 – 0.01(T)) (S-35) + 0.016z

Freshwater ~ 1500 ms-1 Salt water ~ 1460 – 1550 ms-1 Air ~ 330 ms-1

Effect of T > S
 Target Resolution and Travel

Target Resolution:
f (target distance (∆r), speed of sound (c), pulse duration (τ))

∆r = c τ/2 * independent of frequency

Acoustic Pulse Travel Time:

time to echo = 2r/c
where r = range (m)
Frequency, Wavelength & Wavenumber
Frequency (f) = λ per unit time, units cycles s-1 (Hertz)
f = c/λ (ms-1/m)
Wavelength (λ)
λ = c/f (ms-1/s-1)
Wave number (k)
k = 2π/λ (rad m-1)
 Frequency and Period

Frequency (f) = λ per unit time, units cycles s-1 (Hertz)

f = c/λ
Period (τ):

τ = 1/f , units s
in active acoustics this is the ‘pulse length’ or ‘pulse width’
Frequency Ranges of Acoustic Sensors

redrawn from Coates 1989

 Transmission Losses
Geometric Spreading
- pressure decreases as the 1/distance from source
- spherical spreading from a point source (e.g. transducer)
- non-spherical or directed spreading (e.g. fish)
- 2-way spreading increases as range2
- independent of frequency

ΔI α 1/r2
 Transmission Losses
Absorption
- attenuation of pressure due
to friction (α, units nepers/m
or dB/m)
- proportional to range (r)
- dependent on frequency

one way: α r
two way: 2 α r

What is a neper? natural log ratio

 Which Loss is Greater?

Absorption Spreading
Frequency Loss Rate
1 kHz 0.05 dB/km
10 kHz 0.5 dB/km
100 kHz 20 dB/km
1 MHz 300 dB/km
~ 60 dB at 1 km

Spreading loss >Absorption loss at freqs. < 100’s kHz

Total Transmission Loss

2 way: 40 log(r) + 2αr

 Why Not Use Light?

Light:
2/3 energy lost in 30 m
Sound:
2/3 energy lost in 30 km

2 way: 40 log(r) + 2αr

 Sound Level

Sound Level = Sound Pressure Level – Transmission Loss

Sound Pressure Level = initial intensity

(a.k.a. Source Level)