An experiment to find the acoustic impedance of paraffin and waterSummaryThe speed of sound through paraffin and water was measured and found is approximated to the generally expected value. The speed was calculated to be 1458.36 ± 16.2 ms^(-1) in water and 1212 ± 23.7 ms^(-1) in paraffin. Then the density of these two liquids was measured and combined with the speed of sound to find the acoustic impedance. . The acoustic impedance of water was 1575 ± 29 kgm^(-2) s^(-1) and the acoustic impedance of paraffin was 1066.6 ± 32 kgm^(-2) s^ (-1). To verify that these values ​​were correct, the reflection coefficient of a boundary between paraffin and water was calculated from the acoustic impedances of the liquid and then found by comparing the amplitudes of the transmitted and reflected waves. The values ​​were 0.192 ± 0.02 and 0.13 ± 0.02, which are close enough to each other to validate that the measured acoustic impedances are quite accurate.introductionWhen a wave passing through one material strikes a boundary with another material, it is affected by the boundary and some of it will be reflected. The reflected quantity depends on the acoustic impedance of the materials at the boundary. This experiment will find, experimentally, the acoustic impedance of paraffin and water. This will be done by measuring the density of these materials and the speed of sound through them. The values ​​obtained for the acoustic impedance will be used to find the reflection coefficient of the boundary. This value will be verified by measuring the amplitude of waves reflected off a boundary and then finding the reflection coefficient from these measurements. If the two values ​​obtained for the reflection coefficient are close, then the measurement of the acoustic impedance...... middle of paper ......for the acoustic impedance of paraffin and water, the reflection coefficient between paraffin and water was calculated to be 0.192 ± 0.02. By observing the reflected wave amplitude from the boundary, the reflection coefficient was calculated again; but in this calculation its value was 0.13 ± 0.02. These two values ​​are very close within each other's error limits, but there is still a slight deviation. This discrepancy is difficult to explain, but it could be due to temperature changes in the room or simply larger errors than expected in the experiment. The second calculation of the reflection coefficient is probably closer to the true value because fewer measurements were taken for its calculation.Works CitedHyperPysics. Speed ​​of sound in various bulk media. http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/HBASE/tables/soundv.html#c1. March 17 2010.