Distinct effects of moisture and air contents on acoustic properties of sandy soil.

Knowledge of distinct effects of moisture content and air volume on acoustic properties of soil is sought to predict the influence of human activities such as cultivation on acoustic propagation outdoors. This work used an impedance tube with the two-thickness method to investigate such effects. For a constant moisture weight percentage, the magnitude of the characteristic impedance became smaller and the absorption coefficient became higher with increase of the air space ratio. For a constant air space ratio, the absorption coefficient became larger and the magnitude of the propagation constant became smaller with increasing moisture weight percentage.