Asked by mr 67

The table shows the density of four materials.



Material Density (g/cm3)
Water
1.00

Steel 7.86
Aluminum 2.58
Polyethylene (plastic) 0.92




Through which material will sound travel the fastest?


steel


water


aluminum


polyethylene (plastic)

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
aluminum

Sound speed depends on the material's stiffness-to-density ratio (v ∝ √(elastic modulus / density)). Aluminum has a higher stiffness-to-density ratio than steel, water or polyethylene, so sound travels fastest through aluminum.