ANALYSIS

Another topic that we have tackled in Physics is Newtons Second Law of

Motion. In this experiment we will focus on Newtons Second Law of Motion
which states that a net force is required for a body to have an acceleration. And if a
net force is applied on the object, the object will accelerate in the direction of the
net force. The acceleration of the object is also directly proportional to the net
force but inversely proportional to its mass. We will verify the relationships
between a bodys acceleration and net force, and between acceleration and mass.
The theory behind Newtons Second Law of Motion is that first Newton
defined momentum or P as the product of mass and velocity. The change in
momentum or P is brought about by the impulse ( J =F net t ) acting on the
body and will result with our first equation which is

Fnet t= P

And if we let t as it approaches zero, the instantaneous rate of change of

momentum is,
Fnet = lim

t 0

P dP d ( mv )
= =
t dt
dt

Since for most objects, the mass is constant the equation will be
Fnet =m

dv
dt

And Newtons Law of motion is mathematically expressed as

Fnet =m a

For this experiment, the materials that we will use are one dynamics track
with a pulley, one dynamics cart, 1.5m of string, 2 pieces of photogates, 1 smart
timer, 1 set of weights, and a weight hanger. We are asked first asked to clean the
surface of the dynamics track by wiping it with tissue to remove dust and other
particles. We should also put extra care on the super pulley and the photogates to
avoid damage. We should also be sure to use 220V-AC source to power the smart
timer.

The first part of this experiment is Constant Mass, Changing Net Forcer
wherein the mass of the cart is constant and the mass of the pulley is changing. The
first procedure of this experiment is to first setup the dynamics track. For our
group, we set-up the dynamics track on our laboratory table. We make sure that the
track doesnt move. The next thing we did was to get the mass of the dynamics cart
which is at 0.51724 kg. The next thing we did was to set the first photogate at the

20-cm mark of the dynamics track and the second photogate at the 50-cm mark.
We then plugged the photogates into the smart timer and set it at Time:Two
Gates. Then we set one end of the string to the cart and the other on the weight
hanger over the pulley. On our first trial, we used 20g on our hanging weight. We
then repeated this again while using 40g, 60g, 80g, and 100g for each trial. We then
computer for the accepted value of acceleration as well as the experimental and the
percentage error each trial. We got these results:

CONSTANT MASS, CHANGING NET FORCE

Mass of Cart, m1 = 0.51724 kg
Distance Traveled, s = 0.5 m
TRIAL Total
Net force, Acceleration
hanging

m2 g

mass, m2
1
2
3
4
5

0.02 kg
0.04 kg
0.06 kg
0.08 kg
0.10 kg

Time of Acceleratio %
(accepted travel, t n
Error

value), a
0.196 N
0.392 N

(exp.

0.365 m/s

0.703 m/s

0.588 N
0.784 N

1.019 m/s
1.313 m/s2

0.980 N

1.588 m/s

1.6389

value), a
0.372 m/s2

1.92%

s
1.2030

0.691 m/s2

1.71%

s
0.9587s 1.088 m/s2
0.9398 1.134 m/s2

0.98%
13.63%

s
0.8066

3.21%

1.537 m/s2

Constant Mass, Changing Net Force

1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
1

Acceleration (m/s2)

0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

0.9

1.1

Net Force (N)

From this table and graph, we found that the dynamics carts acceleration
will increase as the net force increases.

For the second part of our experiment entitled Changing Mass, Constant
Net Force, we first used the same set-up as the first part. We repeated the same
experiment but instead of changing the mass of the pulley we only set it at 100
grams. Then for trials 2-5, we increased the mass of the dynamics cart by 100g
each trials. We then calculated the accepted value, experimental value, and the
percentage error of the experiment.

CHANGING MASS, CONSTANT NET FORCE

Total hanging mass, m2 = 0.1 kg
Net Force, m2g = 0.98 N
Distance Traveled, s = 0.5 m
TRIA Mass of cart + Acceleration
L
1
2
3
4
5

mass added, m1

(accepted travel, t
value), a
1.5877 m/s2
1.3663 m/s2
1.1992 m/s2
1.0684 m/s2
0.9634 m/s2

0.51724 kg
0.61724 kg
0.71724 kg
0.81724 kg
0.91724 kg

Time of Acceleration

0.7620 s
0.8169 s
0.9426 s
0.9974 s
1.0814 s

(exp. value), Error

a
1.722 m/s2
8.51%
2
1.494 m/s
9.74%
2
1.125 m/s
6.17%
2
1.005 m/s
5.90%
2
0.855 m/s
11.21%

Changing Mass, Constant Net Force

2
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2

Acceleration (m/s2)

1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
0.45

0.5

0.55

0.6

0.65

0.7

0.75

0.8

0.85

0.9

0.95

Mass (Kg)

From this table and graph, we can see that acceleration of the dynamics cart
is indirectly proportional to the cart.

For the third part of the experiment entitled Changing Mass, Changing Net
Force, we repeated the previous part but now with changing mass as well as
changing net force. The result of our experiment are as follows:

CHANGING MASS, CHANGING NET FORCE

Distance Traveled, s = 0.5 m
Mass of cart Total

Net

Acceleratio Time

Acceleration

TRIAL +

force,

of

(exp. value), % Error

m2g

(accepted

travel,

value), a

0.365 m/s2
0.596 m/s2
0.757 m/s2
0.874 m/s2
0.963 m/s2

1.60 s
1.26 s
1.19 s
1.09 s
1.02 s

mass hangin

added, m1

g
mass,

1
2
3
4
5

0.51724 kg
0.61724 kg
0.71724 kg
0.81724 kg
0.91724 kg

m2
0.02 kg
0.04 kg
0.06 kg
0.08 kg
0.10 kg

0.196 N
0.392 N
0.588 N
0.784 N
0.980 N

0.39 m/s2
0.63 m/s2
0.71 m/s2
0.84 m/s2
0.96 m/s2

6.85%
5.70%
6.21%
3.89%
0.31%

CONCLUSION
To verify the direct proportionality of acceleration and net force if the mass
of the body is constant, we used a dynamics track with a dynamics cart and a

pulley. We then set up two photogates at the 20cm mark as well as at the 20cm
mark. We then tied the string up on the end of cart and the other end on the pulley.
We then set up the dynamics cart at one end and the weight hanger at the opposite
end. For the first trial, we first used 20g total mass on the hanging weight then we
released the cart and measured its time of travel from first photogate to the second
photogate using the smart timer. We then repeated this for four more time using
40g, 60g, 80g, and 100g for each trial. The result of our experiment are 0.375 m/s2,
0.691 m/s2 , 1.088 m/s2, 1.134 m/s2, and 1.537 m/s2 with a percentage error of 1.92
%, 1.71 %, 0.98 %, 13.63 %, and 3.21 % respectively. From our experiment, we
can conclude that acceleration of body, in this case the cart, is directly proportional
to the net force, in this case the hanging weight.
To verify the inverse proportionality of the acceleration and mass if the net
force is constant, we used the same setup as the first part of this experiment. But
we instead we let the net force, in this case the hanging weight, as a constant and
the cart as not constant. For each trial, we increased the weight of the cart by 100g.
The result of our experiments are 1.722 m/s2, 1.499 m/s2, 1.125 m/s2, 1.005 m/s2,
and 0.855 m/s2. With a percentage error of 8.51 %, 9.74 %, 6.17 %, 5.90 %, and
11.2 1% respectively. From our experiment, we can conclude that the acceleration
of an object, in this case the cart, is indirectly proportional to its mass.