Science

Weight and friction

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Gravity is a force that attracts objects with mass towards each other. The weight of an object is the force acting on it due to gravity. The gravitational field strength of the Earth is 10 N/kg. The stopping distance of a car depends on two things: the thinking distance and the braking distance.

Weight
Weight is not the same as mass. Mass is a measure of how much stuff is in an object. Weight is a force acting on that stuff. You have to be careful. In physics, the term weight has a specific meaning, and is measured in newtons. Mass is measured in kilograms. The mass of a given object is the same everywhere, but its weight can change.

Gravitational field strength

Weight is the result of gravity. The gravitational field strength of the Earth is 10 N/kg (ten newtons per kilogram). This means an object with a mass of 1kg would be attracted towards the centre of the Earth by a force of 10N. We feel forces like this as weight. You would weigh less on the Moon because the gravitational field strength of the Moon is one-sixth of that of the Earth. But note that your mass would stay the same.

Weight
On Earth, if you drop an object it accelerates towards the centre of the planet. You can calculate the weight of an object using this equation: weight (N) = mass (kg) gravitational field strength (N/kg)

Question
A person has a mass of 60kg. How much do they weigh on Earth, if the gravitational field strength is 10N/kg?

Answer

weight = mass gravitational field strength weight = 60kg 10N/kg weight = 600N

Question
How much would the same person weigh on the Moon, if the gravitational field strength is 1.6N/kg?

Answer weight = mass gravitational field strength weight = 60kg 1.6 N/kg weight = 96N

Falling objects
You should be able to describe the forces affecting a falling object at different stages of its fall. Usually, you need to think about two forces:

1. The weight of the object. This is a force acting downwards, caused by the objects mass the Earths gravitational field. 2. Air resistance. This is a frictional force acting in the opposite direction to the movement of the object. Three stages of falling
When an object is dropped, we can identify three stages before it hits the ground:

1. At the start, the object accelerates downwards because of its weight. There is no air resistance. There is a resultant force acting downwards. 2. As it gains speed, the objects weight stays the same, but the air resistance on it increases. There is a resultant force acting downwards. 3. Eventually, the objects weight is balanced by the air resistance. There is no resultant force and the object reaches a steady speed, called the terminal velocity. 4. Terminal velocity
5. What happens if you drop a feather and a coin together? The feather and the coin have roughly the same surface area, so when they begin to fall they have about the same air resistance. 6. As the feather falls, its air resistance increases until it soon balances the weight of the feather. The feather now falls at its terminal velocity. But the coin is much heavier, so it has to travel quite fast before air resistance is large enough to balance its weight. In fact, it probably hits the ground before it reaches its terminal velocity

7. On the Moon
8. An astronaut on the Moon carried out a famous experiment. He dropped a hammer and a feather at the same time and found that they landed together. The Moon's gravity is too weak for it to hold onto an atmosphere, so there is no air resistance. When the hammer and feather were dropped, they fell together with the same acceleration.

Science
Weight and friction
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Stopping distances
You should know some of the factors affecting the stopping distance of a car.

Thinking distance
It takes a certain amount of time for a driver to react to a hazard and start applying the brakes. During this time, the car is still moving. The faster the car is travelling, the greater this thinking distance will be. The thinking distance will also increase if the driver's reactions are slower because they are:

under the influence of alcohol under the influence of drugs tired Braking distance
The braking distance is the distance the car travels from where the brakes are first applied to where the car stops. If the braking force is too great, the tyres may not grip the road sufficiently and the car may skid. The faster the car is travelling, the greater the braking distance will be. The braking distance will also increase if:

The brakes or tyres are worn. The weather conditions are poor, such as an icy or wet road. The car is more heavily laden, for example, with passengers and luggage. Stopping distance
The stopping distance is the thinking distance added to the braking distance. The graph shows some typical stopping distances.

Stopping distances

Force, mass and acceleration

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A stationary object remains stationary if the sum of the forces acting upon it resultant force - is zero. A moving object with a zero resultant force keeps moving at the same speed and in the same direction. If the resultant force acting on an object is not zero, a stationary object begins to accelerate in the same direction as the force. A moving object speeds up, slows down or changes direction. Acceleration depends on the force applied to an object and the object's mass.

Resultant force
You should be able to use the idea of the resultant force on an object to determine its movement.

The resultant force

An object may have several different forces acting on it, which can have different strengths and directions. But they can be added together to give the resultant force. This is a single force that has the same effect on the object as all the individual forces acting together.

When all the forces are balanced, the resultant force is zero. In this case:

a stationary object remains stationary a moving object keeps on moving at the same speed in the same direction
For example, in the diagram of the weightlifter, the resultant force on the bar is zero, so the bar does not move. Its weight acting downwards is balanced by the upward force provided by the weightlifter.

The longer the arrow, the bigger the force. In this diagram, the arrows are the same length, so we know they are the same size.

When all the forces are not balanced, the resultant force is not zero. In this case:

A stationary object begins to move in the direction of the resultant force. A moving object speeds up, slows down or changes direction depending on the direction of the resultant force.
In this diagram of the weightlifter, the resultant force on the bar is not zero. The upwards force is bigger than the downwards force. The resultant force acts in the upwards direction, so the bar moves upwards.

In this next diagram of the weightlifter, the resultant force on the bar is also not zero. This time, the upwards force is smaller than the downwards force. The resultant force acts in the downwards direction, so the bar moves downwards.

Forces and acceleration

You should know that objects accelerate when the resultant force is not zero, and understand the factors that affect the size of the acceleration.

Size of the force

An object will accelerate in the direction of the resultant force. The bigger the force, the greater the acceleration. Doubling the size of the (resultant) force doubles the acceleration.

The mass
An object will accelerate in the direction of the resultant force. A force on a large mass will accelerate it less than the same force on a smaller mass. Doubling the mass halves the acceleration.

Force, mass and acceleration

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Forces and acceleration calculations

You should know the equation that shows the relationship between resultant force, mass and acceleration, and be able to use it.

The equation
resultant force (newton, N) = mass (kg) acceleration (m/s2) You can see from this equation that 1N is the force needed to give 1kg an acceleration of 1m/s2.

For example, the force needed to accelerate a 10kg mass by 5m/s2 is: 10 x 5 = 50N The same force could accelerate a 1kg mass by 50m/s2 or a 100kg mass by 0.5m/s2. Putting it simply, we can say that it takes more force to accelerate a larger mass. Question A truck has a mass of 2,000kg. The driving force created by the engine is 3,000 newtons. Calculate the acceleration caused by this force.

Answer 1. Write down the equation. o force = mass acceleration 2. Rearrange the equation. o acceleration = forcemass 3. Put in the values. o acceleration = 3,000N
2,000kg

4. Work out the answer and write it down. o acceleration = 1.5m/s2

Force, mass and acceleration

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Questions and answers

Here are four typical forces on which you could be asked questions:

1. Air resistance - drag o When an object moves through the air, the force of air resistance acts in the opposite direction to the motion. Air resistance depends on the shape of the object and its speed. 2. Contact force o This happens when two objects are pushed together. They exert equal and opposite forces on each other. The contact force from the ground pushes up on your feet even as you stand still. This is the force you feel in your feet. You feel the ground pushing back against your weight pushing down. 3. Friction o This is the force that resists movement between two surfaces which are in contact. 4. Gravity o This is the force that pulls objects towards the Earth. We call the force of gravity on an object its weight. The Earth pulls with a force of about 10 newtons on every kilogram of mass. Question
Look at the animation of the parachutist falling at a steady speed. Name the forces acting on the parachutist and state how they are acting.

Answer

There are just two forces acting on the parachutist. Gravity (weight) pulls the parachutist down. Air resistance - drag - pushes up on the canopy of the parachute.

Question
Look at the animation of the car moving at a steady speed. Name the forces acting on the car and state how they are acting.

Answer
There are several forces acting on the car. Gravity pulls down on the car. The contact force from the road pushes up on the wheels. And the driving force from the engine pushes the car along. Also, there is friction between the road and the tyres. There is friction in the wheel bearings. And air resistance acts on the front of the car.

Representing motion
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The slope on a distance-time graph represents the speed of an object. The velocity of an object is its speed in a particular direction. The slope on a velocity-time graph represents the acceleration of an object. The distance travelled is equal to the area under a velocity-time graph.

Speed, distance and time

You should recall from your Key Stage 3 studies how to calculate the speed of an object from the distance travelled and the time taken.

The equation
When an object moves in a straight line at a steady speed, you can calculate its speed if you know how far it travels and how long it takes. This equation shows the relationship between speed, distance travelled and time taken:

For example, a car travels 300 metres in 20 seconds. Its speed is 300 20 = 15m/s.

Representing motion
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Distance-time graphs
You should be able to draw and explain distance-time graphs for objects moving at steady speeds or standing still.

Background information
The vertical axis of a distance-time graph is the distance travelled from the start. The horizontal axis is the time from the start.

Features of the graphs

When an object is stationary, the line on the graph is horizontal. When an object is moving at a steady speed, the line on the graph is straight, but sloped. The diagram shows some typical lines on a distance-time graph.

Distance - time graph

Note that the steeper the line, the greater the speed of the object. The blue line is steeper than the red because it represents an object moving faster than the one represented by the red line. The red lines on the graph represent a typical journey where an object returns to the start again. Notice that the line representing the return journey slopes downwards.

Representing motion
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Velocity-time graphs
You should be able to explain velocity-time graphs for objects moving with a constant velocity or constant acceleration.

Background information
The velocity of an object is its speed in a particular direction. This means that two cars travelling at the same speed, but in opposite directions, have different velocities. The vertical axis of a velocity-time graph is the velocity of the object. The horizontal axis is the time from the start.

Features of the graphs

When an object is moving with a constant velocity, the line on the graph is horizontal. When an object is moving with a constant acceleration, the line on the graph is straight, but sloped. The diagram shows some typical lines on a velocity-time graph.

Speed - time graph The steeper the line, the greater the acceleration of the object. The blue line is steeper than the red line because it represents an object with a greater acceleration. Notice that a line sloping downwards - with a negative gradient - represents an object with a constant deceleration - slowing down.

Acceleration
You should be able to calculate the acceleration of an object from its change in velocity and the time taken.

The equation
When an object moves in a straight line with a constant acceleration, you can calculate its acceleration if you know how much its velocity changes and how long this takes. This equation shows the relationship between acceleration, change in velocity and time taken:

For example, a car accelerates in 5s from 25m/s to 35m/s. Its velocity changes by 35 - 25 = 10m/s. So its acceleration is 10 5 = 2m/s2.

Distance-time graphs - higher

You should be able to calculate gradients on distance-time graphs.

Background
To calculate the gradient of the line on a graph, divide the change in the vertical axis by the change in the horizontal axis.

Distance-time graphs
The gradient of a line on a distance-time graph represents the speed of the object. Study this distance-time graph.

Distance - time graph

Question

What is the speed represented by the blue line?

Answer The object travels 10m in 2s. Its speed is 10 2 = 5m/s.

Velocity-time graphs - higher

You should be able to calculate gradients of velocity-time graphs and the areas under the graphs.

The gradient
The gradient of a line on a velocity-time graph represents the acceleration of the object. Study this velocity-time graph.

Velocity - time graph

Question
What is the acceleration represented by the sloping line?

Answer The object increases its velocity from 0m/s to 8m/s in 4s. Its acceleration is 8 4 = 2m/s2. The area
The area under the line in a velocity-time graph represents the distance travelled. To find the distance travelled in the graph above, we need to find the area of the light-blue triangle and the dark-blue rectangle.

1. Area of light-blue triangle o The width of the triangle is 4 seconds and the height is 8 metres per second. To find the area, you use the equation: o area of triangle = 12 base height o so the area of the light-blue triangle is 12 8 4 = 16m.

2. Area of dark-blue rectangle o The width of the rectangle is 6 seconds and the height is 8 metres per second. So the area is 8 6 = 48m. 3. Area under the whole graph o The area of the light-blue triangle plus the area of the dark-blue rectangle is: o 16 + 48 = 64m. o This is the total area under the distance-time graph. This area represents the distance covered.

Work done and energy transferred are measured in joules (J). The work done on an object can be calculated if the force and distance moved are known. A change in momentum happens when a force is applied to an object that is moving or is able to move. The total momentum in an explosion or collision stays the same.

Work, force and distance

You should know, and be able to use, the relationship between work done, force applied and distance moved.

Background
Work and energy are measured in the same unit, the joule (J). When an object is moved by a force, energy is transferred and work is done. But work is not a form of energy - it is one of the ways in which energy can be transferred.

The equation
This equation shows the relationship between work done, force applied and distance moved: work done (joule, J) = force (newton, N) distance (metre, m) The distance involved is the distance moved in the direction of the applied force.

Question
A force of 10N is applied to a box to move it 2m along the floor. What is the work done on the box?

Answer
The work done is 10 2 = 20J.

Potential energy and kinetic energy

Gravitational potential energy
Any object that is raised against the force of gravity stores gravitational potential energy. For example, if you lift a book up onto a shelf, you have to do work against the force of gravity. The book has gained gravitational potential energy.

Elastic potential energy

Elastic objects such as elastic bands and squash balls can change their shape. They can be stretched or squashed, but energy is needed to change their shape. This energy is stored in the stretched or squashed object as elastic potential energy.

Kinetic energy
Every moving object has kinetic energy (sometimes called movement energy). The more mass an object has, and the faster it is moving, the more kinetic energy it has. You should be able to discuss the transformation of kinetic energy to other forms of energy.

Example 1 - The bouncing ball

Several energy transfers happen when a squash ball is dropped onto a table and bounces up again. When the ball is stationary above the table, its gravitational potential energy (GPE) is at a maximum. It has no kinetic energy (KE), or elastic potential energy (EPE). As the ball falls, its GPE is transferred to KE and the ball accelerates towards the table. When the ball hits the table, the KE is transferred to EPE as the ball squashes. As the ball regains its shape, the EPE is transferred to KE and it bounces upwards. When the ball reaches the top of its travel, all the KE has been transferred to GPE again. Note that the ball will be lower than it was when it was first dropped, because some energy is also transferred as heat and sound to the surroundings.

High up GPE - maximum KE - none

Falling GPE - decreasing KE - increasing

On table GPE - minimum KE - none

EPE - none

EPE - none

EPE - maximum

Example 2 - The pendulum

The pendulum is a simple machine for transferring gravitational potential energy to kinetic energy, and back again. When the bob is at the highest point of its swing, it has no kinetic energy, but its gravitational potential energy is at a maximum. As the bob swings downwards, gravitational potential energy is transferred to kinetic energy, and the bob accelerates. At the bottom of its swing, the bobs kinetic energy is at a maximum and its gravitational potential energy is at a minimum. As the bob swings upwards, its kinetic energy is transferred to gravitational potential energy again. At the top of its swing, it once again has no kinetic energy, but its gravitational potential energy is at a maximum. Note that the bobs swing will become lower with each swing, because some energy is also transferred as heat to the surroundings.

Momentum
A moving object has momentum. This is the tendency of the object to keep moving in the same direction. It is difficult to change the direction of movement of an object with a lot of momentum. You can calculate momentum using this equation: momentum (kg m/s) = mass (kg) velocity (m/s) Notice that momentum has:

magnitude - an amount because it depends on the objects mass direction - because it depends on the velocity of the object Question
What is the momentum of a 5 kg object moving at 2 m/s?

Answer momentum = mass x velocity = 5 kg 2 m/s = 10 kg m/s

Conservation of momentum
So long as no external forces are acting on the objects involved, the total momentum stays the same in explosions and collisions. We say that momentum is conserved. You can use this idea to work out the mass, velocity or momentum of an object in an explosion or collision.

Example
A bullet with a mass of 0.03 kg leaves a gun at 1000 m/s. If the guns mass is 1.5 kg, what is the velocity of the recoil on the gun?

momentum of bullet = mass velocity = 0.03 kg 1,000 m/s = 30 kg m/s

Rearrange the equation: velocity = momentum mass

velocity of recoil on gun = 30 kg m/s 1.5 kg = 20 m/s Safety features in vehicles

When there is a car crash, the car, its contents, and the passengers, decelerate rapidly. They experience great forces because of the change in momentum, which can cause injury. If the time taken for the change in momentum on the body is increased, the forces on the body are reduced too. Seat belts and crumple zones are designed to reduce the forces on the body if there is a collision.

Seat belts
Seat belts stop you tumbling around inside the car if there is a collision. However, they are designed to stretch a bit in a collision. This increases the time taken for the bodys momentum to reach zero, so reduces the forces on it.

Air bags
Air bags increase the time taken for the heads momentum to reach zero, so reduce the forces on it. They also act a soft cushion and prevent cuts.

Kinetic energy
You should know, and be able to use, the relationship between kinetic energy, mass and speed.

The equation
This equation shows the relationship between kinetic energy (J), mass (kg) and speed (m/s): kinetic energy = 12 mass speed2

Question
What is the kinetic energy of a 1,000kg car travelling at 10m/s?

Answer
kinetic energy = 12 mass speed2 kinetic energy = 12 1,000 102 = 1/2 1,000 100 = 50,000J (or 50

Momentum - higher
You need to be able to calculate the force involved in changing the momentum of an object. Here is the equation you need:

The force is measured in newtons, N. The time is measured in seconds, s.

Question
A 25 kg bicycle is travelling at 12 m/s. What force is needed to bring it to a halt in 5 s?

Answer Momentum at start = 25 12 = 300 kg m/s Momentum at end = 0 12 = 0 kg m/s Change in momentum = 300 - 0 kg m/s

So a force of 60N is needed. You should see that, for a given change in momentum, the longer the time taken, the smaller the force needed. This is the idea behind many car safety features. It also explains why it takes a long time to stop a super-tanker at sea, or to change its direction.