FORCE

Physics Notes
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Force
A force is a push or pull
It has both magnitude and direction
SI Unit is Newton (N)
1 N defined as the force that gives a 1kg
mass an acceleration of 1ms-2

A force can
Make stationary objects move
Make moving objects speed up, slow down,
or stop
Make moving objects change direction
Change the shape and size of objects

Examples of forces
Gravitational force: force due to pull of
gravity
Frictional force: force which opposes motion
Centripetal force: force which keeps a body
on its circular path
Electrical force: force of attraction or
repulsion between electrical charges
Magnetic force: force of attraction or
repulsion between magnetic materials

Centripetal force
The direction of motion of a body in
circular motion is continually
changing.
Hence the body in circular motion is
accelerating and this acceleration is
produce by centripetal force
The centripetal force
Acts towards the centre of the circle
Acts perpendicularly to the objects
direction of motion
Increases when the mass/speed of
the object is increased
Increases when the radius of the
circle is decreased

Effects of force on
motion
Newtons first law of motion: a body will
remain at rest whilst a body in motion will
continue its motion at constant speed in a
straight line unless a resultant force acts on
it
Also known as the law of inertia
Inertia is a property of mass resisting any
change from its original state of rest or
motion
The greater the mass of a body, the
greater will be its inertia

Equilibrium of forces
Forces are said to be in equilibrium if the
resultant force is zero
When the forces acting on a body are in
equilibrium, the acceleration of the body is
zero

Termin
al
velocit
y

Relation between Force,

Mass, and Acceleration
F = MA
F = force, M = mass, A = acceleration
SI unit: newton (N)

W = MG
W = weight, M = mass, G =
gravitational acceleration
SI unit: newton (N)

Effect of friction on
motion of body
Presence of friction from air resistance
Eg a book falling from a building
F=wR
F = resultant force, w = weight, R =
air resistance

Friction
Friction between 2 solids on a horizontal
surface
Acts in the direction opposite to the motion or
applied force
Depends on the material and nature of the
surfaces in contact rough surfaces give more
friction
Is proportional to the force pressing the
surfaces together
Is independent of the area of contact
Advantages
Is independent of theDisadvantages
speed of motion
Able to start or stop motion

Reduces speed of motion

Prevents slipping when one is

walking

Causes rapid wear and tear

For fastening action of

adhesive stickers, nails and

Energy is wasted as work done

to overcome friction

Methods to reduce
friction
Lubricate the surfaces in contact
Smoothen surfaces eg by polishing
Use materials with low frictional resistance
eg graphite
Place ball bearings, rollers, or wheels
between surfaces
Use an air cushion between surfaces eg in
hovercraft

Combining forces
2 or more forces when combined produce a
single force known as the resultant force
The effect on a body produced by 2 or more
forces acting on it will be the same as that
produced by their resultant force
Since forces are vectors, they combine as
follows:
Non-parallel forces: when 2 forces act at an
angle to each other find resultant force by
using parallelogram law of vector addition
Parallel forces

forces in the same direction

Forces in opposite directions

Parallel forces
Same
direction:
just add the
forces
Opposite
direction:
subtract the
forces to find
the resultant

Non-parallel forces

Adding forces at right

angle

Step 1: choose a suitable scale eg 1cm to rep. 1N

Step 2: Draw lines PS and PQ, Angle SPQ = 90
Step 3: Draw lines SR and RQ to form a rectangle
Step 4: Draw PR the diagonal and measure this
length
Step 5: Find the force based on this length and
find the angle it makes with the SP force

Or calculate force
using Pythagoras
Theorem a2 + b2 = c2

Adding forces at an
angle
Step 1: choose a suitable scale eg 1cm to rep
1N
Step 2: draw lines PS and PQ, Angle SPQ=40
Step 3: draw lines SR and RQ to form a
parallelogram
Step 4: draw PR the diagonal and measure
this length and the angle

Forces on a parachute

F=wR
Resultant force, F
= ma

Turning Effect of a force

The Principle of Moments states that for an
object to be in equilibrium, the sum of
clockwise moments about any point (pivot)
must equal the sum of anticlockwise
moments about the same point
Anti-clockwise moments = Clockwise moments

F1D1 = F2D2 (F = force, D = distance)

Moment of a force
Moment = Force x Distance*

*distance: perpendicular
distance from the line of
action of the force to the

Moments
Anti-clockwise moments =
Clockwise moments

Anticlockwise

Clockwise

Examples of turning
effect in daily life
Opening a bottle with a bottle opener

Tightening a nut using a spanner

Opening a classroom door by pulling the

door knob

Hookes Law

States that the extension of a material is

proportional to the stretching force if the
limit of proportionality of the material is
not exceeded

F = ke

k is the spring constant, e is the extension

Work

Work done = Force x Distance moved in the

direction of force

SI unit is joules (J)

1 J = 1 N X 1 m = 1 Nm

Energy

Energy is the capacity to do work

SI unit is joules (J)

Energy is neither created nor destroyed.

It can be converted from one form to another

Principle of Conservation of Energy: The

total amount of energy in the system remains
constant

Efficiency = (useful power output/energy

input) x 100%

Energy
Examples of energy
Chemical energy
Electrical energy
Kinetic energy
K.E. = (mv2)

Potential energy
P.E. = mgh
Nuclear energy

Power

Power is the rate of work done or energy

converted

Power = work done/time

SI unit is watt (W)

1 W = 1 J/s

Questions
1.
a.
b.
c.
d.

A constant force does not produce a change in

Displacement
Speed
Velocity
Acceleration

2. Which of the following forces is required to

keep the moon in its orbit?
a. Frictional
b. Centripetal
c. Magnetic
d. gravitational

Questions
3. The parallelogram law of forces is used to
determine the
a.Minimum force
b.Resultant force
c.Average force
d.Constant force
4. A toy car of mass 500g is moving with an
acceleration of 2ms-2. What is the resultant force
acting on the toy car?
a.0.25N
b.1N
c.4N
d.250N