Conservation of Momentum

An explosion can push two carts apart. Because of Newtons Third Law of Motion,
we know that this explosion causes an equal force on each cart, but in opposite
directions. The explosion, of course, is the force of a compressed spring.
1.

Consider one cart only:

a. What is its momentum before the explosion?

b. What is its momentum after the explosion?

c. What is its change in momentum?

d. What is the impulse?

2. Now consider both carts they are the system.

a. What is the total momentum of both carts before the explosion?

b. What is the total momentum of both carts after the explosion?

c. What is the change in momentum for the system?

3. Make qualitative observations concerning both carts:

a. When the carts are the same mass, how do the speeds compare after
moving apart?

b. How do the velocities compare?

c. What is the combined momentum of both carts?

4. List specific numerical data for 3 situations when the cart masses are
unequal:
Trial #
Mass
Speed (m/s)
Momentum
1

Study your results and make a statement about what youve learned regarding
momentum before and after an explosion.

Questions

1. What does it mean that momentum is conserved?

2. Are there any situations where momentum is NOT conserved?

3. If Cart A has a mass represented by mA, and a velocity represented by vA,

what is an expression for its momentum?

4. If Cart B has a mass represented by mB and a velocity represented by vB,

write an algebraic expression or the total momentum of Carts A plus B.
This represents the total momentum before the collision.

5. Now Cart A and Cart B collide and bounce off each other, moving away.
If there is no loss of kinetic energy, this type of collision is elastic. In other
words, an elastic collision is one where things bounce off of each other and
kinetic energy is conserved.
Write an expression for the total momentum of Carts A and B after the
collision. Use mA and mB to represent the masses, and vA and vB to
represent the velocities after the collision.

6. Combine your expressions from #4 and #5 to write an entire equation for an

elastic collision.

7. Now try and write the equation for Carts A and B if they have a perfectly
inelastic collision. The expression for the total momentum before collision is
the same as in problem #4.
An inelastic collision is the opposite of an elastic collision things stick to
each other instead of bouncing. But the expression for the total momentum
after collision will be a little different (think about how many velocities and/or
masses are there after the stick collision)

Problem-Solving Practice
1. Cart A, which has a mass of 6 kg and an initial velocity of 3 m/s east,
collides with Cart B (mass is 4 kg and an initial velocity of 2 m/s west).
They bounce off each other and travel away in opposite directions. If the
final velocity of Cart A is 2.3 m/s west, what is the final velocity of Cart B?

2. A shopping cart has a mass of 5 kg and an initial velocity of 1.5 m/s. A

shopper takes a large bag of flour that has a mass of 2 kg and tosses it
into the shopping cart with a velocity of 0.4 m/s in the opposite direction.
What is the combined velocity of the cart plus the bag of flour after the
flour lands in the cart?

3. There is an explosion between two train cars. On one side there are 4
train cars and on the other there are 3. The 3 cars are moving away at 12

m/s. What is the velocity of the 4 cars? Assume each car has the same
mass.

4. A 2.1 kg brick is placed gently upon a 2.9 kg cart originally moving with a
speed of 26 cm/s. Determine the post-collision speed of the combination
of brick and cart.

5. A 98 kg fullback is running along at 8.6 m/s when a 76 kg defensive back

running in the same direction at 9.8 m/s tackles him. What is the postcollision speed of the two players immediately after the tackle?

6. A 0.112 kg billiard ball moving at 154 cm/s strikes a second billiard ball of
the same mass moving in the opposite direction at 46 cm/s. The second
billiard ball rebounds and travels at 72 cm/s after the head-on collision.
Determine the post-collision velocity of the first billiard ball.