UNIT HOMEWORK MOMENTUM ANSWER KEY

MOMENTUM FORMULA & STUFF FROM THE PAST: p = mv, TKE = ½mv2, d = vt
1. An ostrich with a mass of 146 kg is running to the right with a velocity of 17 m/s.
a. Calculate the momentum (in kgm/s) of the ostrich.
Ans. p = mv = 146 kg  17 m/s = 2482 kgm/s
b. Calculate the kinetic energy (in J) of the ostrich.
Ans. TKE = ½ mv2 = ½ (146 kg)(17 m/s)2 = 21,097 J
c. Calculate the distance (in m) travelled by the ostrich after 5 seconds.
Ans. d = vt = 17 m/s  5 s = 85 m
2. A 21 kg child is riding a 5.9 kg bike with a velocity of 4.5 m/s to the left.
a. Calculate the momentum (in kgm/s) of the child-bike system.
Ans. p = mv = (21 kg + 5.9 kg)  4.5 m/s = (26.9 kg)  4.5 m/s = 121.05 kgm/s
b. Calculate the kinetic energy (in J) of the child-bike system.
Ans. TKE = ½ mv2 = ½ (26.9 kg)( 4.5 m/s)2 = 272.36 J
c. Calculate the distance (in m) travelled by the child-bike system after 5 seconds.
Ans. d = vt = 4.5 m/s  5 s = 22.5 m

COLLISIONS: ELASTIC
3. The ostrich from Probl. 1 collides with the child and his bike from Probl. 2. Assume the collision is
elastic. Make the right the positive direction.
a) What is the total momentum of the ostrich/child/bike system together (in kgm/s)?
Ans. ptotal = postrich + pchild/bike = 2482 kgm/s – 121.05 kgm/s = 2360.95 kgm/s
b) What is the total kinetic energy of the ostrich/child/bike system together (in J)?
Ans. TKEtotal = TKEostrich + TKEchild/bike = 21,097 J + 272.4 J = 21,369.4 J
c) If the child-bike system bounces back with a velocity of 3 m/s, what is the final velocity of the
ostrich (in m/s)?
Ans. m1v1 + m2v2 = m1v3 + m2v4
m2v4 m2v4
m1v1 + m2v2 m2v4 = m1v3
m1 m1
𝐦𝟏 𝐯𝟏 +𝐦𝟐 𝐯𝟐 −𝐦𝟐 𝐯𝟒
= 𝐯𝟑
𝐦𝟏
𝐦 𝐦 𝐦
(𝟏𝟒𝟔 𝐤𝐠)(𝟏𝟕 𝐬 ) + (𝟐𝟔. 𝟗 𝐤𝐠)(𝟒. 𝟓 𝐬 ) − (𝟐𝟔. 𝟗 𝐤𝐠)(𝟑 𝐬 )
= 𝒗𝟑
𝟏𝟒𝟔 𝐤𝐠
𝟐𝟐𝟖𝟎.𝟐𝟓
= 𝒗𝟑
𝟏𝟒𝟔 𝐤𝐠
𝟏𝟓. 𝟔𝟐 𝐦/𝐬 = 𝒗𝟑
d) How much kinetic energy (in J) does the child/bike system have after the collision?
Ans. TKE = ½ mv2 = ½ (26.9 kg)(3 m/s)2 = 121.05 J
e) How much kinetic energy (in J) does the ostrich have?
Ans. TKE = ½ mv2 = ½ (146 kg)(15.62 m/s)2 = 17,810.86 J
f) Was kinetic energy conserved?  YES  NO
TKEfinal  TKEinitial. looks like the collision was not completely elastic….17,810.86 J  21,369.4 J

g) Was momentum conserved?  YES  NO 2360.95 kgm/s = 2360.95 kgm/s

COLLISIONS: INELASTIC

4. The ostrich from Probl. 1 collides with the child and his bike from Probl. 2. Assume the collision is
inelastic.
a) What is the total momentum (in kgm/s) of the ostrich/child/bike system together?
Ans. Nothing has changed.
ptotal = postrich + pchild/bike = 2482 kgm/s – 121.05 kgm/s = 2360.95 kgm/s

b) What is the mass (in kg) of the ostrich/child/bike system together?

Ans. 146 kg + 26.9 kg = 172.9 kg
c) What is the final velocity (in m/s) of the ostrich/child/bike system together?
Ans. m1v1 + m2v2 = (m1 + m2)v3
m1v1 + m2v2 = (m1 + m2)v3
(m1 + m2) (m1 + m2)
𝒎𝟏 𝒗𝟏 +𝒎𝟐 𝒗𝟐
= 𝒗𝟑
𝒎 +𝒎
𝟏 𝟐
𝐦 𝐦
(𝟏𝟒𝟔 𝐤𝐠)(𝟏𝟕 )+(𝟐𝟔.𝟗 𝐤𝐠)(𝟒.𝟓 )
𝐬 𝐬
= 𝒗𝟑
(𝟏𝟒𝟔 𝐤𝐠 +𝟐𝟔.𝟗 𝐤𝐠)
𝟐𝟑𝟔𝟎.𝟗𝟓
= 𝒗𝟑
𝟏𝟕𝟐.𝟗 𝐤𝐠
𝟏𝟑. 𝟔𝟔 𝐦/𝐬 = 𝒗𝟑
d) Will the system be moving to the right or to the left?
Ans. The system will be moving in the positive direction which in this case is to the right.
e) How much kinetic energy (in J) does the ostrich/child/bike system have?
Ans. TKE = ½mv2 = ½(172.9 kg)(13.66 m/s)2 = 16131.19 J
f) Was kinetic energy conserved?  YES  NO
Ans. TKEfinal  TKEinitial. While total energy is conserved, some of the mechanical energy
(kinetic) converted into work/heat.
g) Was momentum conserved?  YES  NO
Ans. Yes. pfinal = pinitial. 2360.95 kgm/s = 2360.95 kgm/s

IMPULSE/MOMENTUM: Impulse = F  t, p = mv, d = vt

5. A 0.50 kg football is thrown with a velocity of 15 m/s. A stationary receiver catches the
ball and brings it to rest in 0.020 s. What is the force (in N) exerted on the receiver?
Ans. F  t = mv
𝐦  𝐯
F = 𝐭
𝐦
(𝟎.𝟓𝟎 𝐤𝐠) (𝟏𝟓 )
𝐬
F= = 375 N
𝟎.𝟎𝟐𝟎 𝐬
6. A 0.50 kg object is at rest. A 3.00 N force acts on the object during a time interval of 1.50 s. The
force acts toward the right.

a) What is the velocity (in m/s) of the object at the end of this interval?
Ans. F  t = mv
𝐅  𝐭
= 𝐯
𝐦
𝟑.𝟎 𝐍 (𝟏.𝟓𝟎 𝐬)
= 𝐯
𝟎.𝟓𝟎 𝐤𝐠
9 m/s = 𝐯

b) At the end of this interval, a constant fore of 4.00 N to the left is applied for 3.00 s. What is the
velocity (in m/s) at the end of the 3.00 s?
Ans. The force is to the left so it is negative. We need to realize 𝐯 = 𝐯𝐟 − 𝐯𝐢 and that we have an
initial velocity, vi, of 9 m/s from the previous problem.
F  t = mv
𝐅  𝐭
= 𝐯
𝐦
𝐅  𝐭
= 𝐯𝐟 − 𝐯𝐢
𝐦
+𝐯𝐢 + 𝐯𝐢
𝐅  𝐭
+ 𝐯𝐢 = 𝐯𝐟
𝐦
𝟒.𝟎 𝐍 (𝟑.𝟎𝟎 𝐬) 𝑚
+9 = 𝐯
𝟎.𝟓𝟎 𝐤𝐠 𝑠
15 m/s = 𝐯

7. A 2.5 kg meteorite traveling at 30 m/s landed in Mario’s front yard. It made a 0.5 m hole in the
ground. What force (in N) did it take to stop the meteorite?
Ans. Ein = Eout
TKEin = Wout
½mv2 = Foutdout
½mv2
= Fout
dout
m
½(2.5 kg)(30 )2
s
= Fout
(0.5 m)
2250 N = Fout
COLLISIONS – TWO DIMENSIONS: p = mv BEFORE

8. A 2 kg object is at rest. A 4 kg object collides against it with a 4 kg 2 kg

velocity of 5 m/s sending it flying off at an angle of 30 to the 5 m/s
horizontal with a velocity of 8 m/s. What is the final velocity
of the 4 kg object, if it moves off at an angle of 65? 2 kg
Ans. pin = pout
m1v1 = m1vacos a + m2vbcos b AFTER
 = 30
m2vbcos b m2vbcos b  = 65
m1v1 m2vbcos b
m1v1 m2vbcos b = m1vacos a 4 kg
m1 v1 m2 vb 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝐛
= va
m1 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝐚
m m
(4 kg)(5 ) (2 kg)(8 )𝐜𝐨𝐬 (𝟑𝟎)
s s = va
4 kg𝐜𝐨𝐬 (𝟔𝟓)
3.63 m/s = 𝐯𝐚
BEFORE
9. A 0.25 kg cue ball strikes the eight ball (0.30 kg) elastically 0.25 kg 0.30 kg
and the cue ball moves off at an angle of 45 to the ? m/s
horizontal at 3 m/s while the eight ball moves off at an angle
of +60 to the horizontal at a velocity of 5 m/s. What is the
initial velocity (in m/s) of the cue ball? 0.30 kg
Ans. pin = pout
AFTER
m1v1 = m1vacos a + m2vbcos b  = 60
m1v1 = m1vacos a + m2vbcos b  = 45
m1 m1
m1 va 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝐚 + m2 vb 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝐛 0.25 kg
v1 =
1 m

m m
(0.25 kg) (3 ) 𝐜𝐨𝐬 (𝟒𝟓) + (0.30 kg)(5 )𝐜𝐨𝐬 (𝟔𝟎)
v1 = s s
0.25 kg
v1 = 5.12 m/s
MOMENTUM: CONCEPTUAL QUESTIONS

__(c)____ 1. A moderate force will break an egg. However, an egg dropped on the road usually breaks, while one dropped on
the grass usually does not break because for the egg dropped on the grass,
a) the change in momentum is less.
b) the change in momentum is greater.
c) the time interval for stopping is less.
d) The time interval for stopping is greater.
Ans. The two eggs have the same mass and velocity right before they strike the ground, so their momentums are equal.
pegg1 = pegg2 
p = mv = Ft  The change of momentum (p) equals the impulse (Ft)
Which of the two eggs experience the greater force. Well, if the left hand side is the same for both eggs (because they
have equal mass and velocity as we mentioned before)…
pegg1 = pegg2 = mv
…and the time of impact (t) would be more for the egg dropped on the grass, then

mv = F t  the force of impact must be small because the time of impact is great.

__(a)____ 2. A child falls sideways off a sled while sledding on frictionless ice. What happens to the velocity of the sled?
a) It increases.
b) It remains the same.
c) It decreases.
d) cannot be determined from the information given
Ans. The velocity increases. In order to fall off, the child must apply a force to the sled over a period of time. S/he gives
impulse (Ft) to the sled. This impulse equals the change in momentum of the sled, p = mv. The mass of the
sled/child system decreased since the child fell off so, the velocity must increase.

__(a)____ 3. Which of the following statements properly relates the variables in the equation Ft = p?
a) A large constant force acting over a long time interval causes a large change in momentum.
b) A large constant force acting over a short time interval causes a large change in momentum.
c) Force and time are directly proportional. The bigger the force, the longer the time.
d) Force and momentum are inversely proportional. The larger the force, the smaller the change in momentum.
Ans. In the relationship Ft = p, momentum (p) is proportional to force (F) and time (t), so the bigger either quantity
gets, the bigger the change in momentum gets.

__(a)____ 4. Two objects stick together and move with same velocity after colliding. Identify the type of collisions.
a) perfectly inelastic b) perfectly elastic c) partially inelastic d) partially elastic
Ans. This is a perfectly inelastic collision, when the objects stick together as if they were one object.

__(b)____ 5. The law of conservation of momentum states that

a) the total momentum of all objects interacting with one another is zero.
b) the total momentum of all objects interacting with one another remains constant regardless of the
nature of the forces between the objects.
c) The total initial momentum of all objects interacting with one another does not equal the total final
momentum.
d) The total initial momentum of all objects interacting with one another usually equals the total final momentum.
Ans. The forces that interfere with the law of conservation of momentum are external forces, not internal ones between the
objects.

__(d)____ 6. An ice skater initially skating at a velocity of 3 m/s speeds up to a velocity of 5 m/s. The momentum of the
skater
a) becomes zero.
b) decreases.
c) remains the same.
d) increases.
Ans. increases. The mass of the skater does not change so if his velocity increases, so does his momentum. p = mv.
__(d)____ 7. Two skaters stand facing each other. One skater’s mass is 60 kg and the other’s mass is 72 kg. If the skaters
push away from each other without spinning,
a) the 60 kg skater travels with a lower momentum.
b) their total momentum decreases.
c) their total momentum doubles.
d) their total momenta are equal but opposite.
Ans. the amount of force with which each skater pushes off each other is the same and the amount of time of contact between
the two skaters is the same. They have the same impulse, J = Ft, so they have the same momentum, p = mv,
because Ft = mv

__(b)____ 8. A golf ball traveling 3.0 m/s to the right collides in a head-on collision with a stationary bowling ball in a
friction-free environment. If the collision is almost perfectly elastic, the speed of the golf ball immediately after
the collision is
a) slightly less than 3.0 m/s.
b) slightly greater than 3.0 m/s.
c) equal to 3.0 m/s.
d) much less than 3.0 m/s.
Ans. The speed would be greater because the golf ball’s mass is less than that of the bowling ball.

__(d)____ 9. Tightrope walkers walk with a long flexible rod in order to

a) increase their total weight.
b) allow both hands to hold onto something.
c) move faster along the rope.
d) lower their center of mass.
Ans. The lowered center of mass makes the tightrope walker more stable and less prone to start spinning/teetering on the rope.

__(a)____ 10. A rubber ball with a speed of 5.0 m/s collides head-on elastically with an identical ball at rest. What is the
speed of the initially stopped ball after the collision?
a) zero c) 2.5 m/s
b) 1.0 m/s d) 5.0 m/s
Ans. This is a Newton’s Cradle problem. The incident ball will come to a complete stop and the other ball will bounce away
with precisely the same velocity as the incident ball.

__(c)____ 11. A 3.0-kg object moves to the right at 4.0 m/s. It collides head-on with a 6.0-kg object moving to the left at 2.0
m/s. Which statement is correct?
a) The total momentum both before and after the collision is 24 kg∙ m/s.
b) The total momentum before the collision is 24 kg∙m/s, and after the collision is 0 kg∙m/s.
c) The total momentum both before and after the collision is zero.
d) None of the above is true.
Ans. The momentum of the 3.0 kg object is p = mv = 3 kg  4 m/s = 12 kgm/s The momentum of the 6.0 kg object is
p = mv = 6 kg  2 m/s = 12 kgm/s The total momentum is 12 kgm/s – 12 kgm/s = 0

__(b)____ 12. Two equal mass balls (one red and the other blue) are dropped from the same height, and rebound off the floor.
The red ball rebounds to a higher position. Which ball is subjected to the greater magnitude of impulse during
its collision with the floor?
a) It's impossible to tell since the time intervals and forces are unknown.
b) Both balls were subjected to the same magnitude impulse.
c) the blue ball
d) the red ball
Ans. Both balls have the same mass and the same velocity right before hitting the ground so they have the same momentum
and since impulse = momentum (J = p  Ft = mv), they have the same impulse. What is different is that the red
ball experiences a larger Force (F in Newtons) so it must be in contact with the ground for less time t (in s). That is why
it rebounds higher (it is more elastic).

__(a)____ 13. A rubber ball and a lump of putty have equal mass. They are thrown with equal speed against a wall. The ball
bounces back with nearly the same speed with which it hit. The putty sticks to the wall. Which objects
experiences the greater momentum change?
a) the ball c) Both experience the same momentum change.
b) the putty d) cannot be determined from the information given
Ans. The ball has a momentum of p = mv as it hits the wall. It rebounds with a momentum p = m (v). The change in
momentum is p = pf – pi = –mv – mv = –2mv. In the case of the putty, the final velocity is zero so: p = pf – pi =
m(0) – mv = –mv. The change in momentum of the elastic ball is twice that of the putty.