CHAPTER 6

CENTER OF MASS, MOMENTUM, IMPULSE, AND

COLLISION

KEY CONCEPTS, EQUATIONS, AND PROBLEM SOLVING STRATEGIES:

Concept Discussion
Center of Mass • The center of mass, is the mass-weighted
average of the position of each particle
making up the body.

𝑚1 𝑥1 + 𝑚2 𝑥2 +. . . . +𝑚𝑛 𝑥𝑛
𝑥𝑚 =
Σm
Where:
xm – Center of mass
m – Mass
x – Position
• The velocity and acceleration of the
center of mass of a system is found the
same way as the center of mass

𝑚1 𝑣1 + 𝑚2 𝑣2 +. . . . +𝑚𝑛 𝑣𝑛
𝑣𝑚 =
Σm
𝑚1 𝑎1 + 𝑚2 𝑎2 +. . . . +𝑚𝑛 𝑎𝑛
𝑎𝑚 =
Σm
Momentum • Momentum is the product of the mass
and velocity of an object.
• It is the tendency of the object to keep
moving in the same direction unless acted
on by an outside force.

𝑝 = 𝑚𝑣
Where:
p – Momentum
m – mass
v- velocity
Impulse • Impulse is the product of the average
force multiplied by the time interval over
which it acts: the change in momentum

J = 𝐹𝑡
 Where:
J – Impulse
F – Net Force
t - time
Collision • Elastic Collision
➢ The colliding objects move
separately after collision.

𝑚1 𝑢1 + 𝑚2 𝑢2 = 𝑚1 𝑣1 + 𝑚2 𝑣2

• Inelastic Collision
➢ The colliding objects move
together after collision.

𝑚1 𝑢1 + 𝑚2 𝑢2 = (𝑚1 + 𝑚2 ) 𝑣

• Explosion
➢ The objects involved are in
contact with each other before
explosion and are separated after
the explosion.

(𝑚1 + 𝑚2 ) 𝑢 = 𝑚1 𝑣1 − 𝑚2 𝑣2

Where:
m – mass
u – velocity before collision
v – velocity after collision
EXAMPLES:

A. Center of Mass
1. A 59-kg woman and a 71-kg man sit on a seesaw, 3.5 m long. Where is their center of mass?
Solution:
𝑚1 𝑥1 + 𝑚2 𝑥2 +. . . . +𝑚𝑛 𝑥𝑛
𝑥𝑚 =
Σm
(59 𝑘𝑔)(0 𝑚) + (71 𝑘𝑔)(3.5 𝑚)
𝑥𝑚 =
(59 + 71) kg
248.5 𝑘𝑔 𝑚
𝑥𝑚 =
130 kg
𝑥𝑚 = 1.91 𝑚

B. Momentum
1. What is the momentum of an object with a mass of 2.00 kg and a velocity of 40.0 m/s?
Solution:
𝑝 = 𝑚𝑣
𝑝 = 2 𝑘𝑔(40 𝑚/𝑠)
𝑝 = 80 𝑘𝑔 𝑚/𝑠
C. Impulse
1. A force of 30000 N is exerted for 4.00 s on a 95000 kg mass. What is the impulse of the force?
Solution:
J = 𝐹𝑡
J = 300000𝑁(4𝑠)
J = 120000 𝑁𝑠
D. Collision
1. Two particles of masses 1kg and 2kg are moving in the same direction at velocity of 30 ms -1
and 15 ms-1 respectively, if they stick together after collision, what is the final velocity?
Solution:
𝑚1 𝑢1 + 𝑚2 𝑢2 = (𝑚1 + 𝑚2 ) 𝑣
1 𝑘𝑔(30 𝑚/𝑠) + 2 𝑘𝑔 (15 𝑚/𝑠) = (1 + 2) 𝑘𝑔 (𝑣)
1𝑘𝑔(30𝑚/𝑠) + 2𝑘𝑔(15𝑚/𝑠)
𝑣=
(1 + 2)𝑘𝑔
60 𝑘𝑔 𝑚/𝑠
𝑣=
3 𝑘𝑔
𝑣 = 20 𝑚/𝑠
 Exercises and Problems

Instruction: Answer the following questions below, show your solution.

CENTER OF MASS

A. A 5 kg mass placed at the origin and a 9 kg mass is placed at x = 2 m. What is the center
of mass?
B. An 8 kg of mass is placed at x = 3 m. Where should a 10 kg mass be placed along so that
the center of mass will be located at x = 4.5 m
C. The position of masses 4 kg, 6 kg, 7 kg, and 10 kg are (0,0), (4,0), (0,5), and (5,6)
respectively. Determine the position of the center of mass of this system?

MOMENTUM

D. A force was applied to a 5 kg block to speed it up from rest to 20 m/s in 4 s.

1. What is the change in the momentum of the object?
2. What average force was exerted on the object?
E. How much force is exerted by a hose that expels water at a rate of 15 kg/s at a speed of
30 m/s?

IMPULSE

F. A golf ball of mass 0.045 kg is hit off the tee at a speed of 45 m/s. The golf club was in
contact with the ball for 3.5x10-3 s.
1. What is the impulse imparted to the golf ball?
2. What is the average force exerted on the ball by the golf club?
G. A 12 kg hammer strikes a nail at a velocity of 8.5 m/s and comes to rest in a time interval
of 8 microseconds.
1. What is the impulse given to the nail?
2. What is the average force acting on the nail?
 COLLISION

H. The muzzle velocity of a 50.0 g shell leaving a 3.00 kg rifle is 400. m/s. What is the recoil
velocity of the rifle?
I. Imagine that you are hovering next to a space shuttle and your buddy of equal mass
who is moving a 4 km/h with respect to the ship bumps into you. If he holds onto you,
how fast do you both move with respect to the ship?
J. If an 800 kg sports car slows to 13.0 m/s to check out an accident scene and the 1200 kg
pick-up truck behind him continues traveling at 25.0 m/s, with what velocity will the two
move if they lock bumpers after a rear-end collision?