DANELLE G.

ESPARTERO

Hooke’s law experiment

(Horizontal springs)

Objectives:
1) Measuring force and extension of spring from simulation
2) Finding K (spring constant) from graph
3) Apply Hooke’s law to solve problems
4) Elastic potential energy

Theory:
1) Hooke’s law states that: force is directly proportional to the extension of spring,
F=kx.
Where:
𝐹 = stretching force applied to the spring
𝑘 = spring constant
𝑥 = extension of the spring

2) F=kx, is an equation for a straight line where k is the slope of force vs extension graph.
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3) The work done by F (Elastic potential energy) is equal to U = 2
𝑘𝑥 .
Where:
U= elastic energy
k= spring constant
x= extension of the spring

Procedure:
Part 1:
1) Go to the simulation
https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/hookes-law/latest/hookes-law_en.html.
2) Choose the first option (intro)
3) Start filling the table provided down below. Do not change the spring constant value, set it as
k= 500 N/m throughout the experiment.
4) Keep increasing the force by 20N each time.
5) Calculate the extension of spring using the data recorded in the table.
6) Calculate the Elastic energy.
7) Go to Excel, create a force vs extension of spring graph from the table you filled.
8) Find the spring constant from the graph (slope).
9) Find the percentage error of the spring constant (real value = 500 N/m), (the expected value
is the slope of the graph).

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Part 2:
1) Questions related to k (spring constant)

Part 3:
1) Solve questions on Elastic energy.

Part 1:

1) Fill the table below:

k=500 N /m
Force (N) ( y-axis ) Extension(m) (x-axis) Elastic energy
20 N .04 m .4 J
40 N .08 m 1.6 J
60 N .12 m 3.6 J
80 N .16 m 6.4 J

2) Paste the graph:

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 Slope (k exp) = 500 Spring constant (k real) = 500

Percentage error δ%= 0

Part 2:
1) When increasing the spring constant (k) what do you notice:
As the spring constant increases the displacement between the current position and the
equilibrium position decrease.
If the spring has higher constant it needs more force to stretch thus there is a decrease in
period while if there is looser spring, there is an easy stretch and thus a lower spring
constant.

2) When decreasing the spring constant (k) what do you notice:

As the spring constant decreases the displacement between the current position and the
equilibrium position increase.
The extension of a spring or other elastic object is directly proportional to the force exerted.
When the force is doubled, the extension doubles as well. This works until the
proportionality limit is reached. A stronger spring, with a higher k value, will move the same
mass faster over a shorter amount of time. The extension increases as the spring constant k
decreases. That entails a larger acceleration for a given mass, which means the mass will
move faster and, as a result, complete its motion sooner or in a shorter period of time. In
general, assuming we're talking about a spring of a specific material and thickness, the spring
constant is inversely proportional to the length of the spring. Because the spring constant
and the spring length are inversely related, this is the case. The spring constant expresses the
amount of force required to compress or extend a spring (or a piece of elastic material) by a
certain distance. In a nutshell, the spring constant describes the elastic properties of the
spring.

3) Explain why the formula (F=-kx) is negative in some cases?

A negative sign is indicated in the equation because when the spring is compressed, a
positive force is required to extend it. When it is extended, a negative force is required to
shorten it, or restore it to its natural length.

4) A horizontal spring has a spring constant of 80.0 N/m. What force must be applied to the
spring to compress it by 4.0 cm?
A force of -3.2 N must be applied for a spring to compress by 4cm with a spring constant of
80 N/m. I found this by doing: 80*.04 = 3.2 and since its being compressed we need to add a
negative sign making it -3.2 N.

5) A spring is stretched 0.50 m and the force was 30000 N. What is the spring constant?
The spring constant for a spring stretched .5 m and force of 30000 N is 60000 N/m. I found
this by doing 30000/ .5 = 60000 N/m. As per the formula F = kx.
Data given,
Length=0.50m
Force=30,000N
Spring constant=Force/Length

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 =30,000N/0.5m
=60,000N/m
Spring constant is 60,000 N/m

Part 3:

1) A spring with a constant of 76 N/m is extended by 0.9 m. How much energy is stored in the
extended spring?
30.78 J of energy is stored in the extended spring. I found this by doing: .9^2 = .81 then
(.81*76)/2 = 30.78 J. I found this through the use of .5*k(e^2) = E

Potential energy = 1/2 * Spring Constant * (Displacement)2

Potential energy = 1/2 * 76n/m * (0.9m)2
Potential energy = 30.78 nm Note that (n * m) = J
Potential Energy= 30.78J

2) A toy rocket-launcher contains a spring with a spring constant of 35 N/m. How much must
the spring be compressed to store 1.5 J of energy?
THe spring must be compressed .29 m for it to store 1.5 J of energy. I found this by doing:
1.5*2 = 3 then sqrt (3/35) = .29 m. I found this through the use of .5*k(e^2) = E

3) A box is connected to a spring is extended to 200mm, and it stored 3578J of energy. Find the
force.
35780 N of force is required to extend a box .2 m which stores 3578 J of energy. I found this
by doing 200/1000 = .2 then (3578*2)/(.2^2) = 178900 N/m. Then to find force we do:
178900*.2 = 35780 N.

Conclusion:

From the experiment performed above, it can be concluded that the Hooke’s law holds true
for a metal spring. This is because the extension produced by the spring is directly
proportional to the force applied on it. For the first spring, the results obtained are not very
accurate due to the sources of errors identified above. However, the second spring gave very
accurate results as I had hypothesized according to the theory. Therefore, this experiment is
a reliable way of verifying Hooke’s law using a metal spring.

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