Unit 5

Acceleration
 What is Acceleration?
Speed is the rate of change of position.

Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity.

 Acceleration Hints!
Because velocity includes speed and direction
of an object, acceleration can be a change in:

1. How fast the object is moving

2. What direction the object is moving

Acceleration occurs when an objects changes

its speed or direction, or both!
 Speeding up or Slowing down?

When a car speeds up,

that is POSITIVE
ACCELERATION!

When a car slows down,

that is NEGATIVE
ACCELERATION or
DECELERATION!
 Acceleration as a Vector

A softball accelerates when it is thrown, hit, or

caught. What change in motion occurs in each
example?

•Thrown-ball accelerates as it is thrown

•Hit-ball changes direction
•Caught-ball decelerates (negative acceleration)
 Acceleration Formula
Acceleration = Δv / Δt

a = ( Vf – Vi ) / t

Units: m/s2; km/hr2; ft/s2; km/h/s

Example #1

A motorcycle starts at rest and accelerates to 80

m/s in 20 seconds. What is the acceleration of
the motorcyle?

a = ( Vf – Vi ) / t = (80 m/s – 0 m/s) / 20s

a= 4 m/s2
Example #2
A skateboarder moves in a straight line at 3 m/s
and comes to a stop in 2 s. What is their
acceleration?

a = ( Vf – Vi ) / t
a = (0 m/s – 3 m/s) / 2s
a = -1.5 m/s2 (deceleration)
Example #3:
As a roller coaster starts down a slope with a velocity of 4
m/s. 3 seconds later, its velocity is 22 m/s in the same
direction. What is its acceleration of the coaster?

Vi = 4 m/s
Vf = 22 m/s
t=3s

a = (Vf – Vi) / t

a = (22 m/s – 4 m/s) / 3 s

a = 6 m/s2
Kinematic Equations
The Big “5”
 Kinematics Equations
Kinematics is a branch of physics that studies motion. With these equations and
what we now know about displacement, time, velocity and acceleration we can
calculate any of these if unknown. Notice on the right side the variable that is not in
the equation to the left. This helps in determining the right equation.
Who Cares

V f  Vi  at d

d  Vi t  1 2 at 2 Vf
1
d  (Vi  Vf )t a
2

 Vi  2ad t
2 2
Vf

d  V f t  1
2 at 2
Vi
Example #4:
A box slides down an incline with uniform
acceleration. It starts from rest and attains a speed
of 2.7 m/s in 3 s.

Find:

a. The acceleration
b. The distance moved in the first 6 seconds
Example #5:

A truck moves from rest and moves with a

constant acceleration of 5 m/s2. Find the speed
and the distance traveled after 4 seconds.
Example #6:
A car starts from rest and coasts down a hill with
a constant acceleration. If it goes 90 meters in 8
seconds, find:

a. The acceleration
b. The velocity after 8 seconds
Example #7:
An auto’s velocity increases uniformly from 6.0 m/s
to 20.0 m/s while covering 70 meters. Find the
acceleration and the time taken.
Example #8:
A plane starts from rest and accelerates along
the ground before takeoff. It moves 600 m in 12 s.

Find:

a. The acceleration
b. Speed at the end of 12 seconds
c. Distance moved during the twelfth second