21MS084 (OM KHARE)

Verification of Newton’s Second Law of

Motion
Aim:
To verify Newton's second law of motion by accelerating a mass
on an air track and tracking its movement.

Apparatus:
Tracking Camera, Air Track Setup, Slider, Air Pump to adjust
airflow along the track on which the slider moves, weights which
can be put on the slider, and the pulley to adjust mass and force
on the slider. The Videocom software interfaces between the
air-track apparatus and the computer to collect and analyze data.

Principle:
According to Newton’s Second Law of Motion, F=ma, where F is
the force, m is the mass of the object and a is the acceleration of
the object. To verify this law using the air track system, we need
to show that when the mass of the object is fixed, the acceleration
of the object is proportional to the applied force. Also, when the
applied force is kept constant and the mass of the object is varied,
the acceleration varies inversely with mass.

Setup:

Hanging weight is connected by a string to a movable slider

which is placed on the air track which acts as an almost
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frictionless horizontal surface. Weights can be put on the

slider and the pulley to adjust the mass and force on the
slider. The reflector is pasted on the slider to increase the
intensity of light received from the slider. The Videocom
software along with the tracking camera which detects light
intensity from the reflectors to track movement interfaces
between the air-track apparatus and the computer to collect
and analyze data.

Working Formulae:
● Let 𝑇 be the tension in the string connecting slider and the
hanging weights, 𝑔 is the acceleration due to gravity and 𝜇
is the coefficient of friction.:

● For the (vertical) motion of the hanging weight 𝑚:

𝑇 = 𝑚𝑔 − 𝑚𝑎.

● For the (horizontal) motion of the system 𝑀:

𝑇 = 𝑀𝑎 + 𝜇𝑀𝑔
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● 𝑎 = (𝑚𝑔 − 𝜇𝑀𝑔)/(𝑚+𝑀) = 𝑔 (𝑚 − 𝜇𝑀) ⁄ (𝑚+𝑀).

● For 𝜇=𝟢, we have 𝑎 = 𝑚𝑔 ⁄ (𝑚+𝑀) i.e 𝑎 ∝ 𝐹 and 𝑎 ∝ 1⁄

(𝑚+𝑀)

● In the experiment, we try to minimize the friction by using

air track and use (𝑚+𝑀) as the mass of the system that
moves.

GRAPHS AND CALCULATIONS :

For the fixed mass case-
(1) X(m) vs t(s)

(2) v(m/s) vs t(s)

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(3) a(m/s^2) vs t(s)

(4) F(N) vs a(m/s^2)

F=mg , a=fitted acceleration
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F(N)=mg a(m/s^2)=fitted acceleration

0.006867 0.0397911
0.0136359 0.0917888
0.0204048 0.160061
0.0270756 0.212711
0.0338445 0.276376
0.0405153 0.335715

The slope of the above plot represents the total mass of the
system i.e M+m. And the slope has computed out to be 0.112811
kg +/- 0.001686(1.494%)

The expected value of total mass(M+m)=96.65 gm or 0.09665 kg

The calculated value of total mass(M+m)=0.112811 kg
Percentage error(%)=16.72%
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For the fixed force case-

(1) x(m) vs t(s)
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(2) v(m/s) vs t(s)

(3) a(m/s^2) vs t(s)

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(4) (M+m)(kg) vs 1/fitted acceleration(s^2/m)

Total mass =M+m

Total mass=M+m Inverse of fitted

acceleration(s^2/m)
0.09665 5.149913996
0.10001 5.698038165
0.20029 8.195579305
0.30047 11.07787748
0.40061 13.27985976

The slope of the above plot represents the fixed force which is
computed out to be 0.0376629 N +/- 0.001445(3.836%)

The expected value of fixed force F(=mg) was 0.0405153 N

The calculated value of fixed force F(=mg) came out to be
0.0376629 N
Percentage error(%)=7.04%
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Discussion:
The calculated value of the total mass(M+m) of the system is slightly
deviated from the expected value(M+m).and the expected and
calculated value of fixed force F(=mg) also has some error.the
possible reasons of the error maybe-
● Rounding off error=the computed data values from the software
were rounded off while providing us the data set
● Air track may not be able to decrease the friction upto high
accuracy resulting in the error.
● Limitations of the camera recording the position of moving slider
can be reflected in the values reported

Conclusion:
1. We see from the graph that the force(F) is directly proportional to
acceleration(a)
2. From the graph it is evident that Total mass(M+m) is directly
proportional to inverse of fitted acceleration(1/a)

Thus, it is evident from the experiment that the applied force is

directly proportional to the acceleration with which a particular
mass move,thus it can be concluded that Newton’s second law
of motion holds valid