Centres of gravity A body behaves as if its whole weight were concen- trated at one point, called its centre of gravity (c-g.). even though the earth attracts every part of it The eg. of a ruler is at its centre, and it is when supported there it balances, Figure 61a. IFit is supported at any other point it topples because the moment of its weight [about the point of support is not zer0, Figure 6.1b. ° 50 100 0 50 100 SS ee fut spon ws a b Figure 6.1 Your cy, is near the centre of your body and the vertical line from it to the floor must be within the area enclosed by your feet or you will fall over. You ‘can test this by standing with one arm and the side of ‘one foot pressed against a wall, Figure 6.2. Now try t© raise the other leg sideways. Can you do it without falling over? Figure 62 A tightrope walker has « keep his c.g, exactly above the ope. Some carry a long pole to help them to balance, Figure 6.3, The combined weight of the walker and the pole is then spread out more and if the walker begins to topple to one side he moves the pole to the other side. Figure 6.3 The eg. of a regularly shaped body of the same density all over is at its centre. In other cases it can be found by experiment. Practical work C.g. using the plumb line Suppose we have to find the cg. of an irregularly shaped lamina (a thin sheet) of cardboard Make a hole A in the lamina and hang it so that it can swing freely on a nail clamped in a stand. Ie will come to rest with its cg. vertically below A. To locate the vertical line through A tie a plumb Tine (@ thread and a weight) to the nail, Figure 6.4, and mark its pos- ition AB on the lamina. The c.g. lies on AB. a — sail damped | = instané 5 plumb line Hang the lamina from another position © and mark the plumb line position CD. The eg. lies on CID and must be at the point of intersection of AB and CD. Check this by hanging the lamina from a third hole, pole — i lamina —f— Figure 6.44 Abo try balancing it at its c.g. on the tip of your forefinger. Devise a method using a plumb line of finding the cg. of a tripod Toppling The position of the c.g. of a body affects whether or not it topples over exsily. This is imporcanc in the design of such things as tall vehicles (which tend ta overturn when rounding a comer), racing cars, reading lamps and even teacups, A body topples when the vertical line through its cg, falls outside its base, Figure 6.5a. Otherwise it remains stable, Figure 6.5b. centre of- Toppling can be investigated by placing an empry can ona plank (with a rough surface to prevent slipping) which is slowly tilted. The angle of tle is noted when the can fills over. This is repeated with 1 kg in the can How does this affect the position of the og.? The same procedure is followed with a second can of the same height as the frst but of greater width, It will be found that the second can with the weight in i can be tilted through the greater angle. ‘The stability ofa body is therefore increased by @ lowering its cx., Gi) increasing the area of its base In Figure 6.6a the cg, of a tractor is being found. Its necessary to do this when testing a new design since tractors are often driven over sloping surfaces and any tendency to overtum must be discovered. The stability of a double-decker bus is being tested in Figure 6.6). When only the top deck is fully laden with passengers (eepresented by sand bags in the test), it must not topple if tilted through an angle of 28°. Racing cars have a low cg. and a wide wheel base Figure 6.6 AuineiB 40 sanuoyFORCES AT REST rnocdie——-——=4 ” Stability ay cork \ Three terms are used in connection with stability fork re A body is in stable equilibrium if when slightly displaced and then released it returns to its previous position. The ball at the bottom of the dish in pe Figure 6.7a is an example, Its c.g. rises when it is displaced. It rolls back because its weight has a moment about the point of contact, a A body is in unstable equilibrium if it moves farther away fiom its previous position when slightly displaced. The ball in Figure 6.7b behaves in this way, Its cg. fills when it is displaced slightly. A body is in neutral equilibrium if it stays in its new position when displaced, Figure 6.7c. Its cg, does not rise or fall ish bot! ° ‘ point of contact v b contre weight Figure 68 of mass 2 Stable 7 Ca A selfrightiiig toy has a heavy base, Figure 6.9, and rr when tilted, the weight acting through the c.g. has a nioment about the point of contact. This restores it t0 the upright position, weight bb Unstable © Neutral Figure 6.7 Balancing tricks and toys Some tricks that you can ery and toys you can make are shown in Figures 6,8 and 6.9. In each case the cg. « is vertically below the point of support and equilib rin is stable fie re wire matchtiks iron nut le b Figure 6.9Adding forces Im structures such as a giant oil platform, Figure 7-1, two or more forces may act at the same point. Tt is then alten useful for the design engineer to know the value of the single force, ie. the resultant, which has exactly the same effect 28 these forces. Ifthe forces act sa the same straight line the resultant is found by ‘Gmple addition or subtraction, bat if they do not they gre added by the parallelogram law. Figure 7.1 Practical work Parallelogram law [Arrange the apparatus a in Figure 7.2a with a sheet of paper behind ic on a vertical board. We have fo find the resultant of forces Pand Q- Read the values of P and Q from the spring bal ancer Mark on the paper the dircetions of Py Q and W's shown by the strings. Remove the paper and, sing a seale of Lema fo represent 11N, draw ©: ob we OD to represent the three forces PQ and W which act at O, Figure 7.2b. (IV mass = 10N, therefore OD = 10cm.) weight of the 1 kg Vertical board se the scale fem ~ 1 yw 5 b D Figure 72 P and Q together are balanced by TV and so their resultant must be a force equal and opposite to 15: Complete the parallelogram OACB. Measure the diagonal OC: if it is equal in size Ge. 1m) and opposite in direction ro TV chen it represents the resultant of P and Q. “The parallelogram law for adding two forces i: If wwo forces acting at a point are represented in fc and direction by the sides of a parallelogram Geawn from the point, their resultant is represented in size and dreetion by the diagonal ofthe parallelogram drawn from the point Examples 1 Two people carrying a heavy bucket ‘The sweight of the bucket s balanced by the resultant F of F and F,, Figore 733 2 Two tugs pulling a ship. The esultant of 7, aud TT is forwards, Figure 7.3b, and so the ship moves forwards.‘tugs a b Figure 7.2 Worked example Forces of +.0.IN and 5.0N act at the same point. a What is the largest resultant they can produce? b What is che smallest resultant they can produce? © If they act at 45° to each other, find by a scale drawing the size and direction of their resulcanc. a Largest resultant is 9 N when they act im dhe same direction in the same straight linc. b Smallest resuileanc is 1. N when they act in opposite directions in the same straight lin © Using a scale of cm TN, draw two lines OA and © of lengths 4-0cm and 5.0cm respectively. atan angle of 45° to each other, to represent forces ef 4.0 N and 5.0.N, Figure 7+ Complete the parallelogram ACT enal ©C represents the resultant in size and direction. OC B.3em -. resultane = 8.3N Angle COB = 21° Resultant is 8.3N ac 21° to the SN force. Note Choose a scale which allows you to draw as large a parallelogram as you can. Careful drawing, will then give accurate results. he diag- Seale: 1.0cm — 1.0‘Vectors and scalars A vector quantity is one such as force which is described completely only if both its size (magnitude) and direction are stated. It is not enough to say, for ~ example, ‘a force of 10.N’, but rather ‘a force of 10. N acting vertically downwards’. A vector can be represented by a straight line whose length represents the magnitude of the quantity and whose direction gives its line of action. An arrow on the line shows which way along the line it acts. A scalar quantity has magnitude only. Mass is a scalar and is completely described when its value is known. Scalars are added by ordinary arithmetic; vectors are added geometrically by the parallelogram Jaw which ensures that their directions as well as their magnitudes are considered. A vector can be split up or resolved into two com- ponents at right angles to each other. In Figure 7.5, vector OC is the resultant of the perpendicular vectors OA and OB. This equivalence means that we can treat the horizontal and vertical components of vectors separately, for example when we add forces or consider the motion of projectiles (Chapter 13). A c Figure 7.5 sano BunnyWork, energy, power In science the word work has a différent meaning from its everyday one. Work is done when a force moves. A boat pulling a water skier does work, Figure 8.1, as does a crane when it lifts a load. However, no work is done in the scientific sense by someone holding a heavy pile of books; an upwards force is exerted but no motion results. Figure 8.1 Measuring work If a building worker carries ten bricks up to the fitst floor of a building he does more work than if he carries only one brick because he has to exert a larger force. Even more work is required if he carries the ten bricks to the second floor The amount depends on the size of the force applied and the dis tance it moves. We therefore measure work by work done work = force X distance moved in direction of force ‘The unit of work is the joule (f) and is the work done when a force of 1 newton (N) moves through 1 metre (i). For example, if you have to pull with a force of 50.N to move a box steadily 3m in the direction of the force, Figure 8.2a, the work done is 50N X 3mm = 150.Nm = 150J-That is, Joules = newtons X metres where 1] = 1Nm = 1kgm If you lift a mass of 3kg vertically through 2m, Figure 8.2b, you have to exert a vertically upwards force equal to the weight of the body, ie. 30N (approximately) and the work done is 30N X 2m = ONm = 60}. 3kg Figure 8.2 Note that we must always take the distance in the direction in which the force acts. Forms of energy Energy enables work to be done, and men and machines need a supply of it. Experience shows that it exists in many different forms. a) Chemical energy Food and fitels like coal, oil and gas are stores of chemical energy: The energy of food is released by chemical reactions in our bodies. Fuels release their ergy when they are burnt (a chemical reaction) in an engine or other device. A car engine uses chemicalb) Potential energy (p.e.) This iy energy which a body has because of its con= sition (¢.g. position).A body above the earth's surface has pe. and ean do work. The weight in a wound-up grandfather clock or at the top of « pile driver has Pe. which it loses as it falls. The water in a mouneain reservoir is another example of something with pe and is the source of eneryy for hydroelectric power stations in which a water turbine drives an clecttie generator, Figure 8.3. Wound-up watch springs and stretched elastic bands have p.e. because of their ‘strained’ condition, electrical energy from generator © Chemical energy (from muscles of hand) to pee. (str energy of catapult) Figure 84 Some energy transfers ©) Kinetic energy (k.e.) Any moving body has ke. and the faster it moves the more ke. it has, For example, as 2 hamuner strikes a nail or an earth-moving machine levels the ground it exerts aforce and does work because of the Ke. i pos- sesses asa result of its motion, Kinetic and potential energy are types of mechan= ical energy and are discussed further in Chapter 16, d) Other forms Electrical energy is delivered by batteries and gen- erators. Thermal energy or heat is the name given to the energy a body has because of the ke, and p.e of its molecules. The faster its molecules move, the higher is its temperature and the greater is its thermal energy (ee Chapter 23), The sun gives out huge amounts of radiation energy (c.g. light), which is necessary for plant and animal life. Atoms contain nuclear energy. Sound is a form of energy which travels as waves Energy transfers One of the useul things about energy is that it can be transferred from one form to another. Study the energy transfers shown in Figure 8.4 Some devices have been invented to cause particular nergy teinsfers, For example, microphone changes =! d Potential energy of water to kinetic energy of turbine to electrical energy from generator Jemod ‘A610u9 “om,FORCES AT REST Noun energy into electrical energy; a loudspeaker does the reverse, Belts, chains or gears are used to transfer energy between moving parts, e.g. in a bicycle. In Chapter 52 we will look in detail at devices which transfer electrical energy to ke, heat and light. a) Demonstration ‘The apparatus in Figure 85 may be used to show some energy changes. Chemical energy of the battery becomes electrical energy when itis connected by the changeover switch to the motor. In the motor, elec- trical energy is changed to kc. by making it rotate. ‘The motor raises the load, so giving it p.e If the changeover switch is then joined to the lamp and the load allowed to fall, the load loses pe. and rakes the line shaft unie rotate the motor. The motor is now being driven and has kce. It acts as a generator and produces electrical energy which is changed ta light and thermal energy in the lamp. lamp (1.25) changeover switch s ‘ el generator Figure 8.5 b) Conservation of energy In all energy changes the principle (law) of cons- ervation of energy is found to be true. [cis stated as follows: Energy cannot be created or destroyed but it can bbe transferred from one form into another. To measure energy transfers we use the fact that in such a transfer work is done, For example, if you have to exert an upwards force of IN co raise a stone through a vertical distance of 1.5m, the work done is 15]. This is also the amount of chemical ene: f om your muscles to p.e. of the stone. All forms of energy are measured in joules If it seems in a transfer that some energy has disap- peared, the ‘lost’ energy is offen converted into thermal energy, For example, when a brick falls its pe. becomes k.e.As it hits the ground, its temperature and that of che ground rises and thermal energy (and a litcle sound energy) is produced. In practice, some thermal energy is produced in all energy transform- ations, O Ways of saving energy at home Here are some suggestions for saving energy at home. Switch off unnecessary lights and use compact flu- orescent lights. Do not put hot food into a fridge or freezer. Put fids on pans, and adjust the gas flame to suit the size of your pan. Make full use of a heated oven when cooking, Do not heat more water in a kettle than you need out the element of an electric kettle must be covered) and do not leave it boiling, Use Do not wash up in running water. full loads of washing in a washing machine. Power ‘The more powerful a car is the faster it can climb a hill, Le. the faster it does work. The power of 2 device is the work it does per second, i.e. the rate at which it does work. This is the same as the rate at which it transfers energy from one form to another work done energy transfor time taken power ‘The unit of power is the watt (W) and is a rate of working of 1 joule per second, ic. |W = 1Js~ Larger units are the kilowatt (kW) and the megawatt (iw) 1kW = 1000W = 10°W TMW = 1000000.W = 10°W Ifa machine does 500] of work in 10s its power is SUJ/1s = S0Js | = $0-W.A small car develops a maximum power of about 25 KW.Practical work Your own power Get someone with a stop watch to find the time tyou take to run up a flight of stairs, the longer the better. Find your weight mg (in newtons). Caleulace the total vertical height f (in metres) you have climbed by measuring the height of one stair and counting the number of stairs The work you do {in joules) in lifting your weight to the top of the stairs is (your weight) X (vertical height of stairs). Calculate your power P (in watts) fiom the equation P= mht About 0.5 KW is,good. (I horse power = 73kW) Worked examples 1 A 500kg load is lifted through a vertical height of 10m in 25s by a crane. Calculate the power of the crane, mass of load = m = 500kg weight of load = mg = 500 X 10 = 50U0N, height lifted = h = 10m work done by crane = mgh = 5000N X 10m. = 50000) time to lift load s work done power of crane = Fo ingh T 50.0005 Insymbol, P 2000 W = 2kW 2. How long will it ake an electric motor of power output 25kW to lift a mass of 1000kg through 20mm? mass of load = m = 1000kg weight ofload = mg = 1000 X 10 = 10000N height lifted = m work done by moor = mgt = 10000N X 20m = 200000] = 2 x 105] P=25kW x<10°W power of moto 7 =25 = 25 x low time taken = ¢ =? igh Bu p= igh ey 2x 105J oy 5X 10°W (Js) 20 as = 8s Friction Friction is the force that opposes one surface moving, or trying to move, over another. It can be a help or a hindrance. We could not walk if it did not exist between the soles of our shoes and the ground. Our feet would slip backwards, as they tend to if we walk on ice. On the other hand engineers try to reduce friction to a minimum in the moving parts of machinery by using lubricating oils and ball bearings When a gradually increasing force P is applied through a spring balance to a block on a table, Figure 8.6, it does not move at first. This is because an equally increasing but opposing frictional force F acts where the block and table touch. At any instant P and F are equal and opposite. block spring balance F Figure 8.6 If Pis increased farther the block eventually moves; as it does so F has its maximum value, called starting or static friction. When itis moving ata steady speed the balance reading is slightly less than chat for starting friction, Sliding or dynamie friction is therefore less than static friction. A weight on the block increases the force pressing the surfaces together and increases friction. When work is done against friction, the tempera tures of the bodies in contact rise (as you can test by rubbing your hands together) and thermal energy is produced. Jemed ‘ABs0U9 Hom,4 Sources of energy Enerpy is a necessary ‘raw material? jn the modern world, a) Fossil fuels Oil, navural gas and coal are fossil fuels formed from the decayed remains of animals and plants which lived millions of years ago on earth. At present, most useful forms of energy come from fossil fuels which orig inally ‘Unfortunately oil and gas are unlikely heyond the end of the century, though coal may not run out for another 200 or so years. There is also concern that burning fossil fitels in power stations and in cars pollutes the atmosphere with harmful gases cived their energy from the sun o last much such as sulphur dioxide and carbon dioxide, The latter aggravates the ylass-house effect (Chapter 31) and is believed to be contributing to global warming. As a result, there is worldwide concern to make the best of what we still have and to develop alternative (but more bulky and less convenient) sourees. b) Solar energy Solar cells made from semiconducting materials convert sunlight ditectly into electricity. Panels of cells are connected together to provide sinallscale power opments have made latge-scale generation more cost effective and there is now a large solar power plant in California: The sun's energy can also be harnessed using large curved mirrors (Chapter 41) to focus the sun's rays on to a small area. The energy can then be used, for example, to turn water to steam for driving the turbine of an elec- generation in remote areas, Recent de trical generator, Figure 8.7 shows the large reflector at ‘Mont Louis in the Prench Pyrenees which © 35000 small mirrors, It produces temperatures of over 300°C and follows the sun by rotating om a track, systems sts of Roof-top solar collectors for solar heatin in Chapter 31. They are a good way of yestic energy costs. are consider reducing do ©) Wind and wave energy ¢ three blades each up to 30m long, Fig used to drive electrical generators. Wind farms’ of 20 co 1) turbines spaced about 4tHim apart provide a useful ‘top-up to electricity supplies. The 20.7 MW Wigton wind farm in Jamaica provides 4 of the island’ electricity. However, some people complain that wind farms are noisy and unsightly Small schemes are under development in which wave energy is harvested by converting the rocking it windmills called wind turbines with two or jure 8.8, can be motion of a floating object to the rotary motion needed to operate a generator. an WAN Figure 88 ) Tidal and hydroelectric energy The flow of water from a higher to a Jower level from behind a tidal barrage (barrier) or the dam ofa hydro- electric scheme is used to dri a water curbine connected to a generator. One of the largest working tidal schemes is the La Grande F project in Canada, Figure 8.9.The generation of hydroelectric power a8 a reliable source of energy is becoming increasingly popular in the Catibbean; ip the Dominican Republic over 25% of electricity generation comes fiom hydro~ lectrie plants. However, the building of a dam has associated risks and can have a significant impact on the environment, destroying wildlife habitats and flooding land previously used for forestry or farming,Figure 8.9 e) Geothermal energy Scientists knew that huge amounts of heat are stored threughoue the earth, deep im certain rocks, e.g. wranice, in voleanic and earthquake regions. Ac a depth of 2 len the temperature is typically 80 °C, about 200°C. Te tap these ‘heat reservoirs’, two boles are drilled and the cold water pumped Gown one comes up the other as hoe wacer or as steam.The latter can be used to gemerate electricity or beat buildings. However, the whole operation is Costly and difficule. ad at Gkim f) Nuclear energy ‘The principles involved in the ope power station will be ration of a wucles considered in Chapter 68. Although there are safety problems if'a faule develops and radiatiom leakage Occurs and environmental problems arising, from the disposal of dangerous waste Materials, ic seerns Likely thar nuclear energy im some form may be necessary in the fucure. nee using it as Well as in usings it ferent views as to whae is tbe b. “There are risks Nuclear power stations cost more to build thay other kinds, but their running costs are less and their safety record is very good. g) The future If developing, counter living: of industrializ. be required. FE world’ es are to enjoy the standards of sd nations, additional eneray will tra demands will also be made by che ever-incredsing population.At present, half the energy used in the world comes from oil, which, like coal and gas, is moc renewabic Renewable sources such as the sun, wind and wayes are more or less inexhaustible but require considerable development before they can replace fossil fucis on a substantial scale and at reasonable cost. For the immediate future, one solution to the energy crisis is to use nuclear energy to generate elec— tricity — one tonne of uranium produces more energy than 20000 tonnes of coal — and preserve the remaining fossil fel stocks for making medicines, plastics, fertilizers and other useful chemicals. This amakes ¢comomic semse since uranium has few com- maercial uses apart from electricity generation. Today. im some industrialized countries, muclear power stations produce up co 60% of their electricity and are as cheap as or cheaper than other types of power station.Machines A machine is any device which enables a force (the effort) acting at one point to overcome another force (the load) acting at some other point. A lever is a simple machine, as are pulleys, gears, screws, etc. They are used to build more complicated machines such as the crane in Figure 9.1, Figure 9.1 Levers In Figure 9.2 a lever is being used (like a crowbar) to lift a load of 100N through 0.5m. by applying an effort at: the given, the moments. opposite end. Using the measurements jort can be calculated from the law of load 1001 “ 1m “pivot or fulerum Figure 9.2 ‘Taking moments about the pivot O, we can say that as the effort just hegins to raise the load clockwise moment = anticlockwise moment effort X 2m = effort = load X 1m = 100N X 1m. 10/2 ON The lever has enabled the effort to raise a load uvice as large, Le. it is a force-multiplier, but the effort has had to move twice as far as the load (eg, 1m when the load rises 0.5 m). ‘Other everyday examples of levers were considered. in Chapter 5 and shown in Figure 5.4 (p. 16). The crowbar and wheelbarrow are force-multipliers since the effort is applied farther from the falerum than the load. In the forearm, the effort (biceps muscle) is nearer the fulcrum than the load and so has to be greater but the load moves farther than the effort, ic. the forearm is a distance-maltiplier Efficiency of a machine Machines make work easier but they do not reduce the amount that has to be done for a particular job, No machine is perfect and in practice more work is done by the effort on a machine then by the machine con the load. Some work has to be done in overcoming friction and moving parts of the machine itself. That is,the energy input to a machine is always greater than the energy output. In a lever there is friction at the fulcrum, In the example in Figure 9.2, the effort would exceed 50/N in practice The efficiency (pronounced ‘eta’) is defined as follows: work done on load efficiency = work done by effort energy ‘output energy input Ie is usually expressed as a percentage and is always less than 110%."Pulleys a) Single fixed pulley A single fixed pulley enables us to ta load L more conveniently by applying a downs effore (Figure 9.3). E need be only slightly greater than Lif friction sn the pulley bearings is negligible. Figure 9.3, b) Single moving pulley If the effort applied to the free end of the rope is E the total upward force on the pulley is 22 since two parts of the rope support it (Figure 9.4). A load of L = 2E can therefore be raised if the pulley and rope are frictionless and weightless. The force- multiplication is 2. ‘To raise the load by 11m requires each side of the rope to shorten by 1m, The five end has therefore to tuke up 2m of slack, a é Figure 9.4 ) Block and tackle This type of pulley syscem is used in cranes (Figure 9.1) and lis, It consists of two blocks each with one or ‘more pulleys. In the arrangement of Figure 9.5a the pulleys in che blocks are shown one above the other for clarity;in practice they are side by side on the sanie axle, Figure 9.5b,The rope passes round each pulley in turn. “The total upward force on the lower block is 4 since it is supported by four parts of the rope and a load of L = 42 ean be raised, Hence the force-multi- plication = 4 if the pulleys are frictionless and sweightless, However, E has to move four times as far as L does. effort Worked example A load of 40 is raised 0.5 m by a pulley system when, the effore of 10.N moves 2.5 m. What isthe efficiency? ‘Work done on load load X distance moved 4ON X 0.5m = 20J ‘Work done by effort = effort X distance moved 5) 10N X 25m = work done on load work done by effort 20, Ft x 100 = 50% J efficiency = X 100 Practical work Efficiency of a pulley system See up the system of Figure 9.56 or a similar one. Starting with 510g in the load pan, add weights to the effort pan until the load just rises steadily: Record the Toad and effort (1100 g has a weight of 1 N), and repeat for greater loads. Draw up a table for your results and work out the efficiency for each pair of readings of load and effore Distance load movesim Distance effort movesim Load Efforute Work on loads ‘Work by efforts EfficiencyFORCES AT REST + Notes 4. The lower pulley block and the load pan are also raised by the effort but are not included as part of the load. They become less important as the load increases and the efficiency increases for this reason. 2 The efficiency is less than 100% because the system is not frictionless and the moving parts are not weightless. 3 An experiment to find the efficiency of an electric motor is given in Chapter 52. Other simple machines a) Wheel and axle A screwdriver and the steering wheel of a car, Figure 9.6, use the wheel and axle principle. This is shown in Pigure 9.7: the effort is applied to a rope wound round the wheel and the load is raised by another rope wound oppositely on the axle. _ effort Figure 9.6 effort load Figure 9.7b) Inclined plane It is easier to push a barrel up a plank on to a lorry than to lift it vertically. In Figure 9.8, to raise the load. L through a vertical height h, the smaller effort FE moves the greater distance d equal to the length of the incline. Figure 9.8 c) Screw jack In a car jack, a screw passes through a nut carrying an arm that fits into the car chassis, Figure 9.9a. When the effort applied to the lever at the top of the screw makes one complete turn, the screw (and the load) rises a distance equal co its pitch, ie. the distance between successive threads, Figure 9.9b. Figure 9.9Velocity and acceleration Speed The average speed of an object can be calculated from distance moved time taken average speed If distance is measured in metres (m) and time in seconds (8), the speed is given in metres per second (ns). A car which travels 100m in 100s has an average speed of 1000m/100s = 10ms"! Unless the car is on a straight, traflic-free road its speed is likely to change while it travels 10(K)m. To find its actual speed at any instant we would need to know the distance moved in a very shore time interval This can be found using multiflash photography. In Figure 11.1 the golfer is photographed while a flashing lamp illuminates him 100 times a second. The actual speed of the club head as it hits the ball s about Soms7! Figure 11.4 Velocity Speed is the distance travelled in unit time; velocity is the distance travelled in unit time in a stated direction. It is calculated from distance moved in a stated direction time taken’ velocity If wo cars travel due north at 20m“, they have the same speed of 20ms" and the sume velocity of 20 ms"! due north. [fone travels north and the other south, their speeds are the same but not their veloci- ties, since their directions of motion are different. Speed is a scalar and velocity a vector quantity (Chapter 7). Like force, it can be added by the paral- lelogram law ‘The velocity of a body is uniform or constant if it moves with a steady speed in a straight line, ie. the direction of motion stays the same. If either the speed or the direction changes, the velocity changes. In this chapter we wil only consider straight line motion so that any velocity changes are due to changes in speed only The units of speed and velocity are the same, eg ins !, kmh * (kilometre per hour). Note that ho! = 72000m/3600s = 20mst The shorthand way of writing the units of speed and x, eg. ms! ot kmh”, shows that both speed and velocity are calculated by dividing distance by time. Distance moved in a stated direction is called the displacement. : isa vector, unlike distance which is a scalar. Velocity may also be defined as velocie displacement ‘ime taken velo Acceleration ‘An objece accelerates when its velocity increases. Ifa car starting from rest (ms *) on a straight road has a velocity of 2ms 7 after 16, its velocity has increased by 2ims Tin 1s. acceleration is 2ms~' per second, which is written 2ms 2 Acceleration is the increase of velocity in unit time and is calculsted from A increase of velocity acceleration = ime taken In real life, it is usually average accelerations that concern ws, Acceleration is also a vector quantity and strictly speaking both its ma tion should be stated, However, we are at present dealing only with straight line motion, and the accel- eration is taken as the change of speed in unit time.‘THe speeds of an accelerating car after successive seconds are given in the following table. The speed increases by Sms every second. The acceleration is uniform and equals 5 ms *.Ifehe speed of the car then decreased by Sims“ every second, it would have a deceleration or retardation of 5ms~, ie. an acceleration of —5 ms7?, The shorthand way of writing the unit of accelera- tion, ie. ms”, shows that acceleration is found by dividing a velocity (change) by a time. Timers A number of different devices are useful for anal motion in the laboratory. ing a) Motion sensors Motion sensors use an ultrasonic echo wchnique (Chapter 34) to determine the distance of an object fiom the sensor (see Figure 11.6, p.36). Connection of a datalogger and computer to the motion sensor then enables a distance-time graph to be plotted directly. Further data analysis by the computer allows a vel- ocity-time graph to be obtained, as in Figures 12.1 and 12.2 (p. 37). b) Tickertape timer: tape charts A tickertape timer also enables us to measure speeds and hence accelerations. One type, Figure 11.2, has a marker which vibrates 50 times a second and makes, dots at %os intervals on the paper tape being pulled through it. 4s is called a ‘tick’ ‘The distance between successive dots equals che average speed of whatever is pulling the tape in, say,cm, per 4s, ie. cm per tick. The ‘tentick” (49) is also used as, 4 unit of time. Since ticks and tenticks are small, we drop the ‘average’ and just refer to the ‘speed’ vibrating marker tickertape 2Vac. Figure 11.2 Tickertape timer tentice tape dlistancesem dlistance/em 12345 ta gas 6 time/tenticks erat nine timo/tentieks iz Figure 11.3 Tape charts Tape charts ate made by sticking successive strips of tape, usually tentick lengths, side by side. That in Figure 11.32 represents a body moving with uniform speed since equal distances have been moved in each tentick interval ‘The chart in Figure 11.3b is for uniform acceler ation: the ‘steps’ are of equal size showing that the speed increased by the same amount in every tenticle (4s). TPhe acceleration (average) can be found from the chart as follows. The speed during the first tentick is 2em/%s or Jems! During the sixth tentick ic is 12cm/Ms or 60ems"' And so during this interval of 5 tenticks, ie. 15,the change of speed is (60-10) cms! = 30cms ! change of speed acceleration time taken Stems " = 50}ems 1s © Photogate timer Photogate timers may be used to record the time taken for a trolley to pass through che gate, Figure 14, Ifthe length of the “interrupt card’ on the trolley locity of the trolley can then be calculated. Photogates are most useful in where the velocity at only one or two positions is needed, as for example in measurements of momentum (Chapter 15) is measured, the jeriments Figure 11.4 Use of a photogate timer uone9poo2e pue Ay201905 AND MOTION motion Practiéal work Analysing motion a) Your own motion Pull a 2m length of tape through a tickertape timer as you walk away from it quickly, then slowly.” then speeding up again and finally stopping. cout the cape into tentick Iengths and make a tape chart. Write labels on it to show where you speeded up, slowed down, ete. b) Trolley on a sloping runway Attach a length of tape to a trolley and release it at the top of a runway, Figure 11.5. The dots will be very crowded ac the stare — ignore those; bur beyond them cut the tape mero tentick lengths. Make a tape chart. Is the ac. What is ies average value? elevation uniform? Figure 11.5 ©) Datalogging Replace the tickertape timer with a motion sensor connected to a datalogger and computer, Figure 11.6. Repeat the experiments in a) and 6) and obeain dis— tance—time and veloci¢y—time graphs for each identify regions where you think the acceler: changes or remains uniform. computer datalogger Figure 11.6 Use of a motion sensorEquations Velocity—time graphs Ifthe velocity ofa body is plotted against the time, the graph obtained is a velocity—time graph. It provides another way of solving motion problems. Tape charts are crude velocity-time graphs which show the vel city changing in jumps rather than smoothly, as occurs in practice. ‘The area under a veloci the distance travelled. me graph measures In Figure 12.1 AB is the velocity-time graph for a body moving with a uniform velocity of 20) ms Since distance = average velocity X time, after 5s it will have moved 20ms"! X 5s = 100m. This is the shaded area under the graph, ic. rectangle OABC. velocityrms-* timels Figure 12.4 In Figure 12.2 PQ is the velocity-time graph for a body moving with uniform acceleration. At the start of the timing the velocity is 20ms/! but it increases steadily to 40ms"" alter Ss. If the distance covered equals the area under PQ, ie. che shaded area OPQS, then distance = area of rectangle OPRS + area of triangle PQR, = OP X OS + % X PR X QR {area of a triangle = % X base X height) = ms! X 38+ 4 X Ss X 20mst 100 + 50 hn of motion velocityims * Figure 12.2 Notes 1 When calculating the area from the graph the unit of time must be the same on both axes. 2 This rule for finding distances travelled is true even if the acceleration is not uniform. The dope or gradient of a velocity-time graph represents the acceleration of the body. In Figure 12.1 the slope of AB is zero, as is the aecel- eration. In Figure 12.2 the slope of PQ is QR _ 20 PRS 4 The acceleration is +n“, Displacement-time graphs A body travelling with uniform velocity covers equal dlstances in equal times. Its displacement-time graph isa straight line, like OL in Figure 12.3 (p. 38) for a velocity of 10s“ Thg slope of the graph is IM _ 4 om em which is the value of the velocity. The following statement is erue in general ‘The slope oF gradient of a displacement-time graph represents the velocity of the bodyisplacementim Figure 12.3 Worked example A car starting from rest with uniform acceleration reaches a velocity of Wms"! in [0s and eravels with, this velocity for 20s, It then decelerates steadily and (0s after starting, Figure 12.4. comes to rest 5 Figure 12.4 Draw a velocity-time graph and find om it a the acceleration, b the deceleration and ¢ the total distance travelled. a Acceleration = dope of OA. AD 10m"! op 1s ims b Deceleration = slope of BC BE Hi Wms? 205 =035ms? ¢ Total distance travelled rea of AOAD + area of rectangle ABED + area of ABEC = KOD x AD + AB X AD + SBE X EC %X 1X 10+ 10 X 20 + ts x 10 X 20 0 + 200 + 100 350m Equations for uniform acceleration Problems on bodies moving with uniform aceeler- ation can often be solved quickly using the equations of motion. a) First equation If a body is moving with uniform acceleration @ and its velocity increases from 1 to v in time ¢, then change of velocity _ time taken 7 or voutat a Note that the initial velocity 1 and the final velocity » refer to the start and the finish of the timing and do not necessarily mean the start and finish of the motion, b) Second equation ‘The velocity ofa body moving with uniform accelera- tion increases steadily. Ies average velocity therefore ‘equal half the sum ofits initial and final velocities thatis ute average veloci From (1), = 0 + at ~ average velocit = w+ Yat Ifsis the distance moved in time i, then since average velocity = distance/time = s/t, faut Kat ¢ or s= ut + Yat 2 ©) Third equation ‘This is obtained by eliminating f from equations (1) and (2). We have utat P+ Quae + a? + 2a(ut + at?) Burs = ut + Yar w= + 2as @)Falling bodies In air, a coin falls faster chan a bit of paper. In a vacuum th with the apparatus of Figure 13.1. The difference, in air, is due to ait resistance having a greater effect on light bodies chan on heavy bodies. The air resistance to a light body is big when compared with the body's weight, With a dense piece of metal the resistance is negligible at low speeds Cre ZN fll at the same rate as may be shown —~ Perspex or Pyrex tube _paper eo) iy pressure tubing to vacuum screw clip eel Figure 13.1 ‘There is a story, untrue we now think, that in the six- teenth century the Italian scientist Galileo dropped a smal] iron ball and a large cannon ball cen times heavier from the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Figure 13.2. And we are told, to the surprise of onlookers who expected the cannon ball to arrive first, they reached the ground almost simul- taneously. You will learn more about air resistance in the next chapter. Figure 13.2Practical work Motion of a falling body Arrange things as in Figure 13.3 and investigate the ‘motion of 1140 gmass falling from a height ofabout 2m. Measuring g Using the arrangement in Figure 13.4 the time fora steel ball-bearing to fall a by an electric stop clock. nown distance is measured A ays v4 Kee i ~ gu i ball- —— | T ‘two-way — tickertape — — retort en | stand fi ee ae «| 4 |" eajustabie 7 a. ae 1009 9 | wn i ge deat rue 123 Construct a tape chart using one tiel lengths. The dots at the start will be too close together but choose HPP as dot‘0" the first one you can see clearly. What does the tape chart ell you about the motion of the falling mass? Figure 13.4 Acceleration due to gravity All bodies falling freely under the force of gravity do so with uniform acceleration if air resistance is neg- ligible (i.e. the ‘steps’ in the previous tape chart should all be equal). This acceleration, called the acceleration due to gravity, is denoted by the ‘italic letter ¢. Its value varies over the earth. In the Caribbean it is 9.78ms 2 or near enough 10:ms?.The velocity of a fiee falling body therefore increases by 10ms"! every second. A ball thrown straight upwards with a velocity of 30ms"! decelerates by 1ms"! every second and reaches its highest point affer 3s. In calculations using the equations of motion, ¢ replaces a. Tt ig given a positive sign for falling bodies (Le.a= + ims °)and a negative sign torrising a=~10ms 2) bodies since they are decelerating (i When the two-way switch is changed to the ‘down’ position, the electromagnet releases the ball and sim- tltaneously the clock starts. At the cud of its fall the ball opens the ‘trap-door’ on the impact switch and the clock stops. The result is found from s = ur + Yar2, where s is the distance fallen {in m), ¢ is the time taken (in 3), 0 (the ball starts from rest) and a = g (in ms°) Hence 2a Air resistance is negligible for a small dense object such as a steel ball-bearing falling a shore distance Note The apparatus in Figure 13.3 can also be used to measure ¢ by finding che acceleration of the falling ass from the tickertape (as explained in Chapter 11) Use a large mass, otherwise the friction at the timer will give too Tow a value for g. sa1poq BumjesFORCES AND MOTION i Worked example A ball i thrown vertically upwards with an initial vel- city of 30:ms 4. Find a its maximum heighe, b the time taken to return to its starting point, Neglect air resistance and uke ¢ = 10ms~*, a We have w= 30m sa = —10ms* (@ deceler- ation) and » = @ since the ball is momentarily at rest at its highest point. Substituting in v2 = 42 + us, 0= 30 + -10)s or =900 = =20 = 900 =5m 2 b If ris the time to reach the highest point we have, fiom v =u + at, 0= 30+ (-19t or 30 = =10r =30 sat i The downward trip takes exactly the same time as the upward one and so the answer is 6s. Distance-time graphs Fora bo. falling freely ftom rest we have Mee? A graph of s against fs shown in Figure 13.5a and for s against 1° in Figure 13.5b,'The later is a straight line through the origin since s 2 f(g being constant at one place, distancaim a © am Va 5 40 Wee © o bene b (emeyPis? Figure 13.5, Projectiles The photograph in Figure 13.6 was taken while a amp camtted regular ashes of light, One ball was drepped from rest and the other, a ‘projectile’, was thru side- mays at the same time. Their vertical acceler to gravity) are equal, showing that a projectile fil ike a body which is dropped from rest. ts horizontal vel city does not affect its vertical motion. tions (due The horizontal and vertical motions of a body are independent and can be created separately. For example, if a ball is thrown horizontally from the top of acliffand takes 3s to reach the beach below, we can calculate the height of the cif by considering the vertical motion only We have = 0 (since the bal has al velocity initially), « = g = +10ms ® and 1 = 3s,The height s ofthe clif is given by ut + Yat = 0X 3+ (+10) XP 5m Figure 13.6