1) Introduction

What is Friction?
Friction is the force resisting the relative motion of solid
surfaces, fluid layers, and material elements sliding against
each other.
Types of Friction
Dry Friction- A force that opposes the relative lateral motion
of two solid surfaces in contact. Dry friction is subdivided into
static friction ("stiction") between non-moving surfaces, and
kinetic friction between moving surfaces. With the exception
of atomic or molecular friction, dry friction generally arises
from the interaction of surface features, known as asperities.
Fluid Friction: The friction between layers of a viscous fluid
that are moving relative to each other.
Lubricated Friction: A case of fluid friction where a lubricant
fluid separates two solid surfaces.
Skin Friction: A component of drag, the force resisting the
motion of a fluid across the surface of a body.
Internal Friction: The force resisting motion between the
elements making up a solid material while it undergoes
deformation.

Consequences of Friction
When surfaces in contact move relative to each other, the
friction between the two surfaces converts kinetic energy into
thermal energy (that is, it converts work to heat). This
property can have dramatic consequences, as illustrated by
the use of friction created by rubbing pieces of wood together
to start a fire. Kinetic energy is converted to thermal energy
whenever motion with friction occurs, for example when a
viscous fluid is stirred. Another important consequence of
many types of friction can be wear, which may lead to
performance degradation or damage to components.
Friction is a component of the science of tribology. Friction is
desirable and important in supplying traction to facilitate
motion on land. Most land vehicles rely on friction for
acceleration, deceleration and changing direction. Sudden
reductions in traction can cause loss of control and accidents.
Friction is not itself a fundamental force. Dry friction arises
from a combination of inter-surface adhesion, surface
roughness, surface deformation, and surface contamination.
The complexity of these interactions makes the calculation of
friction from first principles impractical and necessitates the
use of empirical methods for analysis and the development of
theory.

2) Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages of Frictional Forces

We can only understand the importance of frictional

force if it goes away. So, let’s explore a world without
frictional force. A world without frictional force is much
worse than this. Let alone walking, you wouldn’t be able to
use your car or bike since the wheel that helps you move
around do so by using frictional force. The friction between
the road and the wheel causes the movement of the vehicle
and without frictional forces, you’d just stay in one place and
spin the wheels. In the classroom the situation would be even
worse. You wouldn’t be able to lift your books out of your bag
because they’d keep slipping through your fingers. Pen and
pencil rely on the frictional force acting between the tip of the
pen or pencil and the page to write. That’s not the worst
part, the teacher’s blackboard and chalk wouldn’t work
either. The teacher would have to teach the entire syllabus
orally! A world without this force is a world without sports
too! You can spin/swing a cricket ball due to the frictional
force between your fingers and the ball. Without friction,
sports would be a dream. Wow, a world without friction
seems like a nightmare, but friction is exactly the hero of the
story.
In summary,
 Makes many types of motion possible (ground reaction
forces).
 Can be used to control the motion of bodies (brakes in
vehicles).
 Prevents slipping and sliding, so ensures pure rolling.

Disadvantages of Frictional Forces

Friction although is necessary, can be excessive at times.

Friction is a nonconservative force - work done against
friction is path dependent. In the presence of friction, some
energy is always lost in the form of heat. Thus, mechanical
energy is not conserved. Most machines require repair and
maintenance because of the frictional force. The friction
between parts over time is responsible for a majority of the
wear and tear in a machine. Frictional force also causes most
of the injuries. When you fall down, the part of your body in
contact with the ground, scrapes the surface as you fall. It is
also responsible for our cars and vehicles slowing down.
When you are moving, you experience frictional forces due to
multiple sources. The friction between you and the ground,
the frictional force between you and the air you are moving
through. Thus, when we are moving, we waste a lot of energy
overcoming the frictional force opposing our motion.

In summary,
 Friction resists motion, which leads to energy loss.
 Produces heat as a result, resulting in loss of energy
 Causes wear and tear, so moving parts and machinery must
be replaced regularly.
3) Objective
To determine the effect of friction of different surfaces on the
distance travelled by a vehicle powered by a balloon. The
purpose is to find out which surfaces and conditions create
the least friction and make the balloon car move the farthest.

4) Research
To create less friction, you need to cover moving objects with
a slippery liquid called lubricant, such as oil, and water. You
can use devices such as wheels to create less friction. You can
also create less friction by skiing down on the snow and the
sand. Snow and sand are both slippery enough to ski down
because they are made of small grains that slide past each
other. In conclusion, I think the friction is the most important
thing because you need friction for everything such as
walking. Even it causes a problem, it helps you with a lot of
things.
5) Hypothesis
I think the balloon car with straws that moves on the straw
runway will create the least friction and move the farthest.

6) Theory
The balloon powered vehicle moves with the help of the
thrust provided by the exertion of air by the balloon. Friction
depends on the irregularities of the surfaces in contact, so the
smoothest surfaces with the least irregularities will provide
the least friction. Hence, more energy from the thrust of the
balloon will be translated into kinetic energy of the cardboard
car.
7) Materials
• Lightweight cardboard box (like a shoebox)
• Balloon
• Scissors or a box cutter
• Box of plastic drinking straws and bottle caps
• Tape measure or ruler
• Glue or clear scotch tape
• Notebook
• Pencil or pen
8) Procedure
1. Cut a small hole in one end of the cardboard box.
2. Insert the balloon through the hole so that the head of the
balloon is inside the box and the opening is outside.
3. Blow up the balloon and twist the end closed, pinching it
between your fingertips.
4. While still pinching the balloon closed, set the balloon car
on a flat countertop, table, or floor and mark the starting
point.
5. Let go of the balloon and measure the distance the box
travelled.
6. Repeat inflating the balloon to the same size, let it go, and
measuring the distance travelled on difference surfaces.
Good surfaces to test are carpets or rugs, concrete (like the
sidewalk), and on dirt or grass.
7. Go back to the first flat surface tested, and lay out a row of
parallel straws about 3 feet long.
8. Inflate the balloon, mark the starting point, and set the
balloon car on top of the straw runway.
9. Release the balloon. Measure and record the distance
travelled.
10. Repeat Step 8 on the different surfaces you tried in Step
6.
11. Glue or tape two straws along the length of the bottom of
the box like a sleigh.
12. Inflate the balloon, mark the starting point, and release
the balloon car across the surfaces that were tested before.
13. Inflate the balloon, mark the starting point, and release
the balloon car across the straw runway.
14. Analyse your results from the experiment.
9) Observation
Table
10) Conclusion
In conclusion, the hypothesis was practically right. The
balloon car with two straws on the straw runway travelled
more than the balloon car on the regular floor. The balloon
car with the straws travelled more than on just the floor, but
less than the straw runway. This shows that the straw
runway reduces friction, hence reducing the loss of energy. I
also found that the straws on the balloon car slowed down
the balloon car.
11) Applications
The conclusion of the experiment suggests that we could use
different materials to minimize energy loss due to friction in
various places such as roads, tyres, engines and anywhere
where moving parts are involved. This could be achieved by
using different materials for making roads and tyres.
However, it must be noted that friction is necessary in certain
situations, like slowing down and turning the vehicle, so a
surface with a very small coefficient of friction would also not
be practically safe.
12) Precautions
1. Make sure you have adult supervision while cutting the
cardboard boxes.
2. Ensure that you fill the balloon in equal amounts each
time.
3. Do not tie of the balloon; ensure that you hold it safely
with your fingertips to avoid air loss.
 4. Use the same point of the cardboard car for measuring the
start and end points.