Momentum 1

Momentum, Impulse, and Collisions

Momentum and Impulse
⃗ = 𝑚𝒂
Newton’s second law tells us that the net force acting an object is given by ∑ 𝑭 ⃗ , where m is the
⃗ is its acceleration. We can use the instantaneous acceleration
constant mass of the object and 𝒂
𝑑𝒗
⃗
⃗ =
equation (𝒂 ) to rewrite Newton’s second law as
𝑑𝑡
𝑑𝒗
⃗ 𝑑(𝑚𝒗⃗)
⃗ = 𝑚
∑𝑭 = . (8.1)
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡
Note that since mass is an scalar quantity, it could be included inside the derivative. The above equation
says that the net force acting on an object is the time rate of change of the product of the object’s mass
and its velocity. This product is called the momentum, or linear momentum of an object:
⃗ = 𝑚𝒗
𝒑 ⃗. (8.2)
Since the momentum is directly proportional to the mass and the speed of the object, the magnitude of
the momentum increases as the mass increases, the speed increases, or both the mass and speed
increase. The direction of the object’s momentum is in the direction of its velocity.
Combining equations (8.1) and (8.2), we get an equation for Newton’s second law in terms of the
momentum:
𝑑𝒑
⃗
⃗ =
∑𝑭 . (8.3)
𝑑𝑡
The above equation states that the net force acting on a particle is equal to the time rate of change of
momentum of the particle.
Impulse
If a constant net force acts on an object, the impulse of the constant net force is the product of the net
force and the time interval over which it acts:
⃗ ∙ (𝒕𝟐 − 𝒕𝟏 ) = ∑ 𝑭
𝑱 = ∑𝑭 ⃗ ∙ ∆𝒕 . (8.4)
Combining this with equation (8.3) we get a relationship between impulse and momentum:
⃗ = 𝒑
𝑱 = ∆𝒑 ⃗𝟐 − 𝒑
⃗ 𝟏. (8.5)
If the net force acting on an object is not constant, the impulse is given by
𝒕
⃗ ∙ 𝒅𝒕 .
𝑱 = ∫𝒕 𝟐 ∑ 𝑭 (8.6)
𝟏

Conservation of Momentum
Momentum is a useful concept because the total momentum is conserved in a system isolated from
outside forces. You can never create or destroy momentum; all we can do is transfer momentum from
one object to another. Therefore, the total momentum of a system of masses isolated from external
forces (forces from outside the system) is constant in time. This is the principle of conservation of
momentum.
For a system of particles, the total momentum is given by
⃗⃗ = 𝒑
𝑷 ⃗𝑨 + 𝒑
⃗ 𝑩 + ⋯ = 𝑚𝐴 𝒗
⃗ 𝑨 + 𝑚𝐵 𝒗
⃗ 𝑩 + ⋯. (8.4)

SEF005 Queen Mary University of London

Mechanics and Materials School of Physics and Astronomy
 Momentum 2

Consider two objects with masses mA and mB. They are travelling with velocities 𝒗 ⃗ 𝑨,𝟏 and 𝒗
⃗ 𝑩,𝟏 when
⃗ 𝑨,𝟐 and 𝒗
they collide with each other. After the collision, they have velocities 𝒗 ⃗ 𝑩,𝟐 .

According to conservation of momentum, the total momentum of the system does not change:
⃗ 𝑨,𝟏 + 𝑚𝐵 𝒗
𝑚𝐴 𝒗 ⃗ 𝑩,𝟏 = 𝑚𝐴 𝒗
⃗ 𝑨,𝟐 + 𝑚𝐵 𝒗
⃗ 𝑩,𝟐 . (8.5)
While the velocities of the particles change in the collision, the total momentum remains constant.
Collisions
There are two types of collision: elastic and inelastic.
Elastic collisions are collisions in which no energy is lost by the system (e.g. no deformation, no heat
generated, no sound produced). In elastic collisions, both the total momentum and the total kinetic
energy of the system are conserved.
Inelastic collisions are collisions in which energy is lost by the system (e.g. to thermal energy, sound).
Most collisions in of physical objects in the real world are inelastic collisions. In inelastic collisions, the
total momentum is conserved, but the total kinetic energy is not. A special case of inelastic collisions are
completely inelastic collisions, in which the two colliding objects stick together and have the same
⃗ 𝑨,𝟐 = 𝒗
velocity after the collision (i.e. 𝒗 ⃗ 𝑩,𝟐 = 𝒗
⃗ 𝟐 ).
Example: Two objects, A and B, collide and stick together (a perfectly inelastic collision). Object A has
initial speed 𝑣, object B is initially at rest. What is the final speed 𝑣2 of the stuck-together masses?

𝑃 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 = 𝑃 𝑎𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟
⃗ 𝑨,𝟏 + 𝑚𝐵 𝒗
𝑚𝐴 𝒗 ⃗ 𝑩,𝟏 = (𝑚𝐴 + 𝑚𝐵 )𝒗
⃗𝟐
𝑚𝐴 𝑣 + 0 = (𝑚𝐴 + 𝑚𝐵 )𝑣2
𝑚𝐴
𝑣2 = ( )∙𝑣
𝑚𝐴 + 𝑚𝐵
Notice that 𝑣2 < 𝑣 since 𝑚𝐴 /(𝑚𝐴 + 𝑚𝐵 ) < 1.

SEF005 Queen Mary University of London

Mechanics and Materials School of Physics and Astronomy