CHAPTER 6: CENTER OF MASS, MOMENTUM, IMPULSE AND

COLLISIONS
At the end of the lessons the students shall be able to:
• 1.Differentiate center of mass and geometric center
• 2.Relate the motion of center of mass of a system to the momentum and net
external force acting on the system
• 3.Relate the momentum, impulse, force, and time of contact in a system
• 4.Explain the necessary conditions for conservation of linear momentum to
be valid.

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 INTRODUCTION
When a sports announcer says that a team has the momentum they mean that the
team is really on the move and is going to be hard to stop. The term momentum is a
physics concept. Any object with momentum is going to be hard to stop. To stop such an
object, it is necessary to apply a force against its motion for a given period of time. The
more momentum that an object has, the harder that it is to stop. Thus, it would require a
greater amount of force or a longer amount of time or both to bring such an object to a
halt. As the force acts upon the object for a given amount of time, the object's velocity is
changed; and hence, the object's momentum is changed.

The concepts in the above paragraph should not seem like abstract information to
you. You have observed this a number of times if you have watched the sport of football.
In football, the defensive players apply a force for a given amount of time to stop the
momentum of the offensive player who has the ball. You have also experienced this, a
multitude of times while driving. As you bring your car to a halt when approaching a stop
sign or stoplight, the brakes serve to apply a force to the car for a given amount of time
to change the car's momentum. An object with momentum can be stopped if a force is
applied against it for a given amount of time.

Force acting for a given amount of time will change an object's momentum. Put
another way, an unbalanced force always accelerates an object - either speeding it up or
slowing it down. If the force acts opposite the object's motion, it slows the object down. If
a force acts in the same direction as the object's motion, then the force speeds the object
up. Either way, a force will change the velocity of an object. And if the velocity of the
object is changed, then the momentum of the object is changed.

IMPULSE
• Is a quantity that describes the effect of a net force acting on an object (a kind
of "moving force").
• Is represented by the symbol J (boldface).
• Is the product of the average net force acting on an object and its duration.
• Is the force-time integral.
Is a vector quantity (since force is a vector and time is a scalar).
These concepts as said in the opening introduction are merely an
outgrowth of Newton's second law as discussed in an earlier unit. Newton's second law
(Fnet = m • a) stated that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net
force acting upon the object and inversely proportional to the mass of the object. When

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combined with the definition of acceleration (a = change in velocity / time), the following
equalities result.

If both sides of the above equation are multiplied by the

quantity t, a new equation results.

This equation represents one of two primary principles to be used in the analysis
of collisions during this unit. To truly understand the equation, it is important to understand
its meaning in words. In words, it could be said that the force times the time equals the
mass times the change in velocity. In physics, the quantity Force • time is known as
impulse. And since the quantity m•v is the momentum, the quantity m•Δv must be the
change in momentum. The equation really says that the
Impulse = Change in momentum

MOMENTUM
• Is a quantity that describes an object's resistance to stopping (a kind of "moving
inertia").
• Is represented by the symbol p (boldface).
• Is the product of an object's mass and velocity
• Is a vector quantity (since velocity is a vector and mass is a scalar).
Momentum is a commonly used term in sports. A team that has the momentum is on the
move and is going to take some effort to stop. A team that has a lot of momentum is really
on the move and is going to be hard to stop. Momentum is a physics term; it refers to the
quantity of motion that an object has. A sports team that is on the move has the
momentum. If an object is in motion (on the move) then it has momentum.

Momentum can be defined as "mass in motion." All objects have mass; so if an object
is moving, then it has momentum - it has its mass in motion. The amount of momentum
that an object has is dependent upon two variables: how much stuff is moving and how
fast the stuff is moving. Momentum depends upon the variables mass and velocity. In
terms of an equation, the momentum of an object is equal to the mass of the object times
the velocity of the object.

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In physics, the symbol for the quantity momentum is the lower case p. Thus, the above
equation can be rewritten as

Where m is the mass and v is the velocity. The equation illustrates that momentum is
directly proportional to an object's mass and directly proportional to the object's velocity.
The units for momentum would be mass unit multiply velocity units. The standard
metric unit of momentum is the kg•m/s. While the kg•m/s is the standard metric unit of
momentum, there are a variety of other units that are acceptable (though not
conventional) units of momentum.
Examples:
1. Determine the momentum of a:
a. 60-kg halfback moving eastward at 9 m/s.
b. 1000-kg car moving northward at 20 m/s.
c. 40-kg freshman moving southward at 2 m/s.
Solutions:
a. p = m*v = 60 kg*9 m/z
p = 540 kg•m/s, east
b. p = m*v = 1000 kg*20 m/s
p = 20 000 kg•m/s, north
c. p = m*v = 40 kg*2 m/s
p = 80 kg•m/s, sou

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 GEN.PHY 1 GENERAL PHYSICS 1

COLLISION
Collision means two objects coming into contact with each other for a very short period.
In other words, collision is a reciprocative interaction between two masses for a very
short interval wherein the momentum and energy of the colliding masses changes.
While playing carroms, you might have noticed the effect of a striker on coins when
they both collide.

Collision involves two masses m1 and m2. The v1i is the speed of particle m1, where
the subscript ‘i’ implies initial. The particle with mass m2 is at rest. In this case, the object
with mass m1 collides with the stationary object of mass m2.

As a result of this collision the masses m1 and m2 move in different directions.

Types of Collision

Elastic Collision
• In the elastic collision total momentum, the total energy and the total kinetic
energy are conserved. However, the total mechanical energy is not converted
into any other energy form as the forces involved in the short interaction are
conserved in nature.
Inelastic Collision
• In the inelastic collision, the objects stick to each other or move in the same
direction. The total kinetic energy in this form of collision is not conserved but
the total momentum and energy are conserved. During this kind of collision,
the energy is transformed into other energy forms like heat and light.

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 GEN.PHY 1 GENERAL PHYSICS 1

IMPULSE-MOMENTUM THEOREM
Impulse is a quantity that is closely related to momentum. When an object has a
momentum , and a force is applied for an amount of time, the momentum can change
to a new value . The impulse-momentum theorem states that the impulse is equal to
this change in momentum. Impulse is a vector, with both a value and a direction, and
is represented by the symbol . Momentum is equal to the mass times the velocity of an
object ( ). The unit of impulse is the Newton-second, , which is equivalent
to

Related concepts of dynamics

Units
• The SI unit of impulse is the newton second.(N*s)
• The SI unit of momentum is the kilogram meter per second. (kg*m/s)
• These units of impulse and momentum are equivalent.

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 GEN.PHY 1 GENERAL PHYSICS 1
Examples:
1. A 0.15 kg ball is moving with a velocity of 35 m/s. Find the momentum of the
ball.

Solution:

2. If a ball with mass 5.00 kg has a momentum of, 5.25 kg*m/s what is its
velocity?

Solution:

3. We will look at a calculation where the impulse for a ball hits an object and
comes to a halt. Here, the object weighs 3.0 kg and has a velocity of 5 m/s
before colliding with the object. Find the impulse.

Solution:
Δ J = p2 – p1
Δ p = m v2– m v1
Δ p = (3.0 kg)(0 m/s) – (3.0 kg)(5 m/s)
= -15 kg m/s

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 GEN.PHY 1 GENERAL PHYSICS 1

Reference:
▪ https://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/momentum/Lesson-
1/Momentum-and-Impulse-Connection
▪ https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/momentum/u4l1a.cfm
▪ https://physics.info/momentum/summary.shtml
▪ https://www.toppr.com/guides/physics/work-energy-and-
power/collisions/
▪ https://www.softschools.com/formulas/physics/impulse_momentum_th
eorem_formula/339/
Video Tutorial Link:
Introduction to Impulse & Momentum - Physics
▪ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hODlmGK7pl8
Impulse and Momentum
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E13h1E_Pc00

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