Air Resistance on Free Falling Cones

Zcharxyzer I. Ando, 1 Al Yasher Muin, 2 Jericho K. Calaor, 3 and Al Shareef Hayudini 4

Department of Physics, Western Mindanao State University

I. Introduction

Gravity is a fundamental physical force that is responsible for interactions which occur because of
mass between particles. It is dominant over macroscopic distances, especially between aggregations of matter.
A free falling object is an object that is falling under the sole influence of gravity. There are two important
motion characteristics that are true of free-falling objects: (1) free-falling objects do not encounter air
resistance, and (2) all free-falling objects on Earth accelerate downwards at a rate of 9.8 m/s 2.

This study aims to find the different falling time of the cones with different angles at different height.
Specifically, this study sought to know the different angles that has the highest and lowest falling time, and the
difference of each falling time at different heights.

Setting up the cones

This study will have 3 different heights, 3 different angles, and 3 trials, thus having a total of 27
experimentations. The researchers will form the bond papers into cones with the same height and will apply
clay to each so that they are of the same mass. The cones will be dropped with its vertex at the bottom at
different heights (1m, 3m, and 5m). The falling time of each cones will be measured.

2. Methodology

Figure 1: The cardboard was cut into a circle a radius of 17 cm

Using a pin as the center and a string attached as the radius the researchers was able to trace a shape of a circle
with the radius of 17 cm.

Figure 2: A section was cut with an angle from the center (40° , 80° , and 120° )
A section was cut from the circle with an angle of 40° , 80° , and 120° respectively for each circles. The left out
part was formed into a cone by connecting both ends with a tape. The circumference of the cut out section is
denoted by

S=r 1 φ (1)

where S is the circumference of the cut out section, r 1 is the radius of the circle and φ is the angle of the cut
out section. The circumference of the remaining section of the circle is denoted by
'
S =r 1 (2 π−φ) (2)

where S’ is the circumference of the remaining section of the circle, r 1 is the radius and φ is the angle of the
cut out section in terms of pi.

Figure 3: Formation of the cones

At the tip of the cones place a piece of clay so that each cone will equal to 100g.

Figure 4: Finding the angle inside the cone

Create an equation to find the angle inside each cone. The circumference of the cone is denoted by

2 πr (3)

since the remaining circumference of the original circle became the circumference of the cone, we say that

2 π r 2 =r 1 (2 π −φ) (4)

deriving this formula we get

 ( 2 π −φ ) r 1
r 2= (5)
2π

The radius of the circle became the sides of the cone so we note that

r2
sinθ= (6)
r1
then plug in equation 5 to equation 6 we get

( 2 π −φ ) r 1
2π (7)
sinθ=
r1
deriving this formula to find the angle of the cone

θ=2(sin−1 1− ( φ
2π)) (8)

3. Results

The following are the falling times of the different angles at a height of 1 meter

Table 1: Falling times at 1-meter height

Height: 1m Angles of the cones

83.62° 102.12° 125.46°
Trial 1 0.65s 0.77s 0.88s
Trial 2 0.66s 0.75s 0.83s
Trial 3 0.56s 0.70s 0.88s
Average 0.62s 0.74s 0.86s

Table 1 shows that that the cone with the 83.62 ° angle has the lowest average falling time, and the cone with
the 125.46° angle has the highest falling time out of all the cones.

Table 2: Falling times at 3-meter height

Height: 3m Angles of the cones

83.62° 102.12° 125.46°
Trial 1 0.79s 1.10s 1.32s
Trial 2 0.79s 1.07s 1.32s
Trial 3 0.91s 1.12s 1.38s
Average 0.83s 1.09s 1.34s

Table 2 shows that with the height of 3 meters, the cone with 83.62 ° angle has the lowest average falling time.
The cone with 125.46° angle has the highest average falling time.
Table 3: Falling times at 5-meter height

Height: 4m Angles of the cones

83.62° 102.12° 125.46°
Trial 1 0.99s 1.26s 1.35s
Trial 2 0.85s 1.22s 1.31s
Trial 3 1.08s 1.31s 1.46s
Average 0.97s 1.26s 1.37s

Table 3 shows that with the height of 4 meters, the cone with 83.62 ° angle has the lowest average falling time.
The cone with 125.46° angle has the highest average falling time.

4. Conclusion

On the experiment that was done it shows that the cone that has a 120 angle has the lowest average
falling time, while the cone with the 40 angle has the highest average falling time. Based on the experiment, it
was shown that the angles of the cones affect the falling time of the object with the same mass.

Acknowledgements

Firstly, the researchers expresses their gratitude to the God, the Almighty for giving his wisdom and
guiding us throughout the completion of this research.

The researchers also expresses their thanks to Mr. Daniel F. Marquez, Physics laboratory teacher, for
his guidance and strict supervision in order to complete this study. The researchers also thank their classmates
for their help in the experimentation process of this study.

References:
[1] “Gravity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster,
URL: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gravity
[2] The Physics Classroom, Physics Tutorial, 1-D Kinematics, Intro to Free Fall
URL: https://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/1DKin/Lesson-5/Introduction