Monday January 24,

2011

Ch 9.1
Impulse and Momentum
 What is Momentum ?
• Momentum (p) = mass x velocity

• A really slow moving truck and an

extremely fast roller skate can have the
same momentum.
 Question :
• Under what circumstances would the roller
skate and the truck have the same
momentum ?
• Answer: If ratio of vs/vt = mt/ms
• A 1000 kg truck moving at 0.01 m/sec has the
same momentum as a 1 kg skate moving at
10 m/sec. Both have a momentum of 10 kg
m/sec. ( 1000 x .01 = 1 x 10 = 10 )
 Impulse and Momentum
• Impulse = change in momentum (mv)
• Most often v changes (accel)
• And m x a = force
• Applying a force over a time interval to an
object changes the momentum
• Force x time interval = Impulse
• Impulse = FΔt or

FΔt = mΔv
 MOMENTUM
• An object at rest has no momentum, why?
• (the velocity component is zero for an object at rest)
• To INCREASE MOMENTUM,
apply the greatest force possible for as long
as possible.
• Examples :
• pulling a sling shot
• drawing an arrow in a bow all the way back
• a long cannon for maximum range
• hitting a golf ball or a baseball
FORCE

. (follow through is important for these !)

TIME
 MOMENTUM
• SOME VOCABULARY :
• impact : the force acting on an object (N)

• impact forces : average force of impact

• impulse-momentum theorem – The
impulse on an object is equal to the
change in momentum that it causes.
F∆t = p2-p1
 MOMENTUM
• Decreasing Momentum
• Which would be safer to hit in a car ? Ft
mv

mv
Ft

• Knowing the physics helps us understand why

hitting a soft object is better than hitting a hard one.
 MOMENTUM
• In each case, the momentum is decreased by the same
amount or impulse (force x time)

• Hitting the haystack extends the impact time (the time in

which the momentum is brought to zero).

• The longer impact time reduces the force of impact and

decreases the deceleration.

• Whenever you need to decrease the force of impact,

extend the time of impact !
 DECREASING FORCE
• If the time of impact is increased by 100 times (from .01 sec
to 1 sec), then the force of impact is reduced by 100 times

• EXAMPLES :
• Padded dashboards on cars
• Airbags in cars or safety nets in circuses
• Moving your hand backward as you catch a fast-moving ball
with your bare hand or a boxer moving with a punch.
• Flexing your knees when jumping from a higher place to the
ground. or elastic cords for bungee jumping
• Using wrestling mats instead of hardwood floors.
• Dropping a glass dish onto a carpet instead of a sidewalk.
 EXAMPLES OF DECREASING
MOMENTUM
• Bruiser Bruno on boxing … F = change in t

momentum

Ft = change in
momentum
• Increased impact time reduces force of impact
• Bungee jumping provides another example
 Questions :
• When a dish falls, will the impulse be less if it lands on a
carpet than if it lands on a hard ceramic tile floor ?
• The impulse = same for either surface (same ∆p)
• force is less for the impulse on the carpet because of the
greater time of momentum change. There is a
difference between impulse and impact.

• If a boxer is able to increase the impact time by 5 times

by “riding” with a punch, by how much will the force of
impact be reduced?
• Since the time of impact increases by 5 times, the force
of impact will be reduced by 5 times.
 Impulse Momentum - Theorem
Impulse is related to the change
in its momentum.

F∆t = p2 – p1

To find the change of the momentum after a

collision, solve for P2
 VECTORS
Signs (directions) are VERY important when
calculating momentum and velocity.
 Angular Momentum
• Angular Momentum – quantity of motion
that is used with rotating objects about a
fixed axis.

Force changes momentum whereas Torque

changes angular momentum.
 Momentum vs.
Angular Momentum
• Momentum is a change in an object’s
mass and velocity

• Angular momentum is a change in an

objects mass, displacement from the
center of rotation, and velocity
perpendicular to displacement
Practice Problems

Page 204
1-3
Monday January 24, 2010

Ch 9.2
Conservation of Momentum
 Conserving Momentum
Condition 1: A system that does not change
its mass is considered a closed system. All
of these forces are internal.
Condition 2: When the net external force on
a closed system is zero it is called an
isolated system.
 CONSERVATION OF MOMENTUM
• To accelerate an object, a force must be
applied.
• The force or impulse on the object must
come from outside the object.

• EXAMPLES : Sitting in a car and pushing on

the dashboard doesn’t create movement.
• Internal forces like these are balanced and
cancel each other.
• If no outside force is present, no change in
momentum is possible.
The Law of Conservation of Momentum

• In the absence of an external force, the momentum of

a system remains unchanged.

• This means that, when all of the forces are internal

(for EXAMPLE: cars colliding or stars exploding)
the net momentum of the system
before and after the event is the same.
 COLLISIONS
• ELASTIC COLLISIONS
Momentum transfer from one
Object to another . Example:
Billiard ball collisions.

Is a Newton’s cradle like the one

Pictured here, an example of an
elastic or inelastic collision?
• INELASTIC COLLISIONS – objects stick together
 Problem Solving #1
• A 6 kg fish swimming at 1 m/sec swallows a 2 kg fish
that is at rest. Find the velocity of the fish immediately
after “lunch”.

• net momentum before = net momentum after

• (net mv)before = (net mv)after
• (6 kg)(1 m/sec) + (2 kg)(0 m/sec) = (6 kg + 2 kg)(vafter)
• 6 kg.m/sec = (8 kg)(vafter)
• vvafter
after == 6 kg m/sec / 8 kg
.

• 8 kg
• vafter = ¾ m/sec
 Problem Solving #2
• Now the 6 kg fish swimming at 1 m/sec swallows a 2
kg fish that is swimming towards it at 2 m/sec. Find
the velocity of the fish immediately after “lunch”.

• net momentum before = net momentum after

• (net mv)before = (net mv)after
• (6 kg)(1 m/sec) + (2 kg)(-2 m/sec) = (6 kg + 2 kg)(vafter)
• 6 kg.m/sec + -4 kg.m/sec = (8 kg)(vafter)
• v
vafter =
after = 2 kg .m/sec / 8 kg

• 8 kg
• vafter = ¼ m/sec
 Problem Solving #3 & #4
• Now the 6 kg fish swimming at 1 m/sec swallows a 2
kg fish that is swimming towards it at 3 m/sec.
• (net mv)before = (net mv)after
• (6 kg)(1 m/sec) + (2 kg)(-3 m/sec) = (6 kg + 2 kg)(vafter)
• 6 kg.m/sec + -6 kg.m/sec = (8 kg)(vafter)
• vafter = 0 m/sec

• Now the 6 kg fish swimming at 1 m/sec swallows a 2

kg fish that is swimming towards it at 4 m/sec.
• (net mv)before = (net mv)after
• (6 kg)(1 m/sec) + (2 kg)(-4 m/sec) = (6 kg + 2 kg)(vafter)
• 6 kg.m/sec + -8 kg.m/sec = (8 kg)(vafter)
• vafter = -1/4 m/sec
Practice Problems

Page 210; 7-12

 Explosion Equation
Momentum before the explosion is equal to
momentum after the explosion

MaV = - MbV
 Example Problem #1
A cart with a mass of 3 kg is sitting next to
a cart with a mass of 2 kg. Between them
is a compressed spring. When the spring
is released, the 3 kg cart moves at a
speed of 5 m/s. How fast did the 2 kg cart
move?
System 1: (3kg)(-5m/s) = -15 kg*m/s
System 2: (2 kg)(V) = 2V
Pa = -Pb
So…
-15 = -2V
V = 7.5 m/s
 Example Problem #2
An astronaut at rest in space fires a thruster
pistol that expels 50g of hot gas at 750
m/s. The combined mass of the pistol and
the astronaut is 80 kg. How fast and in
what direction is the astronaut moving
after firing the pistol?
System 1 = gas (.050 g)(-750) = -37.5
kg*m/s – gas is moving to the left
System 2 = astronaut and pistol (80 kg)(V)
-astronaut is moving to the right.

Pa = - Pb
So… -37.5 = - 80(V)
V = 0.468 m/s
Practice Problems
Page 214
13-15
 Collisions in Two or Three Dimensions
Conservation of energy and momentum can also
be used to analyze collisions in two or three
dimensions, but unless the situation is very
simple, the math quickly becomes unwieldy.
Here, a moving object
collides with an object
initially at rest. Knowing
the masses and initial
velocities is not enough;
we need to know the
angles as well in order to
find the final velocities.
 Collisions in Two or Three Dimensions
Problem solving:
1. Choose the system.
2. Draw diagrams of the initial and final
situations, with momentum vectors labeled.
3. Choose a coordinate system.
 Collisions in Two or Three Dimensions

5. Apply momentum conservation; there will be

one equation for each dimension.
6. Solve.
8. Check units and magnitudes of result.
 2-Dimensional momentum
The law of conservation of momentum
applies to 2-Dimensional momentum in the
same way: The momentum before is equal
to the momentum after the collision.
- If you define the x-axis to be in the direction of the initial
momentum, the y-component of the initial momentum is
zero. Therefore the sum of the final y-component must
be zero.
PA2y + PA2y = 0
or PA2y = - PA2y
SO… PA2y + PA2y = 0
• They are equal in magnitude but have
opposite signs.
• The sum of the horizontal components are
also equal.
Pa1 = Pa2X + Pa2X
 Adding Vectors
In order to solve for the final momentum of
the system, you add the momentums of
both objects like you add vectors.
Pa + Pb = P2
P2 is the resultant vector
 Example Problem 1
A 3 kg ball, A, is moving at a speed of 5
m/s. It collides with a stationary ball, B, of
the same mass. After the collision, ball A
moves off in a direction 30 degrees to the
left of its original direction. Ball B moves
90 degrees to the right of ball A’s final
direction. How fast are they moving after
the collision?
 Example 2
A 1500 kg train is moving North at 23 m/s
and collides with a 2000 kg train moving
east at 15 m/s. They stick together. In
what direction and with what speed do
they move after the collision?
Practice Problems
Page 216
17 and 18
 MOMENTUM VECTORS
• Momentum can be analyzed by using vectors
• The momentum of a car accident is equal to the
vector sum of the momentum of each car A & B
before the collision.

B
MOMENTUM VECTORS (Continued)
• When a firecracker bursts, the vector sum of the momenta
of its fragments add up to the momentum of the firecracker
just before it exploded.

• The same goes for subatomic elementary particles. The

tracks they leave help to determine their relative mass and
type.