6/16/21

Conservation of Momentum

Objectives
Be able to use the conservation of momentum to calculate
the mass, velocity or momentum of a body involved in a
collision or explosion
HSW: AF5 – Working critically with evidence
Used before in: 5 – momentum Will use again in:
PLTS: Self-managers – organise own time.
Used before in: Science A Will use again in:

Keywords
mass, velocity, m/s, kg, scalar, vector, momentum, kgm/s,
inertia, collision, conservation, explosion, kinetic energy
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Outcomes

• ALL MUST be able to describe what the

conservation of momentum is.

• MOST SHOULD be able to give examples

when momentum is conserved.

• SOME SHOULD be able to use the

equation for momentum to find mass and
velocity in collisions and explosions.

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 The conservation of momentum

The definition as an equation is:

the sum of momentum before a collision or explosion

=
the sum of the momentum after the collision or
explosion

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Momentum and collisions

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What is conservation of momentum?
If two objects collide or interact, the
forces acting on each one will be the
same size but in opposite directions.
The same is true for the change in
momentum of each object.

This means that the momentum

lost by one of the objects will
be gained by the other object.
Therefore, whenever two
objects collide or interact,
momentum is conserved.

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Using conservation of momentum

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 Conservation of momentum question
Two trolleys collide and stick
together. From the data below,
calculate the velocity of the
trolleys after the collision.
trolley A trolley B
mass = 3 kg mass = 5 kg
velocity = 8 m/s velocity = -4 m/s
momentum = 24 kg m/s (3 x 8) momentum = -20 kg m/s (5 x -4)

total momentum before collision = 4 kg m/s (24 + -20)

mass after collision = 8 kg (3 + 5)
momentum after collision = 4 kg m/s
velocity after collision = momentum / mass = 0.5 m/s

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Momentum in explosions

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Airtrack demonstrations
Your teacher will show you some demonstrations of the
conservation of momentum on the linear airtrack:

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Momentum: true or false?

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 Choose appropriate words to fill in the gaps below:
The momentum of an object is equal to its ______
mass multiplied
by its velocity. Momentum has _________,
direction the same as the
velocity, and is measured in kilogram _______
metres per second.
In any interaction of bodies, where no external _______
forces act
on the bodies, __________
momentum is conserved.
In snooker, a head-on collision of a white ball with a red ball
can result in the red ball moving off with the ______
same initial
velocity of the white ball. This is an example of momentum
____________.
conservation
KEYWORDS metres mass
direction forces conservation
momentum same
Once complete do all q’s from
pages 140-142 in Martin
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Outcomes – what can you do?

• 1) Describe what momentum is

• 2) What is the conservation of
momentum?
• 3) Give an example of where you would
find momentum being conserved.
• 4) What equation would you use for a
problem where momentum was
conserved?
5) A girl of mass 60kg throws a boy, mass
90kg out off a swimming pool at a velocity of
2m/s. What is the girl’s recoil velocity?
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Outcomes – what can you do?

1) momentum is mass x velocity

2) The total momentum b4 a collision is
C
the same as the momentum afterwards.
3) Any collision (momentum is always
conserved!!) Explosions too. B
4) the sum of momentum before a collision or explosion =
the sum of the momentum after the collision or explosion
5) The girl will recoil (move to the left)
with a velocity of 3 m/s.
A

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Solution to 5.
The total momentum before and after throwing
the boy is ZERO
p=mxv
boy: = 90 kg x +2 m/s = +180 kg m/s

This must cancel the momentum of the girl.

Therefore the girl’s momentum must be -180 kg m/s
gun: = 60 kg x recoil velocity = -180 kg m/s

recoil velocity = - 180 ÷ 60

= - 3m/s
The girl will recoil (move to the left)
with a velocity of 3 m/s.
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HW

• Your HW is to download this powerpoint

and re-read it in your own time.
• Then use slide 14 to do a virtual
experiment. See if you can predict what
will happen, then change the variables and
try again.
• Once you have done this, use the last
slide to direct you to a website. Write a
review of this website. How helpful it is
and what you can find out on the page.

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Investigating momentum - HW

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Online Simulations
Collision Lab - PhET - Investigate collisions on an air hockey table.
Set up your own experiments: vary the number of discs, masses and
initial conditions. Is momentum conserved? Is kinetic energy
conserved? Vary the elasticity and see what happens.
Air Track - Explore Science
Collisions along a straight line - NTNU
2D Collisions - Explore Science
Two dimensional collisions - Virginia
Elastic & Inelastic Collisions - Fendt
Newton's Cradle - Fendt
BBC AQA GCSE Bitesize Revision:
Momentum
Conservation of momentum
Momentum and force

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