Mass vs.

Change in
Momentum
By: Kevin Mo, Remy Sell,
Logan Gray, Blake Profio
Goal and Objective
● To look at the relationship between the mass of circular objects and the

effects it has on the velocity

○ More specifically the momentum as the objects travels down a ramp

at different angles

● The final momentum is going to be measured as the object reaches the

end of the ramp at a specific angle for all objects and trials
Theory
Momentum:
● is a quantity that describes an object's resistance to stopping (a kind of
"moving inertia").
● is represented by the symbol p
● is the product of an object's mass and velocity.
p = mv
● is a vector quantity (since velocity is a vector and mass is a scalar).
Dependent and Independent Variables
The independent variables of the lab:
● Change in mass of the circular objects throughout the experiment to test
their relationship with momentum.
● Change the angle/starting height of the ramp to also test the relationship
with momentum.
The dependent variable:
● The momentum that is being calculated with the change in the mass of
the object.
○ The momentum will be measured in (kg*m/s).
○ The predicted relationship between the mass and momentum is that they will have a
linear relationship, as one increases, so will the other proportionally.
Method of Measuring
In the experiment we used:
● Tracker Pro downloaded to a laptop in order to be able to measure the
average velocities of each marble
● A device that is capable of video recording in slow-motion/240 frames per
second (iPhone)
○ Once we have the velocities for each trial from tracker, we will be able
to find momentum by P=(mass)(velocity). The controlled variables will
be the length of the ramp, friction of the ramp, the time frame each
object is measured for and the mass of the circular objects.
Experiment and Instruments
● We had 3 balls with different masses
● We had a ramp that we could change the angle
1. We set the ramp to 15°
2. Then sent each ball down the ramp and took a slow motion video of each
3. Then we repeated this process for 30° and 45°
4. Then went to tracker to calculate the velocities of each ball at a certain
point for each angle
5. Since we found the velocities we were able to find the momentum and
see how they compared
Data
Mass of Objects: Calculations:
● Momentum= mass * velocity
● Green Ball: 0.0197 kg
● Metal Ball: 0.0674 kg
● Clear Marble: 0.0205 kg Measured angles (degrees):

● 15
● 30
Circumference of all objects: 0.0817 m ● 45
Data cont’d.
15 degrees Green Ball Clear Ball Metal Ball

Velocity (m/s) 21.15 29.08 24.18

Momentum (J) 0.42 0.59 1.62

Data cont’d.
30 degrees Green Ball Clear Ball Metal Ball

Velocity (m/s) 43.16 45.07 42.19

Momentum (J) 0.85 0.92 2.84

Data cont’d.
45 degrees Green Ball Clear Ball Metal Ball

Velocity (m/s)
58.35 61.21 69.05
Momentum (J) 1.15 1.25 4.65
Conclusion
● After completing the experiment that was designed, we can see that the
marbles momentum is directly proportional to the marbles mass and
velocity.
● If one of the variables is increased/decreased, then the others will
increase/decrease as well.
○ The equation that compares these variables is momentum = mass * velocity
● Our groups prediction was that if we were to increase the mass of the
marbles, then the velocity would increase and the momentum would
increase too. Our prediction was correct, and can be supported by the
data we accumulated in the slides above.
● Errors of experiment
Questions?