3.2 Forces in Action Flashcards
define resultant force
is a single force which has the same effect as the sum of all the forces acting on a body
what is the formula for resultant (or net) force? and what law is this?
f = ma where f = resultant force m = mass of object a = acceleration form of Newton's second law when mass is constant
when can you use f = ma?
when mass is constant (e.g not a rocket)
what is the unit of force and define it?
newtons, N
1 newton is the force required to accelerate a mass of 1kg by 1ms^-2 in the direction of the force
if the forces on an object are balanced the object is said to be in…?
equilibrium
no resultant force, no acceleration
what is the formula for weight force?
w = mg
where w = weight force
m = mass of object
g = acceleration due to gravity
what are the four fundamental forces of nature?
-the gravitational force
the force between two masses, has infinite range
-the electromagnetic force
holds atoms and molecules together, has infinite ranfe
-the weak force
responsible for radioactive decay, acts over very short ranges
-the strong force
-responsible for holding subatomic particle together in the nucleus and is the strongest force of all nature
define tension
is the force experienced by any rope, string, cable or wire that is being pulled, hung, rotated or supported
define normal contact force (or reaction force)
is the force that acts perpendicularly (at right angles) to the point of contact of a body and the surface with which it is in contact
define upthrust
the upwards force that a liquid or gas exerts on a body floating in it due to the fluid displaced
define friction
the force of friction occurs between two surfaces in contact with one another and resists the motion at the point of contact
what are free body force diagrams and what should they contain?
simplified labelled drawing where the object is modelled as a point, it should contain…
- the body on which the forces act
- the direction of application of each force
- the type of each force
- the size of each force
if you drop two objects of different masses which will hit the ground first? (ignoring air resistance)
both hit the ground at the same time because acceleration is independent of mass, objects fall at the same rate
what is drag?
the frictional force experienced by an object travelling through a fluid (can be liquid or gas)
what factors affect drag for an object travelling through air?
- cross sectional area of the object
- the density of the fluid
what is the relationship between drag caused by air resistance and the cross sectional surface area of the object?
drag ∝ cross sectional area
directly proportional
what is the relationship between drag caused by air resistance and velocity of the object?
drag ∝ velocity^2
directly proportional to square of velocity
what is terminal velocity?
the velocity at the point during freefall when the object stops accelerating as the weight force is balanced by the air resistance (becomes equal), object falls at constant velocity