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Center of mass
Momentum
Impulse
Impulse-momentum relation
Law of conservation of momentum
Collisions
Center of Mass, Impulse, Momentum, and Collision
Problems
Energy and momentum experiments
This point is called the “center of mass” of the system. It is the balancing point for the mass
distribution. Center of mass CM is also known as the Center of Gravity.
Internal Forces – forces between an object within the system and another object within the
system.
External Forces – forces between an object within the system and an object outside the
system.
Example 7.2.1
A child of mass m is standing at the left end of a thin and uniform slab of wood of length
L and mass M. The slab lies on a horizontal and frictionless icy surface of a lake.
Starting from rest, the child walks towards the right end of the slab. How far and in what
direction did the center of mass of the child-slab system move when the child has reached the
right end of the slab?
The center of mass does not move while the child is walking along the slab. It remains where it
was when the child was at the left end of the slab.
In each of the above situations, there is an unbalanced force. It is commonly said that in each
situation there is a net force acting upon the object. The net force is the vector sum of all the
forces that act upon an object. That is to say, the net force is the sum of all the forces, taking
into account the fact that a force is a vector and two forces of equal magnitude and opposite
direction will cancel each other out. At this point, the rules for summing vectors (such as force
vectors) will be kept relatively simple.
Example 7.2.3
Observe the following examples of summing two forces:
Mass Motion
The total momentum of any system is related to its total mass and the velocity of its center of
mass by the equation
Ptotal = mtotalvcm
Conservation of Momentum states that “momentum is equal to the mass of an object
multiplied by its velocity and is equivalent to the force required to bring the object to a stop in a
unit length of time.”
m1* Δv1 = -m2 * Δv2
The momentum changes are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction.
Example 7.2.5
A 12,000 kg railroad car is traveling at 2 m/s when it strikes another 10,000 kg railroad
car that is at rest. If the cars lock together, what is the final speed of the two railroad cars?
Example 7.2.6
A 20 gram bullet traveling at 250 m/s strikes a block of wood that weighs 2 kg. With what
velocity will the block and bullet move after the collision?
p1 = p2 m1 v1 5 = (2.02) v2
= m2 v2 5/2.02 = v2
(.020) (250) = (2 + 0.020) v2 2.5 m/s = v2
What is impulse?
Impulse is a term that quantifies the overall effect of a force acting over time. It is conventionally
given the symbol J and expressed in Newton-seconds.
For a constant force,
J=F Δt
This is exactly equivalent to a change in momentum Δp.
The impulse of force can be extracted and found to be equal to the change in momentum of an
object provided the mass is constant: Impulse = FaverageΔt = mΔv
Example 7.3.2
Find applied force which makes 10m/s change in the velocity of the box in 5s if the mass
of the box is 4kg.
Impulse=Change in momentum
F·t=p2-p1
F·t=m· (V2-V1)
F·t=4kg·10m/s
=40kg·m/s
Impulse of the box is 40kg.m/s
F= (40kg·m/s) / (5s)
=8 N Applied force
What is force?
A force is a push or pull upon an object resulting from the object's interaction with another
object.
Whenever there is an interaction between two objects, there is a force upon each of the objects.
When the interaction ceases, the two objects no longer experience the force. Forces only exist
as a result of an interaction.
What is the relationship between the momentum, impulse, force, and time of contact in a
system?
Impulse-Momentum Theorem
The impulse-momentum theorem states that the change in momentum of an object equals the
impulse applied to it.
J = Δp
The impulse-momentum theorem is logically equivalent to Newton's second law of motion (the
force law).
Momentum measures the 'motion content' of an object, and is based on the product of an
object's mass and velocity. Momentum doubles, for example, when velocity doubles. Similarly, if
two objects are moving with the same velocity, one with twice the mass of the other also has
twice the momentum.
Force, on the other hand, is the push or pull that is applied to an object to CHANGE its
momentum. Newton's second law of motion defines force as the product of mass times
ACCELERATION (vs. velocity). Since acceleration is the change in velocity divided by time, you
can connect the two concepts with the following relationship:
The law of conservation of linear momentum states that the momentum will remain constant
no matter what until and unless any external force comes into action.
For Example,
When a gun is fired and if we assume that the initial position was at rest and hence the initial
momentum to be zero the final momentum should also be zero according to the law of
conservation of momentum.
Application of the law of conservation of momentum is important in the solution of collision
problems.
The operation of rockets exemplifies the conservation of momentum: the increased forward
momentum of the rocket is equal but opposite in sign to the momentum of the ejected exhaust
gases. In mathematical sense, there is a proof of existence of conserving linear momentum.
Note: The momentum remains conserved, i.e., the momentum that is lost initially is equal to the
momentum gained afterwards.
Example
A bullet of mass 10 g was hit in a block of wood whose mass is 5 kg. Immediately after
the collision the speed of the wood and bullet combination is 0.6 m/s. Calculate the original
speed of the bullet.
Solution:
In this inelastic collision, the conservation of momentum is followed. After the collision the two
objects stick together and move with a common velocity vf.
We then have,
m1v1 +m2v2 = (m1 + m2) vf m1 mass of the bullet, v1 its initial velocity, m2 is the mass of
the block, v2 its initial velocity.
Therefore
(0.01 kg) v1 = (5 kg) (0.6 m/s)
v1 = 300 m/s
Px =mVx
Py = mVy
Pz = mVz
Where Vx, Vy, Vz are the velocities in x, y and z directions respectively.
7.5-6 Compare and contrast elastic and inelastic collisions
/Apply the concept of restitution coefficient in collisions
What is a collision?
A collision is an event where momentum or kinetic energy is transferred from one object to
another.
What is momentum?
Momentum (p) is the product of mass and velocity.
p = mv
Types of Collision
In physics, collisions can be defined as either elastic or inelastic. To perform the deformation,
the energy comes from the objects’ original kinetic energy.
Elastic Collision - is a collision in which there is no net loss in kinetic energy in the system as a
result of the collision. Both momentum and kinetic energy are conserved quantities in elastic
collisions.
Example 7.5.1
Collisions in ideal gases approach perfectly elastic collisions, as do scattering
interactions of sub-atomic particles which are deflected by the electromagnetic force.
Some large-scale interactions like the slingshot type gravitational interactions between satellites
and planets are perfectly elastic.
Inelastic Collision - a collision in which there is a loss of kinetic energy. While momentum of
the system is conserved in an inelastic collision, kinetic energy is not.
This is because some kinetic energy had been transferred to something else. Thermal energy,
sound energy, and material deformation are likely culprits.
Example 7.5.2
The ballistic pendulum is a practical device in which an inelastic collision takes place.
You see inelastic collisions when objects stick together after colliding, such as when two cars
crash and weld themselves into one. However, objects don’t need to stick together in an
inelastic collision; all that has to happen is the loss of some kinetic energy.
NOTE: Regardless of whether a collision is elastic or inelastic, momentum is always the same
before and after the collision, as long as you have a closed system.
On the other hand, because it is an elastic collision no energy will be dissipated in deforming the
vehicle. Damage to the structure of the vehicle would therefore be minimized.
Always remember that in elastic collisions, the change in momentum as an object rebounds is
greater than in an equivalent inelastic collision.
7.7 Predict motion of constituent particles for different types
of collisions (e.g., elastic, inelastic)
What happens to two bodies during an elastic collision?
Elastic collisions occur when the colliding objects bounce off of each other after the collision.
Elastic collision usually occurs between hard and/or bouncy objects. An elastic collision is one in
which the sum of the kinetic energy of all the colliding objects before the event is equal to the
sum of the kinetic energy of all the objects after the event. In this type of collision momentum is
conserved. Therefore the law of conservation of momentum can be written as:
Example 7.7.1
Two balls, red and blue, are about to collide in a certain point in the line. If the red ball
has a mass 5 kg of and a velocity of 3 m/s, while the mass of the blue ball is 10 kg and a
velocity of 5 m/s; what will the directions of the two balls be after the collision if the red ball is
going to the right while the blue ball is to the left? Consider an elastic collision.
The center of mass is the sum of the products of individual segments of mass and their
respective locations, divided by the total mass.
Where:
m1 = Mass 1
m2 = Mass 2
x1 = Distance of mass 1
x2 = Distance of mass 2
Example 7.8.1
Note: If the two particles have the same mass, the CoM is halfway in between the particles.
Example 7.8.2 A 325 kg motorcycle is moving at 10 m/s, south. Find its momentum.
How to calculate Impulse?
Impulse is the measure of how much the force changes the momentum of an object.
Example 7.8.3 If the time of force application of a box, 15 N, is 5 s, find the impulse.
J = 15 N * 5 s J = 75 N
Where:
m1 = Mass 1
m2 = Mass 2
Where:
m1 = Mass 1
m2 = Mass 2