Forces

What is a Force?
A force is a push or pull acting on an
object that changes the motion of the
object.

Types of Forces
Contact Force Forces that act through
direct contact between two objects
Applied Forces, Friction
Long Range Forces Forces that can
act over distances
Gravity, Electromagnetic Force (EMF)

Newtons Second Law of Motion

Newton discovered the idea of a Force
He found the Force is proportional to
the Acceleration of an object (more
Force = more Acceleration)
He found the Force is proportional to
the mass of the object (more mass =
more force needed).

Newtons Second Law of Motion

Moving objects accelerate when an
unbalanced force (F) acts on them. The
stronger the force, the greater the
acceleration (a). Also, the greater the
mass (m) the greater the force required
to change the motion.
Force = mass x acceleration
F = ma

Newtons Second Law of Motion

Force is a Vector Quantity and
therefore has magnitude and
direction.
The direction of the force is the same
as the direction of the acceleration.

S.I. Unit For Force

The Unit for Force is a Newton (N)

1N = 1kg m/s2
A Newton (N) is defined as the
amount of force required to
accelerate 1 kg of mass at a rate of
1 m/s2.

Net Force

When Multiple forces are acting on an

object. The Net Force is the amount of
force that is left after adding all the forces
on the object.

Net force (FNET) = Resultant Force (FR)

Balanced Forces
Balanced Forces are forces that are
equal and opposite so that they
cancel out.
10 N East
10 N West

Net Force = +10 N + -10 N = 0

Unbalanced Forces
Unbalanced Forces are forces that when
added do not cancel out and cause a
change in the motion of the object.
30 N East
10 N West

Fnet = +30 N + -10 N = +20 N East

Inertia
Inertia measures the tendency of an object
to resist changes in motion.
Galileo came up with the idea of inertia
Objects do not want their motion to
change
Mass measures how much inertia an
object has (More mass = More inertia)

Newtons First Law of Motion

(Law of Inertia)

If no unbalanced forces act on a moving

object, then the object will continue to
move with a constant velocity (constant
speed in a straight line). If an object is
at rest it will stay at rest.

Newton took his concept of forces and

combined it with Galileos idea of inertia

Equilibrium

First Condition for Equilibrium

If the Net Force acting on the object is
zero
FNET = 0 a = 0

The object is either stationary (v = 0) or

traveling with a constant velocity
(v = constant)

Free Body Diagram (FBD)

A diagram that looks at all the forces

acting on a single object. A FBD has all
the forces labeled with their magnitude
and direction as well as the motion of the
object.

Mass and Weight

Mass is amount of matter that an object
possess. Mass does not change with
location.
Weight is the gravitational force that a large
body (such as a planet) exerts on another
object.

Weight

Weight is a Force! It is measured in

Newtons.
Weight = Mass x Acceleration due to
Gravity (Newtons 2nd law)
W = mg
Weight does change with location!
(g will change with location)

Solving Net Force Problems

1.

2.

Make a Free Body Diagram (Label all

forces and the acceleration of the object)
Use the following Equations to solve for
the unknown

FNET (x-direction) = max

FNET (y-direction) = may

f = Fn

Microgravity

Microgravity is the illusion of

weightlessness experienced in freefall.
(All objects are falling at the same rate)
Apparent Weight is the weight a scale
gives you but may change if are not in
equilibrium.

Friction
Friction resists motion.
Friction causes moving objects to
slow down.
Friction produces heat.

Friction
1.

2.

3.

Static Friction occurs between

stationary surfaces in contact.
Sliding Friction occurs when one
surface slides over another.
Rolling Friction occurs when a
rounded surface rolls over another.

Ways to Reduce Friction

Use wheels or rollers
Lubricants - produce a smooth layer
between the surfaces
Sanding the Surfaces smooth the
surfaces

Friction and Newtons Laws

Friction is a force (Newtons laws apply)
Friction causes an acceleration (slowing
down the motion of an object)
Friction always acts parallel to the surface
in the opposite direction of motion

Calculating the Frictional Force

Friction depends on:
1. Forces acting between the
surfaces (Normal Force)
2. Nature of the surfaces
(Coefficient of Friction)

Calculating the Frictional Force

Normal Force (FN) Force that acts

perpendicular to the surface and
away from the surface
The Normal Force (FN) is usually
found by summing the forces in the
y-direction

Calculating the Frictional Force

Coefficient of Friction () describes
how rough/smooth the surfaces are
Rough Surfaces High value of
> 0.5
Smooth Surface Low value of
< 0.5

Calculating the Frictional Force

The frictional force is the product of
the coefficient of friction and the
normal force
Frictional force = (Coefficient of
Friction) x (Normal Force)
f = FN

Air Resistance
Free Fall The situation where
gravity is the only force acting on an
object (Assume No Air Resistance)
Air Resistance The force the air
applies on a moving object. It
attempts to slow down falling objects
(similar to friction)

Air Resistance and

Terminal Velocity
Terminal Velocity The maximum
speed a falling object reaches when
dropped from rest
An object reaches terminal velocity
when the force of gravity is balanced
with the force of air resistance

Air Resistance and

Terminal Velocity
1. An object is dropped and at first the force
of gravity (W) is much greater than the
force of Air Resistance (FAR)
W >> FAR
2. The force of Air Resistance (FAR)
increases as the speed of the falling
object increases

Air Resistance and

Terminal Velocity
3. Eventually the force of Air
Resistance is equal and opposite to
the force of gravity and the Net Force
acting on the falling object is zero.
W = FAR Therefore FNET = 0

Air Resistance and

Terminal Velocity
4. Since the Net Force acting on the

object is zero, the object continues to

fall but falls the rest of the way at a
constant velocity (Newtons First
Law). This velocity is called the
Terminal Velocity!

Air Resistance and

Terminal Velocity
FNET = 0

and

therefore

F = ma

ay = 0

Object falls with a constant velocity

(Terminal Velocity)
Note: Terminal Velocity can be a
Maximum or a Minimum!

Periodic Motion and

Simple Harmonic Motion

Periodic Motion - motion that repeats back

and forth through a central position
Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM) periodic
motion where the Force is proportional to
the displacement from the equilibrium
position (F d)

Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)

In Simple Harmonic Motion the Net Force

at the equilibrium position is zero. When
the object moves away from the
equilibrium position a Restoring Force
pulls the object back.

As d then F
Examples; Spring, Pendulum

Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)

Objects in SHM can be described with two

quantities.
Period (T) the time needed to complete
one cycle of motion
Amplitude (A) is the maximum distance
the object moves from the equilibrium
position

Springs

Hookes Law the Force of a Spring is

proportional to the distance from the
equilibrium position
FS = kd

FS = Restoring Force of the Spring

d = displacement from the equilibrium position

k = spring constant for that particular spring

Period of a Spring

To find the period of a spring (TS) in simple

harmonic motion:
TS = 2(m/k)1/2 (Square Root)
m = mass of the spring
k = spring constant

Pendulums

A Pendulum is a mass attached to a string

or wire of length (L) that swings back and
forth through the equilibrium position
A pendulum swinging through small
angles is an example of SHM

Pendulums

Gravity is the restoring force and is

proportional to the distance away from the
equilibrium position
The components of gravity change as the
pendulum moves back and forth resulting
in Fg d

Period of a Pendulum

The Period of a Pendulum (TP) can be

found with;
TP = 2 (L/g)1/2 Square Root

The Period of the Pendulum depends

only on the length and the acceleration
due to gravity (Not the mass)

Resonance

Resonance is increasing the amplitude of

vibration by adding a small force at regular
time intervals
Examples: Swing (Pendulum), and Sound

Newtons Third Law of Motion

States: Every Action has an equal and
opposite Reaction.
Forces always come in pairs!
Action-Reaction Forces always occur
between two objects.

Four Fundamental Forces of

Nature
1.

2.

Gravity Force of attraction between any

two masses. Weakest of the fundamental
forces but acts over the largest distances.
Electromagnetic Force (EMF) force
between charged particles. Stronger than
gravity but does not reach as far. (Like
charges repel, opposite charges attract)

Four Fundamental Forces of

Nature
3. Strong Nuclear Force Force of
attraction between subatomic particles
inside the nucleus. Strongest force in
Nature but only acts inside the nucleus
(shortest distance). Holds the atom
together.

Four Fundamental Forces of

Nature
4.

Weak Nuclear Force is the force

observed in the radioactive decay of
some elements

Unification Theory This theory looks to

unify all the fundamental forces to a
single unified force.

Forces on Ropes and Strings

Tension (T) is the force acting along a

rope or wire.
Tension always acts away from the object
along the rope.
Newtons Third Law applies to Tension
when looking at two objects.
Only One Tension needs to be drawn on a
Free Body Diagram