Name: ______________________________________ Date: ________________________

Student Exploration: Air Track

Vocabulary: air track, approach velocity, conservation of energy, conservation of momentum,

elasticity, kinetic energy, momentum, separation velocity, velocity

Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)

Imagine going to a bowling alley with a bowling ball and a ping pong ball.

1. Why is a bowling ball better for knocking down pins than a ping pong ball? A bowling ball is

significantly larger than a ping pong ball.

2. Which do you think would knock down more pins, a bowling ball moving 10 meters per

second or a bowling ball moving 10 centimeters per second? The 10-meter-per-second

bowling ball

3. What two factors seem to most affect the amount of damage that occurs in a collision?

The velocity of the components influences overall damage that can be caused in such a
collision.

Gizmo Warm-up
An air track is a device that helps scientists study
motion. Air comes out of holes in the track, allowing
the gliders to move with minimal friction.

1. On the Air Track Gizmo, click Play ( ) to view a collision between the two gliders.

What do you see? The gliders clash and afterwards reverse directions.

2. Click Reset ( ). The velocity (v) of an object describes its speed and direction. The
velocity of each glider is indicated next to the v1 and v2 sliders. Click Play, and then click
Pause ( ) just before the collision.

A. What is the velocity of Glider 1? 5 m/s

B. In which direction does Glider 1 move? Left to right

C. What is the velocity of Glider 2? -5 m/s

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D. In which direction does Glider 2 move? Right to left

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 Activity A: Get the Gizmo ready:
Momentum  Click Reset.

Question: How does an object’s momentum change when it collides with another object?

1. Explore: The Gizmo allows you to adjust the mass and initial velocity of each glider. Set up
each of the following scenarios, and describe what happens when the gliders collide.

A. The gliders have the same mass but different velocities. The gliders seem to swap
speeds.
B. The gliders have the same mass and one glider is stationary. The flying glider comes
to a halt as the other glider glides away, the first glider is travelling east at 6 m/s,
while glider 2 is still immobile. Both have the same weight. Glider one remained even
after the impact, whereas glider two moved east at a speed of 6 m/s.
C. The gliders have the same speed (but moving in opposite directions) and different

masses. After the collision, the less-massive glider flees significantly faster than

other glider.

2. Calculate: An object’s momentum (p) describes how hard it is to stop. Momentum is equal
to the product of mass and velocity: p = mv. If mass is measured in kilograms and velocity in
meters per second, the unit of momentum is kilograms-meters per second, or kg•m/s.

A. What is the momentum if the mass is 1.5 kg and the velocity is 4 m/s? 6kg / ms

Turn on Show numerical data and use the Gizmo to check your answer.

B. How could you use the Gizmo to increase a glider’s momentum?

When you increase mass or velocity, momentum increases, implying that they are
directly proportional. And use the levers to raise the glider's mass and velocity

3. Gather data: Click Reset. Set m1 to 3.0 kg and v1 to 2.0 m/s. Set m2 to 2.0 kg and v2 to
-4.0 m/s. Fill in the left table, run the collision, and then fill in the right table.
Before collision

Glider Glider 1 Glider 2

Mass 3.0 kg 2.0 kg
Velocity 2.0 m/s -4.0 m/s
Momentum 6 kg/ms -8kg m/s

After collision

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 Glider Glider 1 Glider 2
Mass 3 kg 2 kg
Velocity -2.8 m/s 3.2 m/s
Momentum -8.4 kg 6.4 kg m/s
(Activity A continued on next page)

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Activity A (continued from previous page)

4. Calculate: To find the total momentum, add up the momentum of each glider. (Note: Pay
attention to signs.)

A. What was the total momentum of the two gliders before the collision? -2 kg m/s

B. What was the total momentum of the two gliders after the collision? -2 kg m/s

Turn on Show total momentum to check your answers.

5. Experiment: Click Reset. Set up three collisions using any combination of masses and
velocities you like. (The only rule is that the gliders must collide.) Record the mass, velocity,
and momentum of each glider before and after the collision. Then, find the total momentum.
Remember to include units.

Glider 1 Glider 2 Total

m v p m v p momentum

Before collision 1 1 -3 2 -2 -3 -6
After collision 1 -3 -3 1 0 -3 -6
Before collision 2 2 -5 3 -3 -5 -10
After collision 2 -4 -5 3 1 -5 -10

6. Analyze: What do you notice about the total momentum of the two gliders? Before every
contact, the overall momentum of both the gliders are equal to the momentum after the
collision.

7. Draw conclusions: The principle of conservation of momentum states that, in a closed

system, the total momentum of all of the objects will remain constant. How do your
experiments demonstrate conservation of momentum?

The overall momentum of the two gliders remains constant in each experiment.

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 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity B:
 Click Reset.
Velocity
 Check that the Elasticity is set to 1.0.

Introduction: When two gliders are moving toward each other, the relative speed they are
moving together before the collision is called the approach velocity. Similarly, the speed at
which the gliders are moving apart after the collision is described by the separation velocity.
Each is equal to the difference in the gliders’ velocities:
v(approach) = v1 – v2 v(separation) = v2′ – v1′

Question: What rule governs the velocities of two colliding objects?

1. Calculate: Set m1 to 3.0 kg and m2 to 1.5 kg. Set v1 to 4.0 m/s and v2 to -6.0 m/s. Pay
attention to the signs of the velocities as you calculate them.

A. What is the approach velocity of the two gliders? 10.0 m/s [4.0 – (-6.0) = 10.0]

B. Click Play and then Pause after the collision. What is the velocity of each glider?

Glider 1 velocity: -2.67 m/s Glider 2 velocity: 7.33 m/s

A. What is the separation velocity of the two gliders? 10.0 m/s [7.33 – (-2.67) = 10.0]

C.

D. What do you notice? The separation and approach velocities are equal

2. Experiment: Click Reset. Set up two collisions using any combination of masses and
velocities you like. Calculate the approach velocity and separation velocity for each collision.
Remember to include units.

Glider 1 Glider 2
v(approach) v(separation)
m v m v
Before collision 2 3 2 -3
6 m/s 6 m/s
After collision 2 -3 2 3
Before collision 3 10 0.2 -10
20 m/s 20 m/s
After collision 3 7.5 0.2 27.5

3. Analyze: So far, you have found that momentum is conserved in a collision. What else
appears to be conserved? Explain your answer.
Because separation velocity has always been equivalent to approach velocity.
(Activity B continued on next page)

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Activity B (continued from previous page)

[Note: The following extension is designed as a challenge.]

4. Challenge: So far, you have found two rules that govern the behavior of the gliders before
and after a collision. These two rules are expressed by the equations below. (Note: In each
equation, a prime symbol (′) indicates “after the collision.”)

Before collision After collision

Conservation of momentum: m1v1 + m2v2 = m1v1′ + m2v2′

Approach velocity = separation velocity: v1 – v2 = v2′ – v1′

If you are given the initial masses and velocities of the objects, you can use these two
equations to solve for the two unknowns: v1′ and v2′. Try this in the space below. (Hint: Solve
the second equation for v2′, and then substitute this expression into the first equation.)

5. Solve: For each of the situations given below, determine the final velocity of each glider. Use
the Gizmo to check your answers. (The Gizmo cannot be used to solve the last problem.)

A. Glider 1 has a mass of 2.0 kg and a velocity of 2.6 m/s. Glider 2 has a mass of
3.0 kg and an initial velocity of -4.4 m/s.

v1′ -5.8 m/s v2′ 1.2 m/s

B. Glider 1 has a mass of 0.5 kg and a velocity of 9.0 m/s. Glider 2 has a mass of
1.0 kg and an initial velocity of -9.0 m/s.

v1′ -15 m/s v2′ 3 m/s

C. Glider 1 has a mass of 5.0 kg and a velocity of 15.0 m/s. Glider 2 has a mass of
6.0 kg and a velocity of -12.0 m/s.

v1′ -14.45 m/s v2′ 12.55 m/s

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 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity C:
 Click Reset.
Kinetic energy
 Check that the Elasticity is set to 1.0.
and elasticity
 Turn off Show numerical data for both gliders.

Introduction: The kinetic energy (KE) of an object is a measure of its energy of motion,
measured in joules (J). Kinetic energy depends on both the mass and velocity of the object:
KE = mv2 / 2

Question: What happens to the kinetic energy of a system during a collision?

1. Calculate: Set m1 to 3.0 kg and v1 to 2.0 m/s. Set m2 to 1.5 kg and v2 to -6.0 m/s.

A. What is the kinetic energy of Glider 1? 6 Glider 2? 27

B. What is the total kinetic energy of both gliders? 33

2. Run Gizmo: Turn on Show numerical data. Click Play and then Pause after the collision.

A. What is the kinetic energy of Glider 1? 1.31 Glider 2? 0.01

B. What is the total kinetic energy now? 1.32

3. Experiment: Click Reset. Set up two collisions using any combination of masses and
velocities. Calculate the kinetic energy of each glider and the total kinetic energy.
Remember to include units.

Glider 1 Glider 2 Total

m v KE m v KE KE

Before collision 1.3 2 2.6 2.7 -2 5.4 8

After collision 1.3 -3.4 7.5 2.7 0.6 0.49 8
Before collision 2 2 4 3 3 13.6 17.5
After collision 2 -4 16 3 3 1.5 17.5

4. Summarize: The principle of conservation of energy states that in a closed system the
total energy remains constant. How do your experiments demonstrate this principle?
According to the conservation of energy concept, energy cannot be created or eliminated in a
closed environment, while it can alter structure. A closed - loop system is one that allows zero
mass to leave or enter. As an outcome, there is no transfer of energy, and the overall amount of
energy in the system remains constant.

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(Activity C continued on next page)

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Activity C (continued from previous page)

5. Experiment: If the colliding objects are deformed in the collision, some of the kinetic energy
is converted to heat and/or sound. The elasticity of a collision is related to the kinetic
energy that is preserved in a collision.

Set the Elasticity to a value less than 1.00 and run an experiment with any combination of
masses and velocities. Record the results below. Remember to include units.

Glider 1 Glider 2 Total

m v KE m v KE KE

Before collision 2.2 4.4 21.3 1 4.4 9.6 30.98

After collision 2.2 0.28 0.08 1 4.67 10.93 11.01

6. Calculate: Elasticity is also related to the approach velocity and the separation velocity.

A. What is the approach velocity in the example above? 7.2

B. What is the separation velocity in the example above? The same 7.2 m/s

C. What is the ratio of the separation velocity to the approach velocity? 1:!

7. Gather data: Repeat your experiment with several different values of Elasticity. In each
experiment, record the approach velocity, separation velocity, and the ratio of the separation
velocity to the approach velocity. Remember to include units.

v(separation)
Trial Elasticity v(approach) v(separation)
v(approach)
1 0.2 10.6 2.12 0.2
2 0.8 10.6 8.48 0.8
3 0.6 10.6 6.36 0.6

8. Make a rule: Based on your table, how could you calculate the elasticity of a collision if you
know the approach velocity and separation velocity of the colliding objects?

The elasticity of a collision may be calculated by dividing the separation velocity by the
approach velocity.

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