Physics I Laboratory Faculty of Science, Ontario Tech University

Lab Report PhyI-03: Dynamics Laws

Student’s name___Eric Pilecki___ CRN_ 72275_ Date_ Feb 14th, 2023__

Glider mass ___0.19005 kg________ Hanger mass ____0.0052 kg________

In the Tables 1 and 2 below, M is the mass of the glider with or without extra masses; m is the mass of
the hanger with any extra masses on it.

Constant Net Force Table 1

Total mass, Acceleration, Acceleration, % difference,
Run M, kg m, kg
M+m, kg experiment ae, m/s2 theory at, m/s2 100%∙|at- ae|/ at
#1 0.19005 kg 0.0072 kg 0.1973 kg 0.319 m/s2 0.36 m/s2 11%
#2 0.29005 kg 0.0072 kg 0.2973 kg 0.213 m/s2 0.24 m/s2 11%
#3 0.39005 kg 0.0072 kg 0.3973 kg 0.130 m/s2 0.18 m/s2 28%

Net force, mg: __ 0.071 _______ (N)

Constant Mass Table 2

Net force mg, Acceleration, Acceleration, % difference,
Run M, kg m, kg
N experiment ae, m/s2 theory at, m/s2 100%∙|at- ae|/ at
#4 0.21005 kg 0.0072 kg 0.071 N 0.321 m/s2 0.33 m/s2 2.7%
#5 0.20005 kg 0.0172 kg 0.17 N 0.946 m/s2 0.78 m/s2 21%
#6 0.19005 kg 0.0272 kg 0.27 N 0.920 m/s 2
1.2 m/s 2
23%
Total mass, M+m: _____0.2173______ (kg)

Linear Momentum, Impulse and Force on Glider Table 3

Run Force on glider Te, experiment, N Force on glider Tt, theory, N % difference, 100%∙|Te- Tt|/ Tt
#4 0.0891 N 0.069 N 29%
#5 0.152 N 0.16 N 5%
#6 0.275 N 0.23 N 20%
Compare the force on the glider values in Table 3 with net force values in Table 2

Kinetic and Potential Energy Table 4

Kinetic energy change Work done W = Tel, % difference, 100%∙|
Run Distance l, m
K, kgm2/s2 kgm2/s2 ΔK- W|/ ΔK
#4 0.0016 J 0.02 m 0.002 J 25%
#5 0.0024 J 0.02 m 0.003 J 25%
#6 0.0061 J 0.02 m 0.006 J 2%

Conclusion:

Lab Report PhyI-03: Dynamics Laws

Physics I Laboratory Faculty of Science, Ontario Tech University

The purpose of this lab was to use AirTrack equipment to experimentally verify
Newton’s second law in a friction-free environment and to investigate an energy
transformation and conservation where a conservative force does work on an object in the
system. This purpose was achieved by suspending a mass m from a larger mass M that was
held in place, such that when M was released the smaller mass m would pull on M until M
was stopped by safety bars. The reason two experiments were carried out was to observe
the different accelerations that resulted from maintaining a constant net force and a constant
mass m+M.

Three runs were completed in each experiment to illustrate the differences between
increasing the mass M and increasing the mass m. Based off the results from table 1, the
larger the total mass of the system, the smaller the resulting acceleration. Table 2 shows a
similar relationship where when m is increased, a larger net force on the object M is
produced, which results in a larger acceleration. In summary, acceleration is inversely
proportional to the mass of the system and directly proportional to the net force. The percent
differences in acceleration values seem reasonable, but some possible error sources may
stem from systematic or random errors such as friction between the string and the pulley. The
total mass value was used instead of only the glider’s mass because it was the net mass of
the system and the experimental force on the glider was found by finding the slope of the
momentum graph.

From the data in table 3, the experimental and theoretical force values are similar, and
the percent differences can be explained by systematic or random errors. There is a slight
difference between the net force and the force on the glider, however this can be explained
by random error such as friction. Only the kinetic energy of the glider and the work done by it
are considered in table 4 because it is only the glider being pulled. The values of the kinetic
energy change and the work done are similar and any percent differences can be attributed
to friction between the string and the pulley and between the glider and the track. The
purpose of this lab has been reached as Newton’s 2nd law has been verified in this simulated
environment by investigating energy conservation and transformation when work is done by a
conservative force. I have learned how to use the equation F=ma to analyze net forces and
determine their corresponding accelerations from this lab in addition to the relationship
between momentum and the net force.

Lab Report PhyI-03: Dynamics Laws 2