Physics and Work

In this module, we will learn a

measurable definition of work as the
product of force and distance.
Objectives: After completing this
module, you should be able to:
• Describe work in terms of force and
displacement, using the definition of the
scalar product.
• Solve problems involving concept of work.
• Distinguish between the resultant work and
the work of a single force.
• Define the spring constant and calculate
the work done by a varying spring force.
Three things are necessary for the
performance of work:
• There must be an applied force F.
• There must be a displacement x.
• The force must have a component
along the displacement.

F F
 
x
 If a force does not affect
displacement, it does no work.

The force F exerted on the

pot by the man does work.
F
The earth exerts a force W on
W pot, but does no work even
though there is displacement.
 Definition of Work
Work
Work isis aa scalar
scalar quantity
quantity equal
equal to to the
the
product
product of of the
the displacement
displacement xx and and the
the
component
component of of the
the force
force FFxx in
in the
the
direction
direction ofof the
the displacement.
displacement.

Work
Work == Force
Force component
component XX displacement
displacement

Work
Work == FFxx xx
 Positive Work
x F

Force F contributes to displacement x.

Example: If F = 40 N and x = 4 m, then

Work = (40 N)(4 m) = 160 Nm

Work
Work == 160
160 JJ 1 Nm = 1 Joule (J)
 Negative Work
x f

The friction force f opposes the displacement.

Example: If f = -10 N and x = 4 m, then

Work = (-10 N)(4 m) = - 40 J

Work
Work == -- 40
40 JJ
Resultant Work or Net Work
Resultant work is the algebraic sum of
the individual works of each force.

x f F

Example: F = 40 N, f = -10 N and x = 4 m

Work = (40 N)(4 m) + (-10 N)(4 m)

Work
Work == 120
120 JJ
 Resultant Work (Cont.)
Resultant work is also equal to the
work of the RESULTANT force.

4 m -10 N 40 N

Example: Work = (F - f) x
Work = (40 - 10 N)(4 m)

Work
Work == 120
120 JJ
 Work of a Force at an Angle
F = 70 N
Work = Fx x x = 12 m
60o
Work = (F cos ) x

Work = (70 N) Cos 600 (12 m) = 420 J

Only the x-component of

Work
Work == 420
420 JJ the force does work!
 Procedure for Calculating Work
1. Draw sketch and establish what is given
and what is to be found.
2. Draw free-body diagram choosing
positive x-axis along displacement.
F
n x

+ Work = (F cos ) x
mg

3. Find work of a single force from formula.

4. Resultant work is work of resultant force.
 Example 1: A lawn mower is pushed a
horizontal distance of 20 m by a force of 200 N
directed at an angle of 300 with the ground.
What is the work of this force?

F x = 20 m
300

F = 200 N

Work = (F cos ) x

Note: Work is
Work = (200 N)(20 m) Cos 300 positive since Fx
and x are in the
Work
Work == 3460
3460 JJ same direction.
Example 2: A 40-N force pulls a 4-kg block a
horizontal distance of 8 m. The rope makes an
angle of 350 with the floor and uk = 0.2. What is
the work done by each acting on block?
x P
1. Draw sketch and 
find given values.
values
P = 40 N; x = 8 m, uk = 0.2;  = 350; m = 4 kg
2. Draw free-body P 40 N
diagram showing n
all forces. (Cont.) fk 
mg +x
Work = (F cos ) x
x 8m
Example 2 (Cont.): Find Work Done by Each Force.

P 40 N P = 40 N; x = 8 m, uk = 0.2;
n  = 350; m = 4 kg
fk 
4. First find work of P.
W = mg +x
x 8m Work = (P cos ) x

WorkP = (40 N) cos 350 (8 m) = 262 J

5. Next consider normal force n and weight W.
Each makes a 900 angle
WorkP = 0
with x, so that the works
Workn = 0
are zero. (cos 900=0):
 Example 2 (Cont.):

P 40 N P = 40 N; x = 8 m, uk = 0.2;
n  = 350; m = 4 kg
fk 
+x WorkP = 262 J
W = mg
x 8m Workn = WorkW = 0

6. Next find work of friction. Recall: fk = k n

n + P cos 350 – mg = 0; n = mg – P cos 350
n = (4 kg)(9.8 m/s2) – (40 N)sin 350 = 16.3 N
fk = k n = (0.2)(16.3 N); fk = 3.25 N
 Example 2 (Cont.):
Workn = WorkW = 0 P 40 N
n
WorkP = 262 J fk 
6. Work of friction (Cont.) +x
W = mg
fk = 3.25 N; x = 8 m x 8m

Workf = (3.25 N) cos 1800 (8 m) = -26.0 J

Note work of friction is negative cos 1800 = -1
7. The resultant work is the sum of all works:

262 J + 0 + 0 – 26 J (Work)
(Work)RR == 236
236 JJ
 Example 3: What is the resultant work on a
4-kg block sliding from top to bottom of the
300 inclined plane? (h = 20 m and k = 0.2)
Net work = (works)
f x
n Find the work of 3 forces.
h
mg 300 Work = (F cos ) x

First find magnitude of x from trigonometry:

x h 20 m
h sin 30 0
 x  40 m
30 0
sin 30 0
x
Example 3(Cont.): What is the resultant work
on 4-kg block? (h = 20 m and k = 0.2)
1. First find x = 40 m
mg cos  f
x
work of mg. n
60
0
2. Draw free- h
mg
body mg 300
diagram
Work = mg(cos ) x
Work = (4 kg)(9.8 m/s2)(40 m) Cos 600
Work done by Positive
weight mg Work
Work == 784
784 JJ Work
Example 3 (Cont.): What is the resultant work
on 4-kg block? (h = 20 m and k = 0.2)
r 3. Next find work of
f
n friction force f which
h requires us to find n.
mg 300 4. Free-body diagram:
n
f n = mg cos 300= (4)(9.8)(0.866)
mg cos 300 n = 33.9 N f = k n
300
mg f = (0.2)(33.9 N) = 6.79 N
Example 3 (Cont.): What is the resultant work
on 4-kg block? (h = 20 m and k = 0.2)
r 5. Find work of friction force f
f
n using free-body diagram
h Work = (f cos ) x
mg 300
Work = (6.79 N)(20 m)(cos 1800)
f
1800 Work = (272 J)(-1) = -272 J
x Note: Work of friction is Negative.

WorkWhat
of n work is done
is 0 since it isby
at the
rightnormal to x.n?
anglesforce
Example 3 (Cont.): What is the resultant work
on 4-kg block? (h = 20 m and k = 0.2)
r Net work = (works)
f
n Weight: Work = + 784 J
h
Friction: Work = - 272 J
mg 300
Force n: Work = 0 J
Resultant
Resultant Work
Work == 512
512 JJ

Note: Resultant work could have been

found by multiplying the resultant force by
the net displacement down the plane.
Graph of Force vs. Displacement
Assume that a constant force F acts
through a parallel displacement x.

Force, F
The area under the
curve is equal to the
F work done.
Area Work = F(x2 - x1)

x1 x2 Work  F x
Displacement, x
 Example for Constant Force
What work is done by a constant force of 40 N
moving a block from x = 1 m to x = 4 m?
Force, F
Work  F x
40 N
Work = F(x2 - x1)
Area
Work = (40 N)(4 m - 1 m)
1m 4m
Displacement, x Work
Work == 120
120 JJ
 Work of a Varying Force
Our definition of work applies only for a
constant force or an average force.

What if the force varies with displacement as

with stretching a spring or rubber band?

F x

x F
 Hooke’s Law
When a spring is stretched, there is a restoring
force that is proportional to the displacement.

FF == -kx
-kx

x The spring constant k is a property

of the spring given by:
F
m F
K=
x
Work Done in Stretching a Spring
Work done ON the spring is positive;
work BY the spring is negative. x
From Hooke’s law: F = kx F
m
Work = Area of Triangle
Area = ½ (base)(height)
F = ½ (x)(Favg ) = ½ x(kx)

Work = ½ kx
Work = ½ kx22

x
Compressing or Stretching a Spring
Initially at Rest:
Two forces are
always present: x x
the outside force
Fout ON spring and m
m
the reaction force Compressing
Fs BY the spring. Stretching

Compression: Fout does positive work and Fs

does negative work (see figure).
Stretching: Fout does positive work and Fs
does negative work (see figure).
Example 4: A 4-kg mass suspended from a
spring produces a displacement of 20 cm.
What is the spring constant?
The stretching force is the weight
(W = mg) of the 4-kg mass: 20 cm F
F = (4 kg)(9.8 m/s2) = 39.2 N m

Now, from Hooke’s law, the force

constant k of the spring is:

F 
k= = kk == 196
196 N/m
N/m
x 0.2 m
Example 5: What work is required to
stretch this spring (k = 196 N/m)
from x = 0 to x = 30 cm?
Work  kx1
2
2

Work = ½(196 N/m)(0.30 m)2

Work
Work == 8.82
8.82 JJ
F Note: The work to stretch
30 cm an additional 30 cm is
greater due to a greater
average force.
 General Case for Springs:
If the initial displacement is not zero, the
work done is given by:

Work  kx  kx
1
2
2
2
1
2
2
1

F
x1 x2
m
x1 x2 m
 Summary
F
Work = Fx x x
60o
Work = (F cos ) x

Work
Work isis aa scalar
scalar quantity
quantity equal
equal to to the
the
product
product of of the
the displacement
displacement xx and and the
the
component
component of of the
the force
force FFxx in
in the
the
direction
direction ofof the
the displacement.
displacement.
 Procedure for Calculating Work
1. Draw sketch and establish what is given
and what is to be found.
2. Draw free-body diagram choosing
positive x-axis along displacement.
F
n x

+ Work = (F cos ) x
mg

3. Find work of a single force from formula.

4. Resultant work is work of resultant force.
 Important Points for Work Problems:
1. Always draw a free-body diagram,
choosing the positive x-axis in the
same direction as the displacement.
2. Work is negative if a component of the
force is opposite displacement direction
3. Work done by any force that is at right
angles with displacement will be zero (0).
4. For resultant work, you can add the works
of each force, or multiply the resultant
force times the net displacement.
 Summary For Springs
Hooke’s Law:
x F = -kx
F Spring F
m k
Constant: x

The spring constant is the force exerted

BY the spring per unit change in its
displacement. The spring force always
opposes displacement. This explains the
negative sign in Hooke’s law.
 Summary (Cont.)
F
x1 x2
m
x1 x2 m

Work to Stretch a Spring:

Work = ½ kx 2 Work  2 kx2  2 kx1
1 2 1 2
Springs: Positive/Negative Work
Two forces are
always present: x +
the outside force x
Fout ON spring and m
the reaction force Compressing m
Fs BY the spring. Stretching

Compression: Fout does positive work and Fs

does negative work (see figure).
Stretching: Fout does positive work and Fs
does negative work (see figure).