6 Forces in equilibrium

AQA Physics Exam-style questions

1 a i State the difference between a scalar quantity and a vector quantity.

(1 mark)

ii State two examples of a scalar quantity and two examples of a vector

quantity.

scalar quantities

vector quantities
(3 marks)
b Figure 1 shows a ship fitted with a sail attached to a cable. The force of the
wind on the sail assists the driving force of the ship’s propellers.

Figure 1
The cable exerts a steady force of 2.8 kN on the ship at an angle of 35°
above a horizontal line.
Calculate the horizontal and vertical components of this force.

horizontal component of force kN

vertical component of force kN
(2 marks)

From AQA Physics A PHYA2 Mechanics, Materials and Waves January 2009
(Question 2)

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 6 Forces in equilibrium
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

2 A radio-controlled toy helicopter is moving at a constant velocity through still air.

The lift force from the helicopter’s blades is labelled P. The toy helicopter is
shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2 Not drawn to scale

a Forces Q and R also act on the toy helicopter. State what balances the each
of these forces:

i Force Q is balanced by

ii Force R is balanced by (2 marks)

b At one point in time, the forces acting on the toy helicopter are not balanced.
The force vectors are shown arranged as a triangle in Figure 3.

Figure 3
State and explain the toy helicopter’s motion using Figure 3.

(2 marks)

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 6 Forces in equilibrium
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

3 A toy glider is launched using a rubber band.. Figure 4 shows the forces acting
on a glider at one instant during the launch.

Figure 4
a Show that the magnitude of the resultant force acting on the glider is about
0.97 N.

(2 marks)
b Calculate the angle between the resultant force and the horizontal.

angle = degrees (2 marks)

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 6 Forces in equilibrium
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

4 Figure 5 shows two of the forces acting on a uniform ladder resting against a
smooth vertical wall.

Figure 5
The ladder is 6.0 m long and has a weight of 150 N. The horizontal force, P,
exerted on the ladder by the wall is 43 N. Force Q (not shown) is the force the
ground exerts on the ladder at B.
a Explain why the force, Q, must have
i a vertical component

(1 mark)

ii a horizontal component.

(1 mark)

b Draw an arrow on the diagram to represent the force Q. (1 mark)

c State the
i horizontal component of Q (1 mark)
ii vertical component of Q. (1 mark)

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 6 Forces in equilibrium
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

d State and explain the effect on force Q if a person stands on the bottom of
the ladder and the direction of P is unchanged.

(3 marks)

From AQA Physics A PA02 Mechanics and Molecular Kinetic Theory June 2007
(Question 2)

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 6 Forces in equilibrium
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

5 a i State two conditions necessary for an object to be in equilibrium.

(2 marks)

ii For each condition state the consequence if the condition is not met.

(2 marks)

Figure 6 shows a pole-vaulter holding a uniform pole horizontally. He keeps

the pole in equilibrium by exerting an upward force, U, with his leading hand,
and a downward force, D, with his trailing hand.

Figure 6
b Calculate for the situation shown in Figure 6,
i the force, U,

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 6 Forces in equilibrium
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

(2 marks)

ii the force, D.

(1 mark)

c Explain the effect on the magnitudes of U and D if the vaulter moves his
leading hand closer to the centre of gravity of the pole and the pole is still in
equilibrium.

(3 marks)

From AQA Physics A PA02 Mechanics and Molecular Kinetic Theory June 2008
(Question 1)

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 6 Forces in equilibrium
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

6 Figure 7 shows a child riding a bicycle. The bicycle is in contact with the road at
points P and Q.

Figure 7
The bike has a weight of 220 N and the rider’s weight is 750 N.
a State the principle of moments.

(2 marks)

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 6 Forces in equilibrium
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

b Calculate the moment of the rider’s weight about P, stating an appropriate

unit for your answer.

moment (2 marks)

c By taking the moments about Q, calculate the vertical force that the road
exerts on the front wheel at P.
State your answer to an appropriate number of significant figures.

vertical force N (4 marks)

d Calculate the vertical force that the road exerts on the back wheel at Q.

vertical force N (1 mark)

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