Find out the breaking distance of a trolley car going down a ramp when an independent factor is changed.

Authors Avatar
Physics Investigation

By Christopher Stylianou

Aim

The aim is to find out the breaking distance of a trolley car going down a ramp when an independent factor is changed.

Factors

All the independent variables, which could affect the investigation of Breaking Distance, are:

> Speed of Vehicle- By changing the speed of the trolley car, it could change the Breaking Distance.

> Friction of Wheels- By changing the amount of frictions on the wheels, it could change the Breaking Distance.

> Surface Material- By changing the surface material the trolley is travelling on, it could change the Breaking Distance.

> Gradient of Slope- By changing the gradient of the slope, it could change the Breaking Distance.

> The Breaking Force- By changing the breaking force applied to the trolley car, it could change the Breaking Distance.

> Mass of the Vehicle- By changing the mass of the trolley car, it could change the Breaking Distance.

Investigation

I have decided with the research I have below to investigate the change of breaking force independent variable. This is because I can use a range of different weights applied to the trolley car as it travels down the slope. E.g.: - 100g of breaking force, 120g of breaking force etc... Then, by marking where the breaking force is applied and where the trolley car actually stops, I can work out how far the trolley car has travelled. I can work out the Potential Energy at the beginning of the ramp, where the breaking force is applied and the Kinetic Energy at where the breaking force is applied to see how much work is done in stopping the vehicle. Lastly, I can work out the de-acceleration of the trolley car and see whether it increases or decreases when the breaking force is increased.

Research

* Breaking Force - The force that is applied to a vehicle that is moving to slow or even stop the vehicle.

* Potential Energy - The Energy a mass has because of its position or condition. E.g.: - A trolley car weighing 1kg is rolled down a ramp 20 meters high. When the trolley car is at the top of the ramp the Potential Energy is,

Ep = mgh

Where m = the mass of the trolley car (10kg), g = the gravitational pull (10N/kg) and h = the height of the ramp (20m).

Ep = 10kg x 10N/kg x 20m

Ep = 2000 Joules

So the Potential Energy acting on the trolley car at the top of the ramp is 2000 Joules. When the trolley car is at the bottom of the ramp there is no Potential energy as it has been converted into Kinetic Energy (see below).

* Kinetic Energy - The Energy a mass has because of its motion. E.g.: - A trolley car weighing 10kg is rolling down a ramp at 20 meters per second to the earth. When the trolley is at the bottom of the ramp the Kinetic Energy is,

Ek = 1/2 x m x v²

Where m = the mass of the trolley car (10kg) and v = the velocity of the trolley car (20m/s).

Ek = 1/2 x 10kg x 20m/s²

Ek = 5kg x 400m/s

Ek = 2000 Joules

So the Kinetic Energy acting on the trolley car at the bottom of the ramp is 2000 Joules. When the trolley car was at the top of the ramp there is no Kinetic Energy as there is no motion.

* To work out the Kinetic Energy or Potential Energy of a mass that is not at the top of the ramp or at the bottom we can use Potential Energy equation.

Ep = mgh

So if the trolley car (10kg) was 15 meters high from a drop of 20m then the Potential Energy is,

Ep = 10kg x 10N/kg x 15m

Ep = 1500 Joules
Join now!


So if Potential Energy is 1500 Joules, then the remainder from the beginning 2000 Joules is 500 Joules. This is the Kinetic Energy on the trolley car. This is because no force can be lost or gained but these figures could be incorrect as some of the force is converted into heat.

* To calculate out the work done in braking the trolley car, we use the equation

Braking Force (N) x Distance Travelled (m) = Constant (Joules).

So if a trolley car had a braking force of 200g and travelled 10m after the ...

This is a preview of the whole essay