When a person sits on top of the slide, potential energy is present, as the person slides down potential energy is turned into kinetic energy. This energy comes from gravity, exerted by the Earth’s mass. The steeper the slide is the higher the potential energy is and the higher the person’s acceleration is.
Acceleration is the change in velocity. In freefall gravity accelerates 9.8 ms. So the steeper the slide is, the closer you are in falling straight to the ground, because the slide is titled, the force of gravity acts upon you, and presses you to the slide, leaving only some energy for you to accelerate towards the ground, therefore your acceleration will not be exactly 9.8 ms, acceleration will be near to 9.8 ms.
The force of the person on the slide is equal to the person mass times their acceleration. So the larger the person’s force is, the slower the acceleration is.
F=MA
Friction is the resistance to the two moving objects that touch; friction reduces your speed so you don’t fall straight through, so every time you slide down, there will always be friction acting against you.
In a slide there are always two forces on the person, force of gravity:
W= mg
And the normal force of the slide. The person’s force of gravity is put onto the slide, and the slides normal force exerts it back onto the person.
We know this because Newton’s third law states that for each action there will always be an equal or opposite force reacting towards it.
The only way to get a faster ride down a slide is to minimise the amount of friction that is acting upon the person while going down the slide, this can be done by wearing smooth material, so the biggest factor is usually what you are wearing.
Diagram below:
Source:
http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/imgs/content/children-playing-on-slide-Brazil.jpg
