My aim in this experiment is to investigate how the compression of a spring affects the amount of kinetic energy transferred to the trolley that it is attached to.
Trolley Investigation Aim My aim in this experiment is to investigate how the compression of a spring affects the amount of kinetic energy transferred to the trolley that it is attached to. Scientific Knowledge In any compressed spring there is potential elastic energy. This can be calculated using the formula: Elastic Energy = 1/2 k x 2 When the spring is released it transfers the elastic energy mainly into kinetic energy. The formula that is used to calculate this energy is: Kinetic energy = 1/2 m v 2 However to find the velocity of an object you must first calculate its speed. This is done using the formula: Speed = Distance Time In any case, the amount of elastic energy that an object has will affect the amount of energy transferred to kinetic energy. Inevitably if there is more elastic energy that means that there is a larger quantity that can be transferred, resulting in a bigger final amount of kinetic energy. Safety I will carry out my experiment in a safe, secure area so that no harm is caused to anyone or anything. Dangers that may be encountered during this investigation include the fast (or slow!) moving trolley, possibly causing damage to interfering obstacles or people. To ensure that this does not happen I will clear the area before carrying out the experiment. I will ensure that people participating in the experiment are standing and not
Investigating the Vertical Oscillations of a Loaded Spring.
Investigating the Vertical Oscillations of a Loaded Spring Aims: The aim of this investigation is to find the elastic constant of the spring under study. The elastic constant of material is always useful to know and in some cases vital. For instance the elastic constant of a bungee rope is vital. It will tell the operator of the ride by how much the bungee rope will extend, using Hookes law (F=kx), and so how far the rider will fall. Using this they can calibrate the ride so as the give the rider the best possible experience. Because of this the aim of this experiment is to find out through experimentation the elastic constant of a material and find out if it is the same as what is stated in the specifications of the material. The object under investigation is a metal spring. Method: To find the elastic constant of the spring I will attach a mass (a weight with its mass measured on the scales) to it, then stretch it to a set amount from its normal location (this being where the attachment hook rests when no other forces are applied). Doing this I will then let go and time the oscillations of the spring (one oscillation meaning leaving the starting position, passing the rest position, reaching the aphelion, then returning to the starting position, or simpler one cycle). To get an accurate measurement of period of the oscillations I will time how long it takes to reach 10
An Investigation into the Factors, which affect the Voltage Output of a Solar Cell
An Investigation into the Factors, which affect the Voltage Output of a Solar Cell My aim is to try and find out how much the voltage is affected when exposing different sized areas of a solar cell to a light source. From this I will also establish the energy of each photon and approximately, the number of freed electrons, which can make an electric current flow. I know that light consists of packets or quanta of energy called photons. When electromagnetic radiation such as light shines on materials (usually metals), which emit electrons the light photons containing energy are captured by the electrons. This means that the electron absorbs the energy from a photon thus allowing it to escape from the surface of its material. For each light photon landing on the surface of a material which emits electrons, an electron can be 'free'. I know that solar cells contain thin wafers of silicon protected by glass. When light photons strike the surface of the solar cell, energy from the photon is absorbed by an electron. The electron needs a certain minimum energy to escape the material but excess energy or surplus energy is transferred to the electron as kinetic energy. Thus creating an electric force, this pushes the electrons around a circuit, known as an electric current, when the solar cell is connected up. The size of the voltage depends on the number of flowing or 'freed'
Investigate stretching using Hooke's Law.
INTRODUCTION We have been asked to investigate stretching using Hooke's Law. Before actually planning the experiment, I will do some research to find out about Hooke's Law, and matters related to it, so that I can make predictions. And figure out away to make this investigation fair and safe. KNOWLEDGE Hooke's law states that: - "If you stretch something with a steadily increasing force, then the length will increase steadily too". However Hooke's law isn't all to do with stretching, it is to do with the Extension also. Extension is the increase in length compared to the original length with no force applied. For the majority of the materials, the extension will be proportional to the load. Forces can change the motion or shape of an object. An object that regains its original shape when the force is removed it is said to be elastic. For example, a rubber band that is stretched and then released usually returns to its original length. Rubber is an example of material that possesses elasticity. You can change the shape of a material by applying enough force. When you stop applying the force, some materials retain their new shapes; these are plastic materials. Other materials return to their old shape when you stop applying the force; these are elastic materials. When you pull an elastic material, it stretches - increases in length. At first, when you double the pull,
Investigate any relationship present between the distance between a solar cell and a lamp, and the current output of the solar cell, at a fixed voltage.
Solar Cell Experiment Introduction: Solar Cells convert light energy to electrical energy, so are transducers. Aim 1: To investigate any relationship present between the distance between a solar cell and a lamp, and the current output of the solar cell, at a fixed voltage. Aim 2: To investigate any relationship present between the power supplied to a bulb, and the current of a solar panel, at a fixed distance apart. When investigating a solar cell, there are several variables we could investigate. Below, I have analysed all the variables that could be investigated, and evaluated which one I will investigate. When considering what variables of the light I could investigate, several things come to mind. Variable 1: Light Light has different colours, and different coloured lights are known to have different frequencies. This in turn would cause the different coloured lights to emit different levels of power. We know that this is the case because when combining the two below formulae, we can see that energy and frenquency are related. Wavelength x Frequency= Wave Speed Planck's Constant x frequency= Energy The second formula states that frequency is directly proportional to energy. When rearranging the first formula to display frequency as the subject of the formula, and then substituting the value for frenquency given (wave speed/wavelength) into the second formula,
Investigate Whether Elastic Bands and Springs Behave the Same Way.
SCENARIO: Investigate whether elastic bands and springs behave the same way. AIM: When a load(weight) is applied to either an elastic band or a spring, do they return to their original length i.e. is the extension directly proportional to the load. BACK GROUND INFORMATION: The structure of elastic bands and springs are different. By studying a Newton metre, I noticed that the marks between each Newton applied were equidistant. This implies that a spring returns to the original length, therefore the load and length are directly proportional. This is because the structure of a spring is coiled. Therefore the molecules have been twisted and pulled apart, this creates the spring, as the molecules try to pull themselves back together. An elastic band is made of polymers. Hooke's Law states when a material is stretched, the change in length is directly proportional to the stretching force applied. However when an elastic limit is reached the material will be deformed and no longer obey the law. When a material is stretched, the molecules are pulled further away from each other, weakening the bonds, if the bonds break then the molecules cannot return to their original state. This is known as the elastic limit. Therefore, the number of molecules will effect the elastic limit of a material. The more molecules there are the more energy is needed to weaken the bonds. When a load
My aim in this experiment is to investigate how the compression of a spring affects the amount of kinetic energy transferred to the trolley that it is attached to.
Trolley Investigation Aim My aim in this experiment is to investigate how the compression of a spring affects the amount of kinetic energy transferred to the trolley that it is attached to. Scientific Knowledge In any compressed spring there is potential elastic energy. This can be calculated using the formula: Potential Energy = mass x gravity x height When the spring is released it transfers the potential energy mainly into kinetic energy. The formula that is used to calculate this energy is: Kinetic energy = 0.5 x mass x velocity x velocity However to find the velocity of an object you must first calculate its speed. This is done using the formula: Speed = Distance time In any case, the amount of potential energy that an object has will affect the amount of energy transferred to kinetic energy. Inevitably if there is more potential energy that means that there is a larger quantity that can be transferred, resulting in a bigger final amount of kinetic energy. Safety I will carry out my experiment in a safe, secure area so that no harm is caused to anyone or anything. Dangers that may be encountered during this investigation include the fast (or slow!) moving trolley, possibly causing damage to interfering obstacles or people. To ensure that this does not happen I will clear the area before carrying out the experiment. I will ensure that people participating
In this experiment, I am going to find out the relationship between Force and extension using stretchy sweets and then find the stiffness of stretchy sweets using Hookes Law.
STRETCHY SWEETS EXPERIMENT In this experiment, I am going to find out the relationship between Force and extension using stretchy sweets and then find the stiffness of stretchy sweets using Hookes Law. Hookes Law states that extension in a material is proportional to the force applied provided the proportional limit is not exceeded. To do this, I will use a fixed length of stretchy sweets and suspend different mass of metals on it. Then I will find the extension on the sweet for each suspended metal of known mass. I will carry out first a trial experiment to find out the behaviour of this sweet under different load and to see if it returns to its original length after unloading it. There are several factors that may affect the extension of the stretchy sweet. Some of them are: * The material of the stretchy sweet * The cross sectional area of the sweet * The length of the stretchy sweet * The temperature in the lab In doing this, I have to keep the material of the sweet constant by using the same type of sweet each time. The cross sectional area of the stretchy sweets will be kept constant by using stretchy sweets with the same diameter. The temperature will be kept constant by performing the experiment in the lab at room temperature, because an increase or decrease in temperature will cause the stretchy sweet to either expand or contract thereby affecting the
Investigation of the structure of a cantilever beam.
PLANNING AIM. INVESTIGATION OF THE STRUCTURE OF A CANTILEVER BEAM. APPARATUS LIST. . 3 Measuring rulers (1m each). 2. 10 Weights. (100g each) 3. 2 Wooden blocks. 4. Clamp. 5. Screw gauge with a sensitivity of 0.1mm 6. Vernia calapus with a sensitivity of 0.2mm VARIABLES INVOLVED. The variables that will be kept constant are the length of the overhang of the ruler, the position where the ruler is clamped and the position on the ruler where the weights are hung. The only variable that will change during the experiment is the amount of weight that is hung on one end of the ruler to measure the different deflection of the ruler at different heights. The weights that are hung on one end of the ruler will vary each time by adding 100g to the previous weight and read of the deflection of the ruler until it reaches 1kg. METHOD. Arrange the apparatus as shown in the above diagram. As the apparatus is fixed appropriately we can then start the experiment. As the apparatus is fixed we might see the ruler has a slight bend without any weights on it this is due to its own weight, this can be counted as a systematic error .Now I am going to start adding 100g weights to the ruler. The weights will be added from 100g till it becomes 1 kg, and every time we add 100g we must measure the deflection of the ruler. This can be done by measuring the initial position of the ruler and
Investigation on how putting springs in series and parallel affects their extension.
Investigation on how putting springs in series and parallel affects their extension Planning Introduction In order to find out how putting springs in series of parallel affects the extension of the spring I will use Hooke's law. Hooke's law states that the force applied to a spring is proportional to its extension, so long as the limit of elasticity is not exceeded. This can be written T???. This statement of proportionality can be used to write an equation of proportionality: T=k?. k represents the spring constant or stiffness of the spring. To find out how the extension of the springs is affected by putting the springs in series or parallel I will set up an experiment involving putting weights on a single spring, two springs in parallel and two springs in series. Single Spring Two Springs in Series Two Springs in Parallel Prediction I researched this topic in the textbook "Advanced Physics by Keith Gibbs" and I found that the equation used to find the spring constant is k = ??????l , ?which means the spring constant can be calculated by dividing the modulus of elasticity by the length of the spring. All springs have a different spring constant and the higher the spring constant, the lower the extension. Two springs put into series have a different spring constant than two springs in parallel. I predict that the springs put in series will