CONSERVATION OF

MOMENTUM
TUTORIAL
By: Mark Rhind (featuring Frank Cannonball"
Richards)

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AS YOU CAN SEE, THE GUY

IS CRAZY
As his job, Frank Cannonball Richards put his entire 96 kilogram body in front of a
cannon that shoots a 50 kilogram cannonball travelling at 63 meters per second.
My question is, how fast is Frank travelling after the cannonball hits him?
As a warm-up, lets do some unit conversions to get a grasp of how heavy and fast that really is.
Remember:
1 kilogram = 2.2 pounds
1 meter per second = 2.24 miles per hour
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WHAT IS THE WEIGHT OF

THE CANNONBALL IN
POUNDS?

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100 lbs

105 lbs

110 lbs

112 lbs

HOW FAST IS THE CANNONBALL

GOING IN MILES PER HOUR?

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103.33 mph

112.35 mph

127.65 mph

141.12 mph

MOMENTUM OF THE
CANNONBALL
The momentum of the cannonball is given using the equation:

Momentum = Mass * Velocity

This equation is going to be used for all momentum problems!

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WHAT IS THE INITIAL

MOMENTUM OF THE
CANNONBALL?

2950

3150

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3050

3250

APPLYING THE LAW OF

CONSERVATION OF MOMENTUM
If we assume there are no net external forces, we can apply the Law of
Conservation of Momentum.

We must assume this for the law to work for us. This is
because if there was a net external force acting on the
system, there would be some momentum either added
or subtracted from the system.
The system in this case is the cannonball and Franks body.
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DOES THIS LOOK LIKE AN

ELASTIC COLLISION OR AN
INELASTIC COLLISION?

Elastic;
The masses transfer momentums

Inelastic;
The masses combine momentums
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WHICH EQUALITY IS
CORRECT DURING THE
COLLISION?
Change in Momentum of Cannonball
=
Change in Momentum of Frank

Initial Momentum of Cannonball + Initial Momentum of Frank

=
Change in Momentum of System
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YES! WE ARE READY TO

SOLVE
Using the general equation for this system and the equation for momentum, we can see that:

Mass of the Cannonball * (Final Velocity of the Cannonball Initial Velocity of the Cannonball)
=
Mass of Frank * (Final Velocity of Frank Initial Velocity of Frank)
*Notice that since the masses of the two objects stay the
same, the change in momentum of the object is due to the
change in its velocity

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 ALMOST.
In order to get this equation to work easily for us, we must assume one more
thing:

We assume the elastic collision was perfect

between the cannonball and Frank. This
means that there was a full and complete
transfer of momentum between the two
objects.
This means that since Frank was initially motionless, then the
cannonball is motionless after it hits Frank.
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BEFORE WE FIND THE

SOLUTION, LETS LAY OUT
OUR KNOWN VALUES
Mass of the Cannonball = 50 kilograms

Initial Velocity of the Cannonball = 63 meters per second

Final Velocity of the Cannonball = 0 meters per second
Mass of Frank = 96 kilograms
Initial Velocity of Frank = 0 meters per second
Final Velocity of Frank = ???

Now all we have to do is plug and chug!

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WHAT IS FRANKS FINAL

VELOCITY?

12.24

32.81

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56.53

COMPLETE!
You have successfully applied the Law of Conservation of
Momentum to find out how fast this man travelled after he
performed his most ridiculous stunt.
This Law can be applied to anything within the assumptions in order to
find the mass or initial or final velocity of any colliding objects!
To get some practice on inelastic collisions, be sure to watch the video posted on
the Resources page.
Then, you will be ready for the Assessment Activity!
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