MECHANICS

FORCES, KINEMATICS

Physics Notes
Zahid I. B. Khan

AND DYNAMICS

Hotline: 01911591319, 01714121925

FORCE
Force is usually interpreted as a pull or a push and identified as a push or a pull of A on B, or vice versa.
Strictly speaking, however, force is defined as the agent which brings about a change in the body's state of rest
or of uniform motion.
FORCES OF NATURE:
There are basically four certainly known types of forces:
a) Gravitational Force
This is an attractive force between all particles with mass. It is responsible for holding planets in orbit
around the sun.
b) Electromagnetic force
This force is either attractive or repulsive and acts between charged particles. It is the binding force of
atoms and molecules.
c) Weak Force
This is responsible for radioactive decay.
d) Strong Force
This holds neutrons and protons together in the nucleus and is effective at extremely small distances such
as 10-14m.
All physical phenomena arise in one way or the other due to one or more of the above forces.
CENTRE OF GRAVITY; WEIGHT
It is thought the force of gravity acting from one body onto another object acts at a point in the object. This
gravitational pull on the object is called its weight and the point of action is called the centre of gravity of the
object. .

W=mg
Where g is acceleration due to gravity.
KINEMATICS
Displacement
The shortest distance between two points. A vector quantity measured in meters.
Velocity
Rate of change of displacement with time. A vector quantity measured in m/s.
Speed
Rate of distance covered with time. A scalar quantity measured in m/s.

Composed By: Zahid I B Khan

Acceleration
Rate of change of velocity with time. A vector quantity measured in m/s 2.
Equations of Motion
a) v u at

1 2
at
2
c) 2ax v 2 u 2
b)

x ut

Experimental measurement of the acceleration of free fall, g

The apparatus is arranged as shown. The electromagnet is turned off by the two-way switch that lets the ball go
and also starts the millisecond timer. As the ball bearing hits the platform it breaks open the contact and,
consequently the millisecond timer stops counting. A piece of paper is placed between the ball and the
electromagnet as a precaution. The time reading of the counter is recorded and the experiment is repeated by
adjusting the electromagnet to different heights.
Results
The different values of time with different heights is measured and from each set of values g is calculated using
the relation g = 2x/t2. The value is fairly constant in each case and is approximately 9.81 m/s 2.
PROJECTILES

A body that is projected through a gravitational field is known as a projectile.

During projection, the vertical acceleration acts downwards and is the acceleration due to gravity g. This has no
component in the horizontal direction and as such the horizontal velocity remains unchanged, provided that the air
resistance is negligible.
Consider an object projected horizontally from a height x. The horizontal velocity, u, remains unchanged during the
projection and it is the vertical velocity downwards which increases from rest under acceleration due to gravity, g.
Thus the time taken for the projection is that which would have taken under free fall. And hence:
2x
t
g
The range of the projection is given by R= ut.

Composed By: Zahid I B Khan

Let us now consider the projection of an object at an angle to the horizon, . If the body is projected at a speed
of u, its speed can be resolved into two components: the horizontal component u cos and the vertical component
u sin . The vertical component decreased before reaching the maximum height under the deceleration due to
gravity and after that increases under g. The time in each phase is the same. Thus,
u sin
t
g
2u sin
Therefore time of flight is t
g
The maximum height therefore is,

u 2 sin 2
2g

And the range of the projection is

u 2 sin 2
2g

Thus the range is maximum when 2 90 0 , or, 45 0

DYNAMICS
NEWTON'S FIRST LAW OF MOTION

A body shall continue in its state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line unless compelled to do otherwise due
to the action of another force.
Thus a particle will achieve equilibrium if acted on by a number of forces only when the resultant force is zero.
This tendency of a body to continue in its state of motion, uniform and straight, or at rest is called inertia.
Linear Momentum
This is the product of the mass and the velocity of a moving body. It is measured in kg m/s, or Ns. Thus, p= mv;
where, p = linear momentum, m = mass, v = velocity.
NEWTON'S SECOND LAW OF MOTION
The resultant force acting on a body is proportional to the rate of change of momentum. The change of momentum
occurs in the direction of the force.
Thus,

F
But,

m( v u )
t

vu
a (from v u at)
t
Thus, F ma
Or, F = ma.

Hence, one Newton is the resultant force acting on a body of mass one kg if it is accelerating with a uniform
acceleration of one meter per Second Square.
Impulse
Impulse on a body is defined as the product of the resultant force acting on the body and the time through which
it acts.
p Ft

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Impulse is also known as momentum change. The area under force-time graph represents impulse.
Experimental Investigation of a F

Set up a runway and tilt is just enough so that the trolley runs down it at constant speed when given a push. Use a
force-meter to apply a constant/force to the trolley and measure the acceleration by acceleration-computer.
Repeat for a range of forces and plot a graph of acceleration against force. The graph will be similar to shown
above.
NEWTONS THIRD LAW OF MOTION

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction

Thus the push or pull of A on B is always equal to the pull or push of B on A. The normal force, for example, is the
reaction force against the weight of a substance resting on a table. The weight is gravitational in nature, while the
normal is electromagnetic and arises due to intermolecular interactions due to compression between molecules on
the table's surface.
Collisions
In all collisions momentum is conserved. However, during some collisions some of the kinetic energy may be
converted into internal energy of colliding bodies, or to a small extent sound energy. These types of collisions
where some kinetic energy is converted to other forms of energy are called inelastic collisions; whereas collisions
where kinetic energy is conserved are called elastic collisions.
Law of Conservation of Linear Momentum

The sum of linear momentum of bodies before collision equals the sum of linear momentum in the same direction
after collision.
MECHANICAL ENERGY
Work

When a body on which a force is acting moves towards the direction of the force work is done and energy is being
transformed. Work is defined as the product of force and distance; i.e.

W Fx cos

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 is the angle between the line of action of the force F and the direction of displacement x. Work, however, is a

scalar quantity.

Work and energy are measured in joules. One joule of work is done, and one joule of energy is transformed form
one form to another, if the point of action of a force of one Newton is moved a distance of one meter along the
line of action of force.

The area under a force-displacement graph gives work.

Power

The rate at which work is done, or the rate at which the energy is converted from one form to another is the
power.

W
t

The unit of power is the watt (W) which is one joule per second. Since work done equals to the energy changed and
also the product of force and distance, we may express power as:

E
t

Fx
t

And, thus, Power force velocity; P Fv

Kinetic Energy
The energy possessed by a body by virtue of its motion is called kinetic energy of the body.
Kinetic energy, K .E.

1
mv 2
2

Where, v = low speeds

Potential energy and Gravitational Energy

A body is said to have potential energy due to its configuration in a field of force.
Gravitational potential energy is the energy associated with the position of a body in a gravitational field.
P.E. mgh
Conservation of Energy

Energy is never created or destroyed but only changes from one form to another.
Thus if a constant force F is applied on a body and thus causes a displacement of x in the direction F, then the
work done on the body is equal to the change in kinetic energy of the body; i.e.

Composed By: Zahid I B Khan

mv 2
2

F x

The total amount of mechanical energy (K.E + P.E) which the bodies in an isolated system possess is constant.
This applies only to frictionless motion. In practice, however, work has to be done to overcome friction and is not
completely converted to kinetic energy of the body. The extra work is usually accompanied by an increase in the
internal energy or temperature, of the molecules of the body. Hence,
Total work = Gain in K.E + Gain in Internal energy
Owing to friction in which case sound energy may be released as well, the useful output is always less than the total
input. Thus efficiency of the system decreases because:
Useful output
Percentage Efficiency
100%
Total input
STATICS
Moment of a force
If the line of action of a force does not pass through the centre of mass then it will exert a turning effect on the
body. The measure of this turning effect is known as the moment of the force or the TORQUE.
Moment of force, T F d
Where d is the perpendicular distance between the point of rotation and the line of action of the force F.
Torque is measured in Newton meter, Nm, and is one example in which units do not denote what it stands for in
other cases, i.e. here Nm Joules .
Couples
Couple is said to exist when two centripetal forces whose lines of action do not coincide act on a body. It produces
rotation and not translation.
The torque of a couple = F x 2r
Where 2r is the perpendicular distance between the line of actions of the two forces and F is the magnitude of
anyone of these forces.

Equilibrium
If only one force acts on a body then it cannot be in equilibrium. If more than one force acts on the body the body
is then said to be in equilibrium only if:
1) The vector sum of the force acting on the body is zero.
2) The sum of clockwise moments equals the sum of anti-clockwise moments.

Composed By: Zahid I B Khan