LABORATORY REPORT

Experiment 5

Forces in Equilibrium

Name: Raphael Fernando T. Adolfo CYS: MEB 31 Grade:

Instructor: Engr. Jennifer B. Igat Date Submitted: 10-20-2016

ABSTRACT:

If an object is neither moving through space (translating) nor rotating, it is said to be in static equilibrium. The sum of the
external forces acting on the object must be zero (recall forces add as vectors); and similarly the sum of the external
torques must be zero. This experiment will teach us to investigate the effect of specific interactions (forces) on the motion
of objects. The forces in this lab will be tensions and weights. The magnitude of the weights will be determined by using
known masses and using the formula mg. Furthermore, the direction of weight is known to be vertically down. Because
the masses are in static equilibrium, we will be able to determine the tensions. The objective of this experiment is to
determine the mass of an object that is in static equilibrium. The best trial that we got is in the 150 the percentage error is
= 1.01%, Tension = 1.27, and mass = 500.7

MATERIALS USED:

 Xplorer GLX

 Force Sensor

 Dynamic Track

 Dynamic Cart

 Large Base and Support Rod

 Universal Table Clamp

 Rod

 Angle Indicator

 Spring Balance String

ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION:

If an object is at equilibrium, then the forces are balanced. Balanced is the key word that is used to describe equilibrium
situations. Thus, the net force is zero and the acceleration is 0 m/s/s. Objects at equilibrium must have an acceleration of
0 m/s/s. This extends from Newton's first law of motion. But having an acceleration of 0 m/s/s does not mean the object is
at rest. An object at equilibrium is either at rest and staying at rest, or in motion and continuing in motion with the same
speed and direction.

If an object is at rest and is in a state of equilibrium, then we would say that the object is at "static equilibrium." "Static"
means stationary or at rest. If the object is at equilibrium, then the net force acting upon the object should be 0 Newton.
Thus, if all the forces are added together as vectors, then the resultant force (the vector sum) should be 0 Newton. (The
net force is "the vector sum of all the forces" or the resultant of adding all the individual forces head-to-tail.) Thus, an
accurately drawn vector addition diagram can be constructed to determine the resultant. We computed the experimental
mass through the use of the formula m = T /g sin𝜃. The tension in the cable and the angle that the cable makes with the
horizontal are used to determine the weight of the dynamic cart. The idea is that the tension, the angle, and the weight are
related. If the any two of these three are known, then the third quantity can be determined using trigonometric functions.

Our analyzation and interpretations based on the table is as follows: (1.) the maximum force of static friction that exists
between two surfaces is proportional to the normal force and mostly independent of area of contact. In our experiment it is
shown that: N = the total normal force (force perpendicular to the horizontal surface) which is essentially the weight of the
object. The coefficient in that equation is called the coefficient of static friction and that depends on the material. (2.)
Based on the graph as the angle increases the percentage error decreases it means that higher the angle the more
accurate the result will be. (3.) You can observed in the table that the experimental mass of the 3 angles are close to each
other or it is relatively constant.

DATA AND RESULTS:

Trial Tension, T (N) Mass (grams) Percentage error

Experimental Actual
50 0.41 480.0 505.8 5.10%
100 0.85 499.5 505.8 1.25%
150 1.27 500.7 505.8 1.01%
COMPUTATIONS:

Formula:
𝑡
m=
𝑔 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝜃

For 50:
0.41
=
9.8 sin 50
= 0.48 kg
1000𝑔
0.48 kg x
1𝑘𝑔

= 480.0 g

For 100:
0.85
=
9.8 sin 100
= 0.49 kg
1000𝑔
0.49 kg x
1𝑘𝑔

= 499.5 g

For 150:
1.27
=
9.8 sin 150
= 0.501 kg
1000𝑔
0.501 kg x
1𝑘𝑔

= 500.7 g