Friction Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Friction - Lab Report Example A proof of an increase or decrease in mass of the Newton’s experiment is determined by the force and acceleration achieved from the experiment. Goals: The goal of the experiment is to verify the existence of Newton’s second law by finding the coefficient of static friction, Â µs and the coefficient of kinetic friction, Â µk. using the experiment stated below. Introduction: Have you wondered the make-ups of mechanics? Well Newton’s second law breaks it down into simple understandable terms by providing a means of translating directly between the acceleration and force acting towards a given mass or object. Theoretical background: The experiments are based on the concepts of force and Newton’s Laws of Motion, particularly Newton’s Second Law which states that: the acceleration of a body is directly proportional to the net force acting on the body, and inversely proportional to the mass of the body. From this definition, the equation Net Force = Mass x Acceleration (Fnet = mass x acceleration) is derived. Air tracks were used to reduce friction; the little amount of friction that remains in the system is negligible in the data. The suspended mass was subject to gravity which has a constant acceleration of -9.81 m/s2. The variables were solved to include: acceleration of the sled, velocities of the sled at each photo-gate, net force acting on the string, and the time taken from release to the first photo-gate and between the photo-gates. Acceleration was calculated using the formula: Acceleration= Velocity/ Time. The experiment is commonly used in mechanics fields to determine the acceleration acti ng towards a given mass or object. ... Theory: The variables to be used in the experiment and their explanation involves F used to show the force, m used to show the mass being used and a used to show the acceleration of the object. The variables used by Newton’s lay emphasis on the net force used exerted on the experiment in question. The relationship between force and motion was initially discussed by Aristotle (384-332B.C). He proposed that the natural state of an object was during rest, and force was required to put an object into motion, therefore, a continuous force was necessary to keep the body in motion. Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) argued that a body at rest is a unique case of a more broad case of constant motion. He noted that in the absence of friction acting on a body to slow it down, the body might continue to move in a straight line forever. He proposed that bodies remain at rest or in a state of constant motion unless an external force acts on them to change this motion. Frictional force is a force unlike other forces which accelerate or slows down a moving body (Lerner & Lawrence, page 51). Isaac Newton (1642-1727) sanctified the relationship between force and motion by proposing that the acceleration of a body is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to the mass of the body. This law is summarized by the formula F=ma which is verified quantitatively in this experiment. Work done i.e. physical work defined in terms of physical quantities is expressed as a product of positional change multiplied by the component of force Fx in the displacement direction dx. W = Fx ?x = F?xcos? Where ? is the angle between the direction of displacement and the direction of force. This relationship can be written in the vector dot product form W = Fx The