Force

Section 1: Forces and motion

Forces, movement, shape and momentum
describe the effects of forces between bodies such as changes in speed, shape or
direction

distinguish between vector and scalar quantities

understand that force is a vector quantity
find the resultant force of forces that act along a line
understand that friction is a force that opposes motion
describe experiments to investigate how extension varies with applied force for helical
springs, metal wires and rubber bands
understand that the initial linear region of a force-extension graph is associated with
Hookes law
describe elastic behaviour as the ability of a material to recover its original shape after
the forces causing deformation have been removed.
 Force
newtonmeters
A force is a push or a pull.
A force can cause an object to:
speed up
slow down
change direction
change shape

Force is measured in
newtons (N).
Force is measured with a
newtonmeter.
 Some types of force
1. Gravitational
This is the attractive force exerted
between bodies because of their
masses.

This force increases if either or both of

the masses is increased and
decreases if they are moved further
apart. Bathroom scales measure
weight.
Weight is the gravitational force of the A mass of 1kg weighs
Earth on an object. about 10N
1 stone is about 63N.
 normal reaction forces
2. Normal reaction or contact
This is the repulsive force that
stops two touching bodies
moving into each other.

The word normal means that

this force acts at 90 to the
surfaces of the bodies.
weight

It is caused by repulsive The two upward reaction forces

molecular forces. on the tyres balance the
downward weight of the car
3. Friction
This is the force that opposes motion.
The kinetic energy of the moving object is converted to
heat energy by the force of friction.

Friction is needed for racing

Friction is needed for
cars to grip the road
walking!
4. Air resistance or drag
This is the force that opposes the movement of objects
through air.
Drag is a more general term used for the opposition force
in any gas or liquid.
Objects are often streamlined to reduce this force.

streamlined car
a parachute
maximises drag force
5. Upthrust
This is the force
experienced by objects
when they are placed into a
fluid (liquid or gas).

An object will float on a

liquid if the upthrust force
equals its weight.

A hot air balloon rises when the

upthrust from the surrounding
air is greater than the balloons
weight.
Choose appropriate words to fill in the gaps below:
A force
_____ is a push or a pull. A force can cause an object to
accelerate
___________ or change shape.
Force is measured in _______
newtons (N) with a newtonmeter.

contact force occurs when

There are many types of force. ________
two bodies touch each other.
motion of one body
opposes the _______
Friction is a force that _______
relative to another. It is caused by the _________
attractive forces
between ___________.
molecules

WORD SELECTION:
newtons accelerate force attractive
opposes molecules contact motion
 Vectors and Scalars
All physical quantities (e.g. speed and force) are
described by a magnitude and a unit.

VECTORS also need to have their direction specified

examples: displacement, velocity, acceleration, force.

SCALARS do not have a direction

examples: distance, speed, mass, work, energy.
 Representing Vectors
An arrowed straight Displacement 50m EAST
line is used.

The arrow indicates

the direction and the Displacement 25m at
45o North of East
length of the line is
proportional to the
magnitude.
 Addition of vectors
4N 4N
6N 6N
object object
resultant = 10N
object

The original vectors are called COMPONENT vectors.

The final overall vector is called the RESULTANT vector.

4N 6N 6N 4N
object object

resultant = 2N
object
 Resultant force
A number of forces acting on
a body may be replaced by a 3N
single force which has the 2N
same effect on the body as
the original forces all acting
together.

This overall force is called

resultant force.
5N
In the example opposite, 5N
is the resultant force of the
3N and 2N forces.
 Determine the resultant force in the cases below:

1. 4N 2.
6N
10N 3N 4N
1N

3. 3N 4. 5.
6N 4N
4N

4N
7N There is no resultant
2N 4N case
force in this
 Examples 1 & 2

The box will move when The plane will

the mans push force is accelerate provided that
greater than the friction the engine force is
force. greater than the drag
force.
 Examples 3 & 4

The brakes exert a Once released, the

resultant force in the glider moves at a near
opposite direction to constant velocity as it
the cars motion experiences a nearly
causing the car to zero horizontal
decelerate. resultant force.
Choose appropriate words to fill in the gaps below:
resultant force, can be used to replace
A single force, called _________
number of forces that act on a body.
a _______
If the resultant force is _____
zero then the body will either
remain at _____
rest or continue to move at a constant ________.
velocity

direction as an objects
If the resultant force is in the same _________
motion, the object will __________.
accelerate A car is decelerated
opposite direction to the
when the braking force acts in the _________
cars motion.

WORD SELECTION:
number rest direction zero opposite
velocity accelerate resultant
 Changing shape
Force can change the shape of
an object.

A stretching force puts an object

such as a wire or spring under
tension.

A squashing force puts an object

under compression.
Brittle materials such as
glass do not change shape
easily and break before
noticeably stretching.

Resilient materials do not

break easily.
Elastic materials return to
their original shape when
the forces on them are
removed.

Plastic materials retain their

new shape.
 Stretching Springs
Experimental procedure:
1. Place the weight holder only on
the spring and note the position of
the pin against the metre rule. spring
2. Add 1N (100g) to the holder
and note the new position of the
pin. weights
3. Calculate the extension of the
spring.
4. Repeat stages 1 to 3 for 2N, pin
3N, 4N, 5N and 6N. DO NOT
metre rule
EXCEED 6N.
 Typical results
Pin position Added weight Pin position Extension
with holder or Force (N) with weight (mm)
only (mm) (mm)

450 1 480 30
450 2 509 59
450 3 541 91
450 4 570 120
450 5 601 151
450 6 629 179
Force against extension graph

Force (N)

0
0 Extension (mm)
 Hookes law
Hookes law states that the extension of a
spring is proportional to the force used to
stretch the spring.

Proportional means that if the force is doubled

then the extension also doubles.

The line on a graph of force against extension will

be a straight AND go through the origin.
 Question
A spring of original length 150mm is extended by
30mm by a force of 4N. Calculate the length of
the spring if a force of 12N is applied.

12N is three times 4N

Therefore the new extension should be 3 x 30mm
= 90mm
New spring length = 150mm + 90mm
= 240mm
 Elastic limit
Up to a certain extension if the force is
removed the spring will return to its
original length. The spring is behaving
elastically.

If this critical extension is exceeded,

known as the elastic limit, the spring
will be permanently stretched. The right hand
spring has been
Hookes law is no longer obeyed by the stretched beyond
spring if its elastic limit is exceeded. its elastic limit
Force against extension graph if the
elastic limit is exceeded
Force (N)

elastic limit

0
0 Extension (mm)
Force
Stretching an elastic band

An elastic band
does not obey
Hookes law.

0
0 Extension
Choose appropriate words to fill in the gaps below:
stretched
Hookes law states that when a wire or spring is _________ the
extension is proportional to the load
increase in length or _________
force applied.
______
This law is not obeyed if the spring is taken beyond its ______
elastic
limit after which it will become _____________
permanently stretched.
A ________
rubber band does not obey Hookes law.

A graph illustrating Hookes law will have a line that is

straight
___________ origin
and passes through the _______.

WORD SELECTION:
stretched elastic permanently extension
origin force rubber straight