ENGGPHYSICS Physics for Engineers

CHAPTER IV. WORK, POWER AND ENERGY

 WORK

WORK can be defined as transfer of energy. In physics we say that work is done on
an object when you transfer energy to that object. If one object transfers (gives) energy to a
second object, then the first object does work on the second object.
Work is said to be done when a force applied to an object moves that object. We can
define work as an activity involving a movement and force in the direction of the force. Thus
work is said to be done and can be calculated as
W=F×d
Where W = work
F = Force applied
D = displacement of the object
The unit being used for work is Joule (J), equivalent to Newton-meter.

Work done by a force is zero, if

(a) body is not displaced actually, i.e., s = 0
(b) body is displaced perpendicular to the direction of force, i.e., θ = 90°

Sample Problems:
1. The locomotive of a freight train exerts a constant force of 60,000 N on the train while
drawing it at a level track. How much work does it do in a distance of 1 km?
Given:

Solution:

2. A piano mover rolls a 200 kg piano at a constant speed up a ramp 3 m long at an angle of
30o with the horizontal. (a) What force does he apply to the piano? (b) How much work
does he do?
Weight, w
Wx

Wy

F
300

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Given:

Solution:
Note: The force that we will consider to solve for the work exerted is the force which is
parallel to the displacement.
a. ∑ ]

b.

3. A factory worker pushes a 40 kg box a distance of 5 m along a level floor at constant

speed by pushing horizontally on it. The coefficient of friction between the box and the
floor is 0.25.
a. What force is required?
b. How much work does the workman do?
c. Suppose the workman pushes forward and down at an angle of 30 o to the horizontal,
what is the force required? How much work is done by the workman? By the friction
force?
Given:

w
5m
F
40 kg

Ff
N

Solution:
a. ∑ ]

∑ ]

b.

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c.
w
F 5m

300 40 kg

Ff
N

∑ ]

∑ ]

Substituting eq. 1 to eq. 2,

4. The old oaken bucket that hangs in the well has a mass of 4 kg. We pull it up a
distance of 5 m by pulling horizontally on a rope passing over a pulley at the top of
the well.
a. How much work do we do in pulling the bucket up?
b. How much work is done by the gravitational force
acting on the bucket?
Given:

Solution:
a. Note: The Tension is used since it is the force that
displaces the bucket vertically

b. Note: The weight is used since the work being asked is based on the
gravitational force

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5. A ketchup bottle is pushed 2 m along a stationary horizontal surface by a horizontal

force 2 N. The opposing force of friction is 0.4 N.
a. How much work is done by the 2 N force?
b. How much work is done by the friction force?
Given:

Solution:
a.

b. ( )

Note: The friction force is negative since the direction of the displacement is
opposite to that of the direction of the friction force.

6. A barrel of mass 120 kg is suspended by a rope 10 m long.

a. What horizontal force is necessary to hold a barrel in a position displaced
sideways 2 m from the vertical?
b. How much work is done in moving it to this position?
Given:

Solution:

a. ∑ ]

∑ ]

b. For the work done, there are two displacements, horizontal (2 m) and vertical (‘d’
in figure). First, let’s solve for the work due to force F. Since force F is horizontal,
we are also going to use the horizontal displacement (2 m)

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Now we are going to solve the work exerted by the gravitational force weight.
Since weight is a vertical force, we are going to use the vertical displacement, but
since the value of ‘d’ is still unknown, we are going to solve for it first through
Pythagorean theorem.

 ENERGY
ENERGY is the ability to perform work. Energy can neither be created nor
destroyed. It can only be transformed from one kind to another. The unit of Energy is same
as of Work i.e. Joules. Energy is found in many things and thus there are different types of
energy.
There are two types of Energy:
a. The energy in motion is known as Kinetic Energy

Where KE = Kinetic Energy

m = mass of the object
V = velocity of the object
b. Potential Energy is the energy stored in an object and is measured by the amount of
work done.

Where PE = Potential Energy

m = mass of object
g = acceleration due to gravity
h = height

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There are other classifications of energy, such as

 Mechanical Energy
It is the sum of potential energy and kinetic energy that is the energy associated with
the motion & position of an object.
 Solar Energy
The light and heat from the sun, harnessed using technologies like, solar heating,
photovoltaics, solar thermal energy, solar architecture, and artificial photosynthesis is
known as solar energy. It is the prime source of renewable energy.
 Wind Energy
It is one of the various forms of energy. The energy present in the flow of wind, used by
wind turbines is called wind energy. This energy is a major cheap source to produce
electricity. In this phenomena, the kinetic energy of the wind is converted into mechanical
power.
 Nuclear Energy
The energy present in the nucleus of an atom is known as nuclear energy. The particles
of an atom are tiny and need the energy to hold themselves. Nuclear energy is that
enormous energy in the bonds of an atom which helps to hold the atom together. Nuclear
energy can be used to make electricity.
 Geothermal Energy
The energy or heat present inside the Earth is known as geothermal energy. It is a cheap
& convenient heat and power resource and use of this energy don’t have a side effect like
greenhouse gas emission etc.
 Tidal Energy
Tidal energy or tidal power is a form of hydropower (energy present in water), which
converts the energy present in the tides to produce electricity.
 Biomass Energy
Biomass is organic matter obtained from living organisms. The energy produced from
biomass is called biomass energy.
 Electrical Energy
The energy caused by moving electric charges is known as electrical energy. Electric
energy is a type of kinetic energy as the electrical charges moves.
 Thermal Energy
As the name suggests, thermal energy is the energy obtained from heat. It is a
microscopic, disordered equivalent of mechanical energy.

There are two forms of energy sources:

a. Renewable Source of Energy
eg. Solar Energy Geothermal Energy
Wind Energy
b. Non-renewable Source of Energy
eg. Natural Gas Petroleum Products
Coal

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Sample Problems:
1. Compute the kinetic energy of a 1200 kg automobile travelling at 20 km/hr? How many
times as great is the kinetic energy if the velocity is doubled?
Given:

Solution:
First let’s solve for the value of the kinetic energy using the given values.
( )

Let’s solve for the value of the kinetic energy when the velocity is doubled.
( )

Now, we need to compare the kinetic energy to that of a doubled velocity.

2. Compute the kinetic energy in Joules, of a 2 g rifle bullet travelling at 500 m/s.
Given:

Solution:
( )

3. What is the potential energy of an 800 kg elevator at the top of Empire State Building 380
m above street level? Assume the potential energy at street level to be zero.
Given:

Solution:

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4. An electron strikes the screen of a cathode ray tube with a velocity of 10 7 m/s. Compute
its kinetic energy in Joules. The mass of an electron is 9.11 x 10 -31 kg.
Given:

Solution:

5. A block of mass 8 kg is pushed 5 m along a horizontal frictionless surface by a horizontal

force 40 N. The block starts from rest.
a. How much work is done?
b. Check the answer by computing the acceleration of the block, its final velocity and
its kinetic energy.
Given:

Solution:
a.

b. From Newton’s Laws

Using the formula on kinematics, we can calculate the final velocity, which will then
be used for the calculation of the kinetic energy.

( )

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6. A 12 kg block is pushed 20 m along a sloping surface of a plane inclined at an angle of

370 to the horizontal by a constant force F of 120 N acting parallel to the plane. The
coefficient of friction between the block and plane is 0.25, and the block starts from rest.
a. What is the work done by the force F?
b. Compute the increase in kinetic energy of the block.
c. Compute the increase in potential energy of the block.
d. Compute the work done by the friction force.
Given:

( )

Solution:
a.

b. ∑ ]

Now we are going to use the summation of horizontal forces and equate it to Newton’s
Law of acceleration. This is because the movement of the object is in horizontal
motion.
∑

( )

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c.

Note that the height used is the vertical distance, not the inclined distance.

d.

The Friction force is negative because it has opposite direction to the displacement.

7. A man of mass 80 kg sits on a platform suspended from a movable pulley and raises
himself at a constant speed by a rope passing over a fixed pulley. Assuming frictionless
pulley, find
a. The force he must exert.
b. The increase in his energy when he raises himself 1 m
Given:

( )

Solution:
a. ∑ ]

b.

8. 1 2000 kg elevator starts from rest and is pulled upward with constant acceleration of 4
m/s2.
a. Find the tension in the supporting cable?
b. What is the velocity of the elevator after it has risen 15 m?
c. Find the kinetic energy of the elevator 3 seconds after it starts.
d. How much is its potential energy increased in the first 3 seconds?
Given:

Solution:
a. ( )

b.

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c.

( )

d.

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 POWER
POWER, in general, is defined as the rate at which energy is transferred or the rate
of doing work. It is a scalar quantity and is basically the amount of energy consumed per
unit time which has no direction.

Where P = power
W = work
E = energy
T = time
The unit used for power is watt. 1 watt = 1 J/s = 1 kg-m2/s3
Provided hereon are other units used for power.

Units Abbreviation Equivalent Watt Unit

Horsepower HP 746 watts

Kilowatts kW 1×103W

Megawatts MW 1×106W

Gigawatts GW 1×109W

decibel-milliwatts dBm 30 dBm = 1 W

British Thermal Unit BTU 3.412142 BTU/hr = 1 w

Calories per Second cal/sec 0.24 calories per second cal/sec = 1 W

Sample Problems:
1. What average horsepower is developed by an 80 kg man while climbing in 10 s a flight
of stairs that rises 6 m vertically? Express this power in HP, W and kW.
Given:

Solution:
First, let’s solve for the value of the work done. Since the displacement is vertical, the
vertical force exerted will be considered (weight).

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Or we can use the value of energy (potential energy).

Now, we can solve for the value of the Power exerted.

2. The hammer of a pile driver has a mass of 500 kg and must be lifted a vertical distance
of 2 m in 3 s. What HP engine is required?
Given:

Solution:

3. A pump is required to lift 800 kg of water per minute from a well, 10 m deep and eject it
with a speed of 20 m/s.
a. How much work is done per minute in lifting the water?
b. By how much in giving it kinetic energy?
c. HP of the engine required?
Given:

Solution:
a.

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b.

c.

Homework 05
Answer the following problems and questions in a clean sheet of bond paper. Show
your complete solutions and illustrations and box your final answers. Make sure to indicate
the necessary units and use 4 decimal places. Make use of two columns for your solutions.
Take a clear picture of your output and send it to your instructor through private message.
1. A fisherman reels in 20 m of line in pushing in a fish that exerts a constant resisting
force of 30 N. How much work does the fisherman do?
2. A person pushes a lawnmower with a force of 50.0 N at an angle of 35.0° above the
horizontal. If the mower moves through a distance of 25.0 m, how much work is done
by the person?
3. In order to change a tire, a force of 80.0 N is exerted on the handle of a screw type
jack. The handle to which the steel shaft is attached has a radius of 0.50 m. The
handle is turned through 30 revolutions. How much work is done?
4. A 5 kg block is lifted vertically at constant velocity of 4 m/s through a height of 12 m.
a. How great a force is required?
b. How much work is done?
5. At 5 cents per KWh, how much does it cost to operate a 10 HP motor for 8 hr?
6. A box that weighs 575 N is lifted a distance of 20.0 m straight up by a rope. The job is
done in 10.0 s. What power is delivered in watts and kilowatts?
7. A man whose mass is 70 kg walks up to the third floor of a building. This is a vertical
height of 12 m above the street level.
a. How many joules of work has he done?
b. By how much has he increased his potential energy?
c. If he climbs the stairs in 20 s, what was his rate of working in HP?

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