EMA EMITS COLLEGE PHILIPPINES

(Formerly: Eastern Mindoro Institute of Technology & Sciences)

Del Pilar St.; Pinamalayan, Oriental Mindoro
Telefax No. (043) 284-3974

WEEK 7&8 Module 9&10

PHYSICS FOR NON-STEM
CHAPTER 2 Force and Motion
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LESSON 2 KINEMATICS Telefax No. (043) 284-3974

What Do You Expect to Learn?

At the end of this Module, you should be able to:
 calculate displacement and distance given initial position, final position, and the path between the two;
 calculate speed, velocity, average speed and average velocity;
 solve word problems on motion with constant acceleration.

MOTION
 It is defined as a continuous change of place or position.
 It is defined as a change in the position of one object in relation to the position of a fixed object.
 Motion along a straight line is called rectilinear motion; while motion in a curved path is called curvilinear motion.

KINEMATICS
 It is the branch of mechanics which deals with the study of motion without considering the external factors causing it.


KEY TERMS
 Displacement is the measure of the actual change in place or position to a given direction.
 Distance is the measure of the change in place or position regardless of direction.

Note: It becomes obvious that distance is a scalar quantity, while displacement is a vector quantity. Distance is denoted by d and
displacement is denoted by .

Illustration:

Suppose a car starts from Manila and travels eastward. After running 50km, it goes back 20km westward. The total distance it
travels is 70km. But its displacement is 30km E of its original position.

One thing is made clear in this illustration. Displacement takes into account only the initial and terminal positions of the object. It does
not require the total measurement of the entire path traversed in reaching the terminal point.

Example:

1. A car travels 80km E and then goes 140km W.

a. What is its displacement?
b. What is the total distance it travels?
Solution:
If going east is considered positive, then going west must be negative. Thus, applying vector addition
= 80km + (-140km) = -60km or 60km W (displacement)
d = 80km + 140km = 220km (distance)

2. A Nissan Sentra goes southward then turns westward after traveling a distance of 14km. It stopped at a point 10.5km from
where he turns.
a. What is the total distance it has travelled?
b. What is its displacement?
 Solution:

a. d = 14km + 10.5km = 24.5km

b. To find the displacement, Pythagorean Theorem may be applied.
Note: If an object is displaced in two perpendicular steps, the magnitude of the final displacement can be calculated
using Pythagoras' theorem and the direction can be calculated using trigonometry.
= √(14 km)2 +(10.5 km)2 = 17.5km
10.5 km
tan ө = = 0.75
14 km

ө = 36052’ or S 36052’ W

3. A car travels along a straight road 100m east then 50m west. Find distance and displacement of the car.

4. A car drives 5 miles east and 12 miles north. What is the total displacement of the car?

d = 5 miles + 12 miles = 17miles

= √(5 miles)2+(12 miles)2 = 13miles

12miles
tan ө = = 2.4
5 miles
ө = 67022’ or E 67022’ N

KEY TERMS
 Speed is the rate of motion of a body.
 Velocity is the rate of motion of a body with reference to its direction.
It is clear from the definition that speed is a scalar quantity, while velocity is a vector quantity. Thus, if the velocity in one
direction is positive, then the velocity at the opposite direction is negative. In actual situation, there is rarely constant velocity. The
speed may be constant but if the direction is changing then velocity is changing.
As a vector quantity, velocity involves direction. As such, computing velocity considers displacement and time spent.
Let v = speed and = velocity
Distance d
Speed = , or v =
Time t

Displacement ❑
Velocity = , or =
Time t

The example will help you understand these formulas.

Example: From a point P, Mikey drives 6 km northward and then turns westward and reaches his destination Q after driving 2.5 km.
If it takes 15 minutes to reach his destination, what is his (a) speed? (b) velocity?

Solution:
a). d = 6km + 2.5km = 8.5km
t = 15 min = 0.25hr
8.5 km
v= = 34km/hr
0.25 hr

b). = (6 km)2 +2.5 km¿ 2 ¿ = 6.5 km

√
t = 15 min = 0.25hr
 6.5 km
= = 26km/hr
0.25 hr
Note that in this example, the speed and velocity are not the same.
Consistency in the units of the quantities is very important in solving problems. The chart below will help you in the use of
appropriate units.

Distance/Displacement Time Speed/Velocity

kilometer hour km/hr
meter minute m/min
meter second m/sec
centimeter second cm/sec

A body which moves with uniform velocity makes equal displacements at equal intervals of time. For instance, a car running at
uniform velocity of 60kph eastward travels 60 km every hour. In actual situations, however, not very many instances demonstrate
uniform velocity. A car may run faster at some instances and slower at others. Take the example below.
Displacement of a Car at Some Given Time
Time (hr) Displacement (km)
0.0 0
0.5 40
1.0 85
1.5 120
2.0 150
2.5 200
3.0 230

It can be gathered from the table that the car moves faster in the second half-hour than in the first. It goes slower in the third. Such
relative changes in velocity can be better visualized in a graph.
The graph is not a straight line which implies that the velocity of the car is not uniform. The part at which the graph is steeper
shows a greater increase in the velocity. Thus, at any given interval of time, we can consider average velocity.
During the first hour,
= 85 km, t = 1 hr
85 km
= = 85 km/hr
1hr
During the next one and a half hours,
= 200 km − 85 km = 115 km
t = 1.5 hr
115 km
= = 76.67 km/hr
1.5 hr
In the last 2 hours of travel,
= 230 km − 85 km = 145 km
t = 2 hr
145 km
= = 72.5 km/hr
2hr
From these illustrations, it can be deduced that average velocity (Vave) is obtained from the final and initial displacements and time.
❑f −¿❑ i
ave = ¿
t f −¿ t ¿i

On the other hand, the average speed over an interval of time is the quotient of the total distance travelled during that interval and the
length of the interval.
d total
Vave =
t f −¿t ¿ i

Not in all cases is the average speed equal to the magnitude of average velocity in the same time interval.

KEY TERMS
 Acceleration is the rate of change in velocity.
The increase in velocity of 5 m/sec for every second is written as 5 m/sec/sec or 5 m/sec 2
The acceleration of a body at a given interval of time is the change in velocity over the interval divided by the length of the interval.
V f −¿ V
a⃗ = ¿ i

t f −¿t ¿ i

When a body slows down its motion, then and the expression is negative. The result is a negative acceleration.

Deceleration is a negative acceleration.

Let t = tf − ti

By definition

V f −¿ V
a⃗ = ¿ i

t
Multiplying both sides by t, we get
at = vf − vi
vf = vi + at
Now consider the basic relation that applies for uniform motion, distance is equal to speed times time.
d = vt
For constant acceleration, where speed changes, average speed is used.
V i+V
Vave = f

2
V i+ V i+ at
Thus: d = ( )t
2

2vit at 2
d= +
2 2
d = vit + 1/2at2
Squaring equation (1) results to
vf2 =vi2 + 2avit + a2t2

vf2 =vi2 + 2a (vit + 1/2at2)

But
vit + 1/2at2 is d. Hence

vf2 =vi2 + 2ad

These variations result to 4 important formulas.
1) 3)
V i+V d = vit + 1/2at2
Vave = f

2) 4)
vf = vi + at vf2 =vi2 + 2ad

The choice of the formula to be used depends on the given conditions and the quantity to be determined. The examples below will
illustrate this.

Example 1
A car is running at 40 km/hr when the driver starts to step at the breaks. If the car decelerates at the rate of 5 m/sec 2, how long
does it take the car to stop?

Solution:
40 km x 1000 m/km
vi = 40 km/hr = = 11.11 m/sec
1 hr x 3600 sec/hr
vf = 0
a = −5m/sec2
t=?
Use formula 2
vf = vi + at
1 = 11.11 m /sec + (−5m/sec2) t
11.11m/sec
t= = 2.2 sec
5 m/ sec 2
Example 2
A body moving at 30 m/sec accelerates at the rate of 4m/sec2. What is the distance it traverses in 10 seconds?

Solution:
vi = 30m/hr
a = 4m/sec2
t = 10 sec
d=?
Use formula 3
d = vit + 1/2at2
d = (30m/sec) (10sec) + ½ (4m/sec2) (10sec)2
= 300 m + 200 m
= 500 m

Problem Exercises: Solve what is being asked in each of the following word problems.

1. A body initially moving with a velocity of 20 m/sec attains a velocity of 70 m/sec after traveling 675m. For how long has it
been traveling?
2. In 5 hours, an automobile traverses 400km southward. If the travel is clocked when the car is running at 40km/hr, what is its
final velocity?
3. A bicycle starts from rest and accelerates at the rate of 5m/sec2. How far will it travel in 25 seconds?
Answer:
1. t = 15.01 s 2. vf = 120 km/h 3. d = 1562.5m