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Momentum & Impulse Note

This document discusses momentum and impulse, providing definitions and examples. It defines impulse as the change in momentum, where impulse equals force multiplied by time. Impulse quantifies the effect of a force acting over an interval of time. The document also discusses: - Conservation of linear momentum, where the total momentum before and after a collision is equal if no external forces act. - Elastic and inelastic collisions, where elastic collisions conserve kinetic energy and inelastic collisions do not. - Using the energy-momentum relation for calculations involving subatomic particles and collisions with large masses.

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280 views12 pages

Momentum & Impulse Note

This document discusses momentum and impulse, providing definitions and examples. It defines impulse as the change in momentum, where impulse equals force multiplied by time. Impulse quantifies the effect of a force acting over an interval of time. The document also discusses: - Conservation of linear momentum, where the total momentum before and after a collision is equal if no external forces act. - Elastic and inelastic collisions, where elastic collisions conserve kinetic energy and inelastic collisions do not. - Using the energy-momentum relation for calculations involving subatomic particles and collisions with large masses.

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මේනුක සූවින්ද
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IAS - EDEXCEL

PHYSICS
UNIT 04
Further Mechanics, Fields & Particles
Momentum & Impulse

Menuka Suwinda
Momentum & Impulse
Impulse
• Force is defined as the rate of change of momentum on a body
o The change in momentum is defined as the final momentum minus the initial momentum
• These can be expressed as follows:

Define Impulse
• The force and momentum equation can be rearranged to find the impulse of a force
• Impulse, I, is equal to the change in momentum:
I = FΔt = Δp = mv – mu
• Where:
o I = impulse (N s)
o F = force (N)
o t = time (s)
o Δp = change in momentum (kg m s–1)
o m = mass (kg)
o v = final velocity (m s–1)
o u = initial velocity (m s–1)

• This equation is only used when the force is constant


o Since the impulse is proportional to the force, it is also a vector
o The impulse is in the same direction as the force
• The unit of impulse is N s
• The impulse quantifies the effect of a force acting over a time interval
o This means a small force acting over a long time has the same effect as a large force
acting over a short time
Examples of Impulse
• An example in everyday life of impulse is when standing under an umbrella when it is raining,
compared to hail (frozen water droplets)
o When rain hits an umbrella, the water droplets tend to splatter and fall off it and
there is only a very small change in momentum
o However, hailstones have a larger mass and tend to bounce back off the umbrella,
creating a greater change in momentum
o Therefore, the impulse on an umbrella is greater in hail than in rain
o This means that more force is required to hold an umbrella upright in hail compared to
rain

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(i) Step 1: Write the known quantities
o Taking the initial direction of the ball as positive (the left)
o Initial velocity, u = 30 m s–1
o Final velocity, v = –20 m s–1
o Mass, m = 58 g = 58 × 10–3 kg
Step 2: Write down the impulse equation
Impulse I = Δp = m (v – u)
Step 3: Substitute in the values
I = (58 × 10–3) × (–20 – 30) = –2.9 N s
(ii) Direction of the impulse
o Since the impulse is negative, it must be in the opposite direction to which the tennis
ball was initial travelling (since the left is taken as positive)
o Therefore, the direction of the impulse is to the right

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Applying conservation of Linear momentum
• The principle of conservation of linear momentum states:
The total momentum before a collision = the total momentum after a collision provided no
external force acts
• Linear momentum is the momentum of an object that only moves in a straight line
• Momentum is a vector quantity
o This means oppositely-directed vectors can cancel each other out resulting in a net
momentum of zero
o If after a collision an object starts to move in the opposite direction to which it was
initially travelling, its velocity will now be negative
• Momentum, just like energy, is always conserved

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Conservation of Linear Momentum in 2D

• For objects moving in 2D, there are components of momentum to consider


o This is similar to projectile motion in 2D, in which we consider horizontal and vertical
components of motion

• Each component of momentum is conserved separately

o Since momentum is a vector, it can be resolved into horizontal and vertical components
o The sum of horizontal components will be equal before and after a collision
o The sum of vertical components will be equal before and after a collision

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Step 1: Write the conservation of linear momentum for horizontal components
o The question is worded in terms of the horizontal direction, so write:
Horizontal momentum before = horizontal momentum after
Step 2: Resolve the velocity of each ball to find the horizontal component:
o Since momentum p = mv, then the horizontal component of momentum p horiz = mv horiz
o Therefore, the horizontal component of the green ball is 1.8 cos 28°
o The horizontal component of the red ball is v cos 55°
Step 3: Substitute quantities into the conservation of momentum
Horizontal momentum before = horizontal momentum after
mu red + mu green = mv horiz (red) + mv horiz (green)
m (2.5) + 0 = m (v cos 55°) + m (1.8 cos 28°)
Step 4: Simplify and rearrange to calculate v
2.5 = v cos 55° + 1.8 cos 28°
2.5 = v cos 55° + 1.6
0.9 = v cos 55°
v = 0.9 cos 55° = 1.6 m s–1

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Elastic & Inelastic Collisions
• In both collisions and explosions, momentum is always conserved
• However, kinetic energy might not always be
• A collision (or explosion) is either:
o Elastic – if the kinetic energy is conserved
o Inelastic – if the kinetic energy is not conserved
• Collisions happen when objects strike against each other
o Elastic collisions are commonly those where objects colliding does not stick together;
instead, they strike each other then move away in opposite directions
o Inelastic collisions are commonly those where objects collide and stick together after
the collision

• An explosion is commonly to do with recoil


o For example, a gun recoiling after shooting a bullet or an unstable nucleus emitting an
alpha particle and a daughter nucleus
• To find out whether a collision is elastic or inelastic, compare the kinetic energy before and
after the collision
• The equation for kinetic energy is:

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Step 1: Define an elastic and inelastic collision
o An elastic collision is one in which kinetic energy is conserved
o An inelastic collision is one in which kinetic energy is not conserved, but is transferred
to other forms, e.g. heat and sound
Step 2: Describe the effects of head-on car collisions
o When cars collide, a large amount of kinetic energy is transferred due to work by
internal forces
o This is mainly due to crumpling where the collision of the car causes plastic
defamation of the car's bodywork

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o Other energy transfers will include kinetic energy into heat and sound
Step 3: Link the effects to energy transfers
o Since the cars are brought to rest by the collision, the total KE before the collision
does not equal the total KE after
o Therefore, the collision is inelastic

Energy – Momentum Relation

9|Page
Using the Energy – Momentum Relation

• The energy-momentum relation is particularly useful for:


o Calculations involving the kinetic energy of subatomic particles travelling at non-
relativistic speeds (i.e. much slower than the speed of light)
o Projectiles and collisions involving large masses

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11 | P a g e

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