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Physics Notes

This document defines key physics concepts and formulas. It discusses scalar and vector quantities, density, weight, pressure, momentum, impulse, center of mass, elasticity, Hooke's law, energy stores including kinetic, potential, chemical and thermal energy. It also covers energy transfers, efficiency, and provides the key formulas for speed, force, work, power, momentum, gravitational potential energy, and kinetic energy.

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Gentle Feather
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33 views9 pages

Physics Notes

This document defines key physics concepts and formulas. It discusses scalar and vector quantities, density, weight, pressure, momentum, impulse, center of mass, elasticity, Hooke's law, energy stores including kinetic, potential, chemical and thermal energy. It also covers energy transfers, efficiency, and provides the key formulas for speed, force, work, power, momentum, gravitational potential energy, and kinetic energy.

Uploaded by

Gentle Feather
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Chapter 1 - 3

Scalar quantities = only magnitude value (speed)


Vector quantities = includes direction (velocity)

 Density = mass/volume = kg/m^3


 P = m/v
 1 g/cm^3 = 1000 kg/m^3

 Speed = distance/time
 Velocity = displacement/time taken
 m/s

 Weight = mass of object * acceleration due to gravity (gravitational field strength)


 W=m*g

Pressure = force/area or P = F / A
Liquid pressure = density * depth * gravitational pull / P = ρgh

Force = kg m/s^2

 Momentum = mass * velocity


 p=m*v

Impulse = Ft = mv – mu (initial momentum – final momentum)

 Mass – measure of amount of substance in a body


 Volume – Quantity of space an object takes up
 Motion – Change in position in relation to a reference point
 Force – A ‘push’ or ‘pull’ on objects

Collision – Total momentum before = total momentum after (Principle of conservation)


Balanced forces – Equilibrium of balanced forces, net force is 0
Gravitational pull = 9.8 m/s^2
Chapter 4 – Turning Effects

Moment of a force:

Moment of force is bigger when force is bigger


Moment of force is bigger when it acts further away from the pivot
Moment is the biggest when the force acts at an angle of 90 degrees

Moment of force = force * perpendicular distance from pivot to force

Moment = F * d
Unit of moment: Nm

Equilibrium – Clockwise movement = anticlockwise movement (balanced forces on both


sides / 0 resultant force)

Centre of mass:
Point where all of mass for a certain substance is concentrated
Does not have to be inside the body
For symmetrical objects, located at the point of symmetry

For object to be stable it needs to have


Low centre of mass (or low centre of gravity)
A wide base

Moment on a stable object is the same on any distance from the pivot
Chapter 5 – Forces and Matter

Elasticity – Tendency of an object to return to its original shape after force is applied

Limit of proportionality – Limit of elasticity

Extension of spring = length of stretched spring – original length

Length of a stretched spring = original length / extension of a spring

For force applied below limit of proportionality, spring is able to return to original shape; for
force applied beyond limit of proportionality, spring is unable to return to its original shape /
permanently deformed

Load = directly proportional to extension of spring

Hooke’s Law – Extension of spring is proportional to the load applied, provided the limit of
proportionality is not exceeded

F = kx – Hooke’s law formula

F – Force / Load
k – Spring constant (gradient): measure of stiffness of the spring
x – Extension of spring

Unit of spring constant – N/cm

k = F / x – Spring constant formula

Rubber does not follow Hooke’s law, forming an S-shaped curve in the graph rather than a
straight line; its extension is not proportional to the load
Pressure – measure of how spread out a force is over a specific area

To increase pressure exerted by a force over an area:


Increase size of force
Decrease area force is acting over

When measuring force, always make sure to change cm^2 into m^2

Lower down in liquid or gas, greater weight of substance is above, therefore the pressure is
greater
Chapter 6 – Energy stores and transfers

Energy is a quantity that must be changed or transferred to make something happen

Energy is amount of work done

Unit of energy: Joules (J)

Energy = work done

Kinetic energy:
 Energy of moving object
 Moving faster = higher kinetic energy

Gravitational potential energy:


 Energy of object raised up against force of gravity
 Higher the object from the ground, higher the g.p.e

Chemical energy:
 Energy stored in fuels or foods
 Energy stored in bonds between atoms that can be released when chemical reactions
take place

Nuclear energy:
 Energy stored in the nucleus of an atom
 Energy due to the splitting / fusion of nucleuses in an atom

Strain energy / elastic energy:


 Energy stored in the changed chape of an object
 Energy in object that has been stretched in elastic way (able to return to original
shape)
Internal energy:
 Energy of an object / Total kinetic and potential energy
 Energy stored in a hot object when heated up

Thermal energy:
 Energy transferred from hotter to colder place (due to temperature difference)
 When closer to hot object, the heat coming off of it is thermal energy

Light energy:
 Glow of hot objects
 Energy radiated in term of light

Sound energy:
 Energy to surroundings as sound due to vibrations

Energy is never created or destroyed

Transfer of energy is a process: energy stores and transfers can be shown in an energy flow
diagram (arrow shows energy transfer)

In any energy transfer, total amount of energy before and after the transfer is constant

Sankey diagram:
Thicker the arrows, higher the amount of energy
Waste energy – drawn pointing downwards
Useful energy – drawn pointing straight forward

Energy efficiency:
Friction exists, which causes energy transferred as heat (unwanted energy)
Lubrication helps reduce friction, but its impossible to eliminate all friction caused
Efficiency: percentage of fraction of energy supplied that is usually transferred
Dissipated: energy that spreads out & is not useful

Calculating efficiency:
Often given by percentage
Use the formula:

Efficiency = Useful energy output / Total energy input


Percentage efficiency = Useful energy output / Total energy input * 100%

This also can be calculated in terms of power

Efficiency = Useful power output / Total power input


Percentage efficiency = Useful power output / Total power input * 100%

Gravitational potential energy = mgh (mass * gravitational pull * vertical height)

Kinetic energy is a scalar quantity

Kinetic energy = 1/2mv^2


All formulas needed:

Speed/velocity – s = d/t
Acceleration – a = v – u / t
Weight - W = m * g
Force – m * a
Density – m / v
Pressure – F / A or ρgh
Momentum – mv
Moment – F * d
Impulse – Ft or mv – mu
G.p.e – mgh
K.e – 1/2mv^2

s = speed
d = distance
t = time
m = mass
g = gravitational pull
a = acceleration
v = velocity
A = area
F = force
v – u = change in speed/velocity
h = height / depth

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