CHP 2 Notes

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Motion Graphs

To be able to interpret displacement-time and velocity-time graphs


To be able to represent motion with displacement-time and velocity-time graphs
To know the significance of the gradient of a line and the area under it.

Gradient
We calculate the gradient by choosing two points on the line and calculating the change in the y axis (up/down)
and the change in the x axis (across). y
gradient 
x
Area Under Graph
At this level we will not be asked to calculate the area under curves, only straight lines.
We do this be breaking the area into rectangles (base x height) and triangles (½ base x height).

Displacement-Time Graphs

A B C
Graph A shows that the displacement stays at 3m, it is stationary.
Graph B shows that the displacement increases by the same amount each second, it is travelling with constant
velocity.
Graph C shows that the displacement covered each second increases each second, it is accelerating.
y s
Since gradient  and y = displacement and x = time  gradient   gradient  velocity
x t

Velocity- Time Graphs

A B C

Graph A shows that the velocity stays at 4m/s, it is moving with constant velocity.
Graph B shows that the velocity increases by the same amount each second, it is accelerating by the same
amount each second (uniform acceleration).
Graph C shows that the velocity increases by a larger amount each second, the acceleration is increasing (non-
uniform acceleration).
y v
Since gradient  and y = velocity and x = time  gradient   gradient  acceleration
x t
area = base x height  area = time x velocity 
area = displacement
This graph show the velocity decreasing in one direction and increasing in
the opposite direction.
If we decide that is negative and is positive then the graph tells us:
The object is initially travels at 5 m/s 
It slows down by 1m/s every second
After 5 seconds the object has stopped
It then begins to move 
It gains 1m/s every second until it is travelling at 5m/s 

Velocity and Acceleration


To be able to calculate distance and displacement and explain what they are
To be able to calculate speed and velocity and explain what they are
To be able to calculate acceleration and explain uniform and non-uniform cases

Distance Displacement
Distance is a scalar quantity. It is a measure of Displacement is a vector quantity. It is a measure
the total length you have moved. of how far you are from the starting position.

If you complete a lap of an athletics track: distance travelled = 400m


displacement = 0
Distance and Displacement are measured in metres, m

Speed Velocity
Speed is a measure of how the distance changes Velocity is measure of how the displacement
with time. Since it is dependent on speed it too is changes with time. Since it depends on
a scalar. displacement it is a vector too.
d s
speed  v
t t
Speed and Velocity are is measured in metres per second, m/s
Time is measured in seconds, s
Acceleration
Acceleration is the rate at which the velocity changes. Since velocity is a vector quantity, so is acceleration.
With all vectors, the direction is important. In questions we decide which direction is positive (e.g.  +ve)
If a moving object has a positive velocity: * a positive acceleration means an increase in the velocity
* a negative acceleration means a decrease in the velocity
(it begins the ‘speed up’ in the other direction)
If a moving object has a negative velocity: * a positive acceleration means an increase in the velocity
(it begins the ‘speed up’ in the other direction)
* a negative acceleration means a increase in the velocity
If an object accelerates from a velocity of u to a velocity of v, and it takes t seconds to do it then we can write
(v  u ) v
the equations as a  it may also look like this a  where Δ means the ‘change in’
t t

Acceleration is measured in metres per second squared, m/s2


Uniform Acceleration
In this situation the acceleration is constant – the velocity changes by the same amount each unit of time.
For example: If acceleration is 2m/s2, this means the velocity increases by 2m/s every second.
Time (s) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Velocity (m/s) 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Acceleration (m/s2) 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Non-Uniform Acceleration
In this situation the acceleration is changing – the velocity changes by a different amount each unit of time.
For example:
Time (s) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Velocity (m/s) 0 2 6 10 18 28 30 44
Acceleration (m/s2) 2 4 6 8 10 12 14

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