Specification Point In Before After

class Revision Revision

1.11 describe the effects of forces between bodies such as changes in speed, shape or
direction
1.12 identify different types of force such as gravitational or electrostatic

1.13 State Newton’s 3 laws of motion and be able to give examples of each one
1.15 calculate the resultant force of forces that act along a line
1.16 know that friction is a force that opposes motion

1.17 know and use the relationship between unbalanced force, mass and acceleration:
force = mass × acceleration
1.19 know that the stopping distance of a vehicle is made up of the sum of the thinking
distance and the braking distance
1.20 describe the factors affecting vehicle stopping distance, including speed, mass,
road condition and reaction time
1.18 know and use the relationship between weight, mass and gravitational field
strength: weight = mass × gravitational field strength
1.21 describe the forces acting on falling objects (and explain why falling objects reach
a terminal velocity)

1.22 practical: investigate how extension varies with applied force for helical springs,
metal wires and rubber bands

1.23 know that the initial linear region of a force-extension graph is associated with
Hooke’s law

1.24 describe elastic behaviour as the ability of a material to recover its original shape
after the forces causing deformation have been removed
1.25 Know that is an object obeys Hooke’s Law, the relationship between force,
extension and spring constant is given by: force = spring constant x extension

Year 9 Topic 3: Forces 1

Booklet 1 – Newton’s Laws
and Hooke’s Law

To do list:

1
1. What is a Force?

Forces Interesting Questions

In pairs:
Interviewer (you) ………………………………….. Interviewee (them) …………………………….

Each statement below requires your interviewee to say if they agree or not and asks for an explanation why. You are
expected to INTERVIEW a member of your family or a friend to find out what they think. You then write their answer
in the space.

Ask them tricky questions like WHY they think what they do! Are there any experiments that they know about or
evidence to back up their ideas!

1. If a feather and hammer are dropped on the Moon at the same time from the same height they will hit the
Moon’s surface at virtually the same time.

2. The Moon has no gravity because there’s no atmosphere on the Moon.

3. When I stand on the bathroom scales, it measures my mass because it gives me a value in kilograms.

4. Susan jumps off a chair. As she is falling, the Earth’s gravitational force on her is higher than her gravitational
force on the Earth.

5. An astronaut orbits the Earth, in the International Space Station, 500 miles above its surface. She appears to be
weightless because there is virtually no gravitational force on her.

6. When a person on Earth stands on a floor, they do not feel the force of their own weight acting on them.

2
What is a Force?

• Forces alter the __________ and __________of an object and can also change their _________.

Types of Force

Match the type of force to its definition:

Weight Attraction or repulsion between two charged objects.

Occurs within materials/objects when stretched eg in a string suspending an

Electric
object.

Magnetic Occurs within materials/objects when squashed eg a spring.

A force which propels an object forward – usually refers to forward force

Tension
generated by engines.

Compression Force acting on a mass due to the effect of a gravitational field.

An upwards force generated by the wing of an aircraft when there is a difference

Lift
in pressure above and below the wing.

Thrust A force which opposes the motion of an object.

Friction (incl. A force which occurs whenever an object rests on something else, and which
drag) always acts at 90 degrees to the surface where it rests.

Upthrust The force which enables objects to float due to the displacement of fluid.

Contact Attraction or repulsion due to magnetic fields.

3
Examples of Forces

Non-Contact Forces Contact Forces

4
2. Mass and Weight

Practical: Mass and Weight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2aBVbcHr_k

Aim All masses attract each other with a gravitational force (called weight). The Earth pulls masses towards its
centre. This practical measures how much force the Earth exerts on masses at its surface.

Apparatus 0 – 10N newtonmeter

clamp stand, boss and clamp

1kg stack of 100g masses

How to read a newtonmeter correctly

 read with your eye at the same level as the marker on the scale
 adjust the meter so that it reads exactly zero with no load
 read the scale to the nearest whole division (0.1N in this case)

Method
 Complete the table below:
Mass (kg) Weight (N)

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

N.B. The mass hanger has a

0.9 mass of 100g itself.

Measure and record in pencil the weight of each mass from 0.100kg up to 0.900kg in 0.100kg steps.

5
6
7
Remember: 10 marks for plotting graphs

1. The x-axis scale covers at least half the page

2. The y-axis scale covers at least half the page
3. Both scales are chosen so that they are easy to read
4. The x-axis is labelled with a quantity e.g. mass
5. The x-axis quantity has a unit e.g /kg.
6. The y-axis is labelled with a quantity e.g. mass
7. The y-axis quantity has a unit e.g /kg.
8. Points are plotted accurately as crosses in pencil.
9. In pencil there is a best-fit line (with a ruler) or a smooth best-fit curve.
10. The graph has a title.

Questions
Plot a graph of weight (on the y-axis) against mass (on the x-axis). Your teacher will tell you how to plot
the graph correctly.

1. Describe in words, as precisely as you can, how weight changes as mass increases.

2. From your results, predict the weight of a 1kg mass at the Earth’s surface.

3. In the third column, calculate weight divided by mass for each result. What do you notice?

4. There is a mathematical relationship between weight, W and mass, m. Can you write it down in the
form W = m x ….?

8
The mass of an object is a measure of how much matter it actually contains, and it does not change unless a part of
the object is physically removed.

The weight of an object is the force acting on the object due to the gravitational field it is in.

On the surface of the Earth, the gravitational field strength (g) is 10N/kg, so an object of mass 1kg would have a
weight of 10N on Earth. On the surface of the moon the gravitational field strength (g) is much lighter only 1.6N/kg,
so the same object would still have a mass of 1kg, but it would have a weight of 1.6N

To calculate the weight of any object, we use the equation:

e.g. If an object has a mass of 17kg, what will its weight be on the moon?

Equation:

Working:

Answer and Unit:

9
More practice questions to try (remember 4 marks for every calculation):

1. What is the weight of a 100kg man on Earth?

2. What is the weight of a 100kg man on the moon?

3. A woman has a weight of 650N on Earth, what is her mass?

4. What would be the mass of that same woman on the moon?

5. A man of mass 75kg has a weight of 500N on another planet. What is the gravitational field strength of the
planet?

Extension:

6. What do you think the gravitational field strength of a planet depends on? List as many variables as you can, and
for each one explain whether you think increasing that variable causes an increase or decrease in gravitational
field strength.

10
Complete!

11
Extension: Comparing Weights?

Below are a set of clues which describe the gravitational field strength (g) on different planets and the
mass of different objects. Each clue is based upon the previous clue – your job is to work out the actual
values of g (gravitational field strength) and the actual masses of the objects.

The gravitation field strength on the sun is 35 times that of earth.

A man has a mass of 80kg
The gravitational field strength of Jupiter is 1/10 of that of the sun
The gravitational field strength of Mars is twice that of the moon.
A small car has a mass of 6 men.
A tiger has a mass 2/3s of a small car
A cannonball has a mass 1/300 of a small car
The gravitational field strength on earth is 10N/kg
A mar curiosity rover has a mass 250 times that of a cannonball
The gravitational field strength of the moon 1/20 of that of Jupiter

Complete the table below and then using those values and the equation W=mg, complete the second
table.

Values of g (N/kg) Mass of objects (kg)

Moon Tiger

Earth Man

Mars Small Car

Jupiter Cannon ball

Object on planet Weight Rank (heaviest 1, lightest 2)

A man on earth

Cannonball on the sun

Tiger on Jupiter (if it could breathe)

Small car on the moon

A curiosity rover on Mars

12
3. Newton’s Laws of Motion

PHeT simulation:
http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/forces-and-motion-basics

Newton’s 1st law

Watch the following video and write a definition of Newton’s 1st Law of Motion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Q0Wz5P0JdeU

Definition:

If moving If stationary

With no external forces

With balanced forces

Unbalanced forces

When the forces are unbalanced, what happens to an object?

13
Newton’s Laws of Motion Research

Watch the two videos linked here (and embedded below):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5PtaCJJFjw “GCSE Physics - Newtons First and Second Laws #56 – Cognito”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpQ_ikFKru0 “GCSE Physics - Newton’s Third Law #57 – Cognito”

Whilst you are watching it, make a few notes

Video notes: Newton’s Laws

Summarise Newton’s laws in the table below – write a concise statement for each one in the green boxes and
explain how the pictures provided help to illustrate that law, using the red boxes and give some further examples in
the blue box.

14
Newton’s First Law of Motion

Definition: An object remains at rest, and an object in motion at constant speed unless acted on by
unbalanced forces.

Explanation using Picture:

This car is travelling at a constant speed and will only slow
doen if unbalnced forces acted upon it.

Definition:
Forces + mass time acceleration.

Other Examples:
A man standing still.

A plane flying at cruising speed and altitude.

Newton’s Second Law of Motion

Newton’s Third Law of Motion

Definition: For every action in nature, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Explanation using Picture:

The rocket is large, so it needs a larger amount of force in
order to acceralte.

Explanation using Picture:

The moon does not fly away, or fall in, as the frces between
the planets are equal.

Other Examples:
Pushing a shopping cart.

Kicking a ball.

15
Other Examples:
An object resting on a table.
16
Representing Forces

• Forces can be represented by __________.

• The length represents the __________of the force and the direction represents the __________ of
the force.

Free-body Force Diagrams

A free body diagram shows all the forces acting on a particular object. It must be carefully drawn, observing the
following rules:

 Forces are shown as _____________ pointing in the direction of the force.

 The arrow must originate from the point at which the force acts e.g. ___________ is always shown acting
from the centre of gravity, and contact is shown at the centre of the surface where contact is made.
 The arrow must indicate the __________________ of the force.
 The _________________ of the arrow gives an indication of the ____________ of the force – if one force is
bigger than another, it must be shown using a ______________ arrow.
 All forces must be clearly ________________ with the name of the force.
e.g. The diagram below shows a car accelerating along a flat road. Add force arrows correctly to the diagram.

Hint: The contact arrow should originate from where the tyre makes contact with the road.

There should be four contact arrows and their __________________ length should equal the length of the weight
arrow.

size direction arrows labelled

length weight longer combined

17
Practice on Free-body diagrams
Draw a free-body diagram for each of the situations below. Label each arrow to show the type of force acting and
also write the size of the forces if enough information is given.
2N
Take g = 10 N/kg at the Earth’s surface.
2N
1. A book of mass 1.5 kg is resting on a table.

2. A ball of mass 0.5 kg is at rest hanging on a vertical thread.

3. A car of mass 950 kg is stationary on a horizontal road.

4. A 1400 kg helicopter is hovering above the ground.

5. The Moon orbits the Earth.

18
Adding Forces (Notes Pages)

1. Forces acting in the same direction add together.

2. Equal forces acting in opposite directions cancel each other out.

2N 2N

4N
6N
2N

3. Unequal forces acting in opposite directions partially cancel each other out to give a resultant force.

3N 2N
.

4. Forces perpendicular to each other do not affect each other.

4N

6N

19
Balanced and Unbalanced Forces More Practise

When a number of forces act on the same object, they can be replaced by a single force which is called
a resultant force. It has the same effect on the m………….. as the original forces all acting
together. The combined effect of more than one force is found by adding or subtracting
them, taking account of their directions.
 Forces acting in the same direction add together to make a bigger force
 Forces acting in opposite directions subtract to make a smaller force
When the combined value of two or more forces is zero there is no resultant force. We can say that the forces
are b……………………...
Two forces are balanced if they are the s………….. size but act in o…………… directions.

e.g. Calculate the resultant force in each case and state its direction.

1. resultant force =
4N 10N
= (direction : )

2. resultant force =
15N 3N

3. resultant force =
6N 10N
20N

4. 10N
Resultant force =
30N
30N

10N

5. 6N Resultant force =
20N 8N
10N

6N

20
Core: Balancing Forces in a Straight Line Practical
https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/forces-and-motion-basics

Aim: A body will often have more than one force acting on it. In this practical you will investigate how forces add up
when they act along the same direction.

Apparatus 0 – 10N newtonmeters, thread, scissors, single Pulley board with 2 pegs

Method

Set up the apparatus as above.

Make sure that each newtonmeter is set to zero when no force is applied.

 Apply a force of 3.0 N, as read by the newtonmeter A, and read the forces shown on newtonmeters B and C.
(The force in each string is called tension.)

 Fill in your table with the readings from the three newtonmeters. (Leave the last column for now.)

Newtonmeter Newtonmeter Newtonmeter A+B

A/N B/N C/N /N

3.0 3.0

3.5 7

4.0 9

4.5 7.5

4.7 9.0

21
Questions
1. Can you see any relationship between forces A, B and C?

2. Complete the last column of the table and compare the results to the column for newtonmeter C. What do
you notice?

3. What do you think would happen if A + B was greater than C?

4. The diagrams below show some stationary bodies with forces acting on them. Calculate the size of the
unknown forces in each case.

22
 B 2.5kN
EXTENSION: Balancing forces in different directions
900N
Aim: This practical investigates shows how forces add up when they are not acting in a straight line.

Apparatus Large wooden board with peg

3 0 - 10N newtonmeters 20N

G-clamp to clamp board to table

D
Protractor with one fixed wire from the base and two pivoting wires
D 30N
Method

 Clamp the
85Nboard flat to the table. A
 Zero the newtonmeters. C
 Hook120N
the newtonmeters onto the ends of
the wires, as shown in the diagram.
 Hook the other end of the top
newtonmeter
onto the peg on the board.
 Pull each of the lower newtonmeters with
a force of 5N, making sure the angle, q is
15°. (This can be done if the left hand wire
crosses the inner scale at 75° and the right
hand wire crosses the outer scale at 75°).
 Record the reading from the top
newtonmeter in your results table.
 Repeat this for all the angles in the table
below.

Reading on top newton

Angle (degrees)
meter (N)

23
24
Analysis

Plot a graph of the top newtonmeter reading (y axis) against q.

Questions
1. Describe in words the graph you have plotted.

2. Why does the top newtonmeter take the value it does when q = 0°?

3. Why was 5.0N chosen to be the pull exerted on the lower balances?

4. Why does the resultant force take the value it does when q = 90°?

Further Extension: Why does the resultant force take the value it does when q = 60°?

25
Even More Balanced Forces Questions
1. Fill in the missing words.

(a) When the forces acting on an object are ____________ the object’s motion will not _________.

(b) A stationary object will ________ __ ____ if the forces acting on it are balanced.

(c) A moving object will continue to move at a steady ______ and in the same ________ if the forces acting
on it are balanced.

(d) We can represent the forces acting on an object as ________. The direction of the arrow represents the
_______ of the force. The __________ of the arrow represent the size of the force.

2. The picture on the right shows a book resting on a table. One of the forces acting on the book is its weight.

(a) Show the weight by drawing an arrow on the picture. Remember to include a label.

(b) What is the other force acting on the book?

…………………………………………………………………

(c) Draw an arrow representing the other force. Remember to include a

label.

3. The picture shows a stationary sports car on a flat road

(a) Draw and label arrows to show the two forces acting on the car.

26
4. The picture shows a stationary boat floating at sea.

(a) What are the two forces acting on the boat?

………………………………………………………………………

(b) Draw and label arrows showing these two forces.

5. The picture shows a parachutist he is falling through the air at a steady

speed.

(a) What are the two forces acting on the parachutist?

………………………………………………………………………

(b) If the parachutist is falling at a steady speed what do we know about

these two forces?

………………………………………………………………………

(c) Draw and label arrows showing these two forces.

27
6. The picture shows a passenger jet flying at a steady speed through the sky. Two of the force acting on the plane
are shown on the picture.

Upthrust

Thrust

(a) One of the forces acting on the plane is the thrust of the engines. Which force balances this force?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

(b) One other force acting on the plane is the upthrust. What force is balanced by this force?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

(c) Draw and label arrows to show the other two forces acting on the plane.

7. The picture shows a car being driven along a road at a steady

speed.

(a) Two of the forces acting on the car are its weight and
the reaction from the road. What do we know about
these forces?

……………………………………………………………………………

(b) What are the other two forces acting on the car?

……………………………………………………………………………

(c) Why do we know that these forces must be balanced?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

(d) Draw and label arrows to show all the forces acting on the car.

28
4. Newton’s 2nd Law

When the forces on an object are ______unbalances_____ there is a _____resultant_____

______force____ and this will cause an _______accerleration________ (or a deceleration).
 The ____larger____ the force the larger the acceleration.
 A ____stationary________ object will start to move in the ___duration_______ of the unbalanced force
 An object moving in the direction of the force will __accelerate_______.
 An object moving in the ___opposite_____ direction to the force will slow down.
 The resultant force (F) needed to accelerate an object of mass (m) with acceleration (a) is given by

Force = mass x acceleration

F = _m__ x _a__
Units ( force ) ( mass )
( accerlaration )

Force is measured in ___N______.

1 N is the force needed to accelerate 1kg at 1m/s2.
Question
When a hockey ball, which has a mass of 0.2kg, is hit there is a force

between the hockey ball and the hockey stick. What force will give a
hockey ball an acceleration of 6 m/s2?

Equation: F = m a
m = ……………0.2…… kg F
a = ………6………… m/s2 R
F = …………………………………1.2N………………

The force is ……………………… N

The force acting on the hockey ball is shown in the picture as F.

What is the force labelled as R?
……………………………Resistive Force…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

29
Force, Mass and Acceleration Questions

1. What equation can you use to find the force on an object if you know the mass of the object and the
acceleration caused by the force?

………F = ma………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Find the force acting on the following objects causing the acceleration.

a) A ball of mass 1 kg accelerating at 3 m/s2.

……………3N……………………………………………………………………………………………
b) A box of mass 3 kg accelerating at 0.5 m/s2.
…………………1.5N………………………………………………………………………………………
c) A motorbike of mass 150kg accelerating at 5 m/s2.
………………………750N…………………………………………………………………………………

2. What equation can you use to find the acceleration of an object if you know the mass of the object
and the force causing the acceleration?

……………………a = f/m……………………………………………………………………………………
Find the acceleration in the following cases.

d) A book of mass 2 kg pushed with a force of 4N.

…………2m/s/s………………………………………………………………………………………………
e) A ball of mass 1 kg kicked with force of 7N.
………………………………………7m/s/s…………………………………………………………………
f) A car of mass 500kg driven with a force of 3000N.
………………………6m/s/
s……………………………………………………

3. A boat of mass 1000kg is driven by a driving force of

3000N provided by the engine. The drag force acting
on the boat is 500N.

(a) What is the resultant force acting on the boat?

Driving Force Drag
…………… 2500N……………………………………………………………………………………………
(b) What is the acceleration of the boat?
………………………………5m/s/s…………………………………………………………………………

30
4. A trailer of mass 200kg is pulled with a force of
500N. The friction force acting on the trailer is
100N.
Pull
(a) What is the resultant force acting on the Friction
trailer?
……400N …………………………………………………………………………………………………
(b) What is the acceleration of the trailer?
……………2m/s/s…………………………………………………………………………………………
(c) If the trailer continues to accelerate at the rate what will its speed be after 3s, if it starts at rest?
……………………6m/s…………………………………………………………………………………

5. A book is falling through the air, the weight of the books is 5N. The air resistance is 2N.

(a) What is the resultant force on the book?

…………………………3N (down)………………………………………
(b) The mass of the book can be found using
mass (in kg)= Weight (in N)/10 m/s2.
What is the mass?
…………………0.5 Kg……………………………………………………………………………………
(c) What is the acceleration of the book?
……………………6m/s/s…………………………………………………………………………………

Extensions:
6. An JAS 35 Grippen aircraft sits motionless on a runway. State the type and relative sizes of the forces
acting on it.

7. Which force causes the Grippen to move along the runway?

8. Which force causes the Grippen to become airborne?

31
9. What are the four forces acting on the Grippen when it’s airborne?

10. Whilst travelling at constant altitude, which two forces are equal?

11. Whilst travelling at constant speed, which two forces are equal?

12. Consider the situations below. Indicate whether the forces on the Grippen are balanced or not.

(a) It is flying at 200 mph at a height of 30,000 ft.

(b) It turns northeast at 200 mph and a height of 30,000 ft.

(c) It increases its speed to 200 mph at the same height.

(d) It continues flying at 220 mph at 30,000 ft.

(e) It drops to a height of 28,000 ft.

(f) It heads due east maintaining its speed and height.

32
33
 rd
5. Newton’s 3 law:
The moon stays in orbit around the Earth due to gravity.

Do you think the Earth applies a greater force to the moon or the other way round? Why?

Does the gravity of the moon affect the Earth at all?

Now watch: Best Film on Newton's Third Law. Ever. - YouTube

Write down the most important points from the video:

Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion is commonly written as ‘Every action has an equal and opposite reaction’

But the proper Physics definition is:

34
 6. Hooke’s Law
Elastic versus Plastic materials

If you apply a force to an object, it can change the __________ of the object.

If the object springs back to its original shape when the force is removed, then it is called ____________.

Conversely, if the object remains deformed permanently when the force is removed, then it is called
______________.

Are the following objects elastic or plastic?

35
Investigating Hooke’s Law
https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/hookes-law

Aim: To investigate the relationship between the load on a spring and its extension

Fill in the blanks using the words below:

When you hang a weight (or load) on a spring it extends.

Robert Hooke (1635 - 1703) said that when a spring is stretched, its ____________ is
directly ______________ to the load.

This is true below the _____________ limit which is the point at which the spring is
permanently ___________________.

proportional extension deformed elastic

In this experiment you will demonstrate Hooke’s law and show what the
terms “directly proportional” and “elastic limit” mean in this context.

Apparatus:

Retort stand, boss and clamp,

Load (or weight) holder (1N) and 9 slotted masses of 1N each (10N in total)

Spring

Metre ruler

Handle the springs with

care, especially when using
high loads
Method:

1. Set the apparatus up as shown.

2. Measure the position on the metre rule of the bottom of the spring for zero load.
3. Add 1N to the spring and measure the new position. Record your results in your table.
4. Calculate the extension from the zero-load position for this load and record the results in the relevant
column.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until all the weights have been used up.
6. Note the shape of the spring compared to before the experiment.

36
Preliminary questions:

Read the method below and answer the following questions:

1. What is the independent variable in this experiment (this is the variable you are going to change)?

2. What is the dependent variable (this is what you measure)?

3. How do you calculate the extension?

4. What will the value of the extension be when the load is 0N?

Results:

Load (N) Position (cm) Extension(cm)

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

Graph:

1. Plot a graph of load (x-axis) vs extension (y-axis)

2. Draw a line of best fit which suits the data points you have plotted

37
Questions (answer in COMPLETE SENTENCES):

1. Describe the shape of your graph.

2. When the load doubled from 2N to 4N, what happened to the value of the spring’s extension?

3. If Hooke’s law is true, then all or part of your graph should follow a straight line through the origin (the
point x=0, y=0). What two words describe this relationship between extension and load?

4. Did your spring reach its elastic limit during the experiment?

5. Describe two pieces of evidence that could be used to support this conclusion (even if your spring’s elastic
limit was not reached).

38
6. On your graph (using a ruler), draw and label two straight lines through the origin representing:
a. A weaker spring than the one you tested.
b. A stiffer spring than the one you tested.

7. Explain your reasoning behind your answers to 6a and 6b.

8. Extension: If you have time, investigate the behaviour of an elastic band instead of a spring. Does the elastic
follow the same pattern?

39
Hooke’s Law Problems
Take g = 10N/kg and use F = ke
[don’t forget Weight = mass x g]

1. A mass of 630g is hung on a spring, what is the force acting on the spring?

2. Rearrange the equation F = ke to get k on one side of the equation.

3. If a 4N weight is hung on a spring, and it extends by 0.2m, what is the spring constant (k) with unit?

20N/m

4. If we hung two identical springs in parallel, would this make the ‘overall spring constant’ more stiff or
less? Draw forces on the diagram to explain.

5. A car has a weight of 24kN which is distributed equally over all four wheels. Each wheel has a spring of
spring constant 400N/cm.
a. Determine the force through the spring on each wheel.
24000/4 = 6000N

b. Calculate the compression of each spring when the car rests on the ground.
E = F/k = 15cm

6. In a spring experiment the results were as follows:

Force (N) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Length (cm) 50 58 70 74 82 90 102 125

Extension (cm)

a. What is the length of the spring when unstretched?

b. Complete the ‘Extension’ row of the table

c. Plot a graph of extension against force. Circle the anomalous point.
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d. Mark the limit of proportionality on your graph (elastic limit).
e. What load would give an extension of 30cm?

f. What would be the spring length for a load of 4.5N?

g. Extension: Calculate the gradient of the straight line section and then determine a value for the
spring constant in this example.

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Past Paper Question – Hooke’s Law
A student investigated how the extension of a spring depends on the force applied to the spring.

The diagram shows the spring before and after a force had been applied.

(a) (i) Complete the following sentence using letters, A, B, C or D, from the diagram.

The extension of the spring is the distance between the positions labelled

......................and ...................... on the metre rule.

(1)

(ii) What form of energy is stored in the stretched spring?

...............................................................................................................

(1)

(b) The results from the investigation are plotted

on the following graph.

(i) The graph shows that the student has made

an error throughout the investigation.

What error has the student made?

Give the reason for your answer.

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 (2)
(ii) The student has loaded the spring beyond its limit of proportionality.

Mark on the graph line the limit of proportionality of the spring. Label the point P.

Give the reason for choosing your point P.

...............................................................................................................

...............................................................................................................

...............................................................................................................

(2)

(c) The student uses a different spring as a spring balance. When the student hangs a stone from this spring,
its extension is 72 mm.

The spring does not go past the limit of proportionality.

Calculate the force exerted by the stone on the spring.

spring constant = 25 N/m

Use the correct equation from the Physics Equations Sheet.

Show clearly how you work out your answer.

........................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................

Force = .................................................. N

(2)
(Total 8 marks)

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