6 Materials

OCR Physics A Exam-style questions

1 a State Hooke’s law.

(2 marks)

b Figure 1a shows a spring hanging vertically from a fixed support.

Figure 1a
A force, F, is applied to the spring by hanging a metal block, B, to the lower
end of the spring. The force, and the resulting extension, x, are recorded and
used to plot the graph shown in Figure 1b.

Figure 1b
Calculate:
i the force constant of the spring, and give the S.I. unit in which it is
measured

force constant = unit = (2 marks)

ii the energy stored in the spring when the extension is 15 cm.

energy = J (2 marks)

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OCR Physics A Exam-style questions

2 a Three coplanar forces act on one point of a body. State the condition that the
forces must satisfy if the body is to be in equilibrium

(1 mark)

b Three identical horizontal springs, S1, S2, and S3, are attached to a freely
moving ring. The free ends of S1 and S2 are attached to fixed supports. The
spring S3 is extended from its natural length by a distance 0.30 m and the
system is allowed to reach equilibrium.
Figure 2 shows the position of the ring at equilibrium and the angle θ made
by the springs.
The force constant for each spring is 36 N m–1.

Figure 2
Calculate:
i the force exerted by S3 on the ring

force = N (1 mark)
ii the extension of the springs S1 and S2 when the angle θ is 50°.

extension = m (3 marks)

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 6 Materials
OCR Physics A Exam-style questions

3 Figure 3 shows the graph of extension of a wire against force applied to the ends
of the wire.

Figure 3
a State what features of the graph suggest that the wire obeys Hooke’s law for
certain values of the force.

(2 marks)

b Mark the limit of proportionality for the wire on the graph in Figure 3. Label
the point P.
(1 mark)
c Describe how you would use the graph in Figure 3 to determine the force
constant for the wire.

(2 marks)

d Materials are often described as brittle, ductile, or polymeric. State the type
of material used to make this wire.

(1 mark)

4 a Rubber bands are frequently used in school laboratories to provide variable

forces. As a band is stretched the stress and strain vary.
i Define the term stress.

(1 mark)

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 6 Materials
OCR Physics A Exam-style questions

ii Use Figure 4 to sketch the shape of the stress–strain graph you would
expect to obtain from an experiment investigating the stretching of a
rubber band by a tension force.

Figure 4
(2 marks)
iii State which feature of your graph in part ii indicates that the Young
modulus for rubber is not a constant value.

(1 mark)

b A cylindrical metal strut that forms part of the landing gear of a jet aircraft has
a diameter of 24 mm and is 0.35 m long. During landing, the maximum
compressive force reaches a value of 50 kN.
Assuming that the elastic limit of the strut is not exceeded, calculate the
reduction in length of the strut under this compressive force.
The Young modulus for the metal is 80 GN m–2.

ΔL = m (4 marks)
5 Figure 5 shows the apparatus used to determine the Young modulus of a metal
in the form of a long wire.

Figure 5

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 6 Materials
OCR Physics A Exam-style questions

a Describe the measurements that you would need to take in order to

determine the Young modulus.

(2 marks)

b Describe the equipment you would use to take each of the measurements
described in part a.

(3 marks)

c Describe how you would determine the Young modulus from your
measurements.

(2 marks)

6 a Define tensile strain.

(1 mark)

b Distinguish between the behaviour of elastic and plastic materials.

(3 marks)

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OCR Physics A Exam-style questions

c On Figure 6a sketch a graph to show the variation of stress with strain in a

ductile material.

Figure 6a
(2 marks)
d On Figure 6b sketch a graph to show the variation of stress with strain in a
brittle material.

Figure 6b
(1 mark)
7 Three identical springs, S1, S2, and S3, of negligible mass, each have a spring
constant k of 200 N m–1.
In the situations described below, the elastic limit of the springs is not exceeded.
a The springs are first joined in parallel. Their upper ends are fixed to a rigid
support and their lower ends are fixed to a light bar. A mass of 1.50 kg is
attached to the bar as shown in Figure 7a.

Figure 7a
Calculate the extension of each spring.

extension = m (2 marks)

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OCR Physics A Exam-style questions

b The springs are detached from the bar and connected end-to-end. The mass
of 1.50 kg is attached to the lower end of the bottom spring as shown in
Figure 7b.

Figure 7b
Calculate the extension of each spring.

extension = m (2 marks)

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OCR Physics A Exam-style questions

c Springs S1 and S2 are reconnected in parallel with the light bar at their lower
ends. The top of spring S3 is fixed to the bottom of the light bar. The mass of
1.50 kg is then attached to the bottom of spring S3, as shown in Figure 7c.

Figure 7c
Calculate the extension of each spring.

extension of S1 = m
extension of S2 = m
extension of S3 = m
(2 marks)

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