Physics for Engineers (C.

E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research

Al-Qadisiyah University- College of Engineering
Civil Engineering Department

Physics for Engineers

C.E 112

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

Physics, the most fundamental physical science, is concerned with the basic principles of the
Universe. It is the foundation upon which the other sciences— astronomy, biology, chemistry,
and geology—are based. The beauty of physics lies in the simplicity of the fundamental
physical theories and in the manner in which just a small number of fundamental concepts,
equations, and assumptions can alter and expand our view of the world around us.

The study of physics can be divided into six main areas:

1. classical mechanics, which is concerned with the motion of objects that are large
relative to atoms and move at speeds much slower than the speed of light;
2. relativity, which is a theory describing objects moving at any speed, even speeds
approaching the speed of light;
3. thermodynamics, which deals with heat, work, temperature, and the statistical behavior
of systems with large numbers of particles;
4. electromagnetism, which is concerned with electricity, magnetism, and electro-
magnetic fields;
5. optics, which is the study of the behavior of light and its interaction with materials;
6. quantum mechanics, a collection of theories connecting the behavior of matter at the
submicroscopic level to macroscopic observations.
The disciplines of mechanics and electromagnetism are basic to all other branches of classical
physics (developed before 1900) and modern physics (c. 1900–present). This course deals with
classical mechanics, sometimes referred to as Newtonian mechanics or simply mechanics. This
is an appropriate course to begin an introductory subject because many of the basic principles
used to understand mechanical systems can later be used to describe such natural phenomena
as waves and the transfer of energy by heat. Furthermore, the laws of conservation of energy
and momentum introduced in mechanics retain their importance in the fundamental theories of
other areas of physics.
Today, classical mechanics is of vital importance to students from all disciplines. It is highly
successful in describing the motions of different objects, such as planets, rockets, and baseballs.
In this course, we shall describe the laws of classical mechanics and examine a wide range of
phenomena that can be understood with these fundamental ideas.
Subjects to be covered.
1. Units, Physical Quantities and Vectors.
2. Forces System
3. Motion in One Dimensions.

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

4. Motion in Two Dimensions.

5. Newton’s Laws.
Textbooks and References
1. University Physics with Modern Physics (14th ed.) 2015 (Young and Freedman).
2. Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern Physics (17th ed.) (Serway and
Jewett).
3. Schaum’s Outline of Theory and Problems of Physics for Engineering and Science.
4. Physics for Scientist and Engineers- Strategic Approach with Modern Physics (4 th ed.),
2017 (Randall Dewey Knight).

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

Chapter 1 Physics and Measurement

Standards of Length, Mass, and Time
To describe natural phenomena, we must make measurements of various aspects of nature.
Each measurement is associated with a physical quantity, such as the length of an object. If we
are to report the results of a measurement to someone who wishes to reproduce this
measurement, a standard must be defined. It would be meaningless if a visitor from another
planet were to talk to us about a length of 8 “glitches” if we do not know the meaning of the
unit glitch. On the other hand, if someone familiar with our system of measurement reports that
a wall is 2 meters high and our unit of length is defined to be 1 meter, we know that the height
of the wall is twice our basic length unit. Whatever is chosen as a standard must be readily
accessible and must possess some property that can be measured reliably. Measurement
standards used by different people in different places—throughout the Universe—must yield
the same result. In addition, standards used for measurements must not change with time.
In 1960, an international committee established a set of standards for the fundamental
quantities of science. It is called the SI (Système International), and its fundamental units of
length, mass, and time are the meter, kilogram, and second, respectively. Other standards for
SI fundamental units established by the committee are those for temperature (the kelvin),
electric current (the ampere), luminous intensity (the candela), and the amount of substance
(the mole).
The laws of physics are expressed as mathematical relationships among physical quantities that
we will introduce and discuss throughout the book. In mechanics, the three fundamental
quantities are length, mass, and time. All other quantities in mechanics can be expressed in
terms of these three.
Two systems of units are widely used in the world, the metric and the British systems. The
metric system measures the length in meters whereas the British system makes use of the foot,
inch, .... The metric system is the most widely used. Therefore, the metric system will be used
in this book.
By international agreement the metric system was formalized in 1971 into the International
System of Units (SI). There are seven basic units in the SI as shown in Table 1-1 below “For
this course only three units are used, the meter, kilogram, and second”.
Table 1-1 Basic units in SI system

Quantity Name Symbol

Length Meter m

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

Mass Kilogram kg
Time Second s
Temperature Kelvin K
Electric current ampere A
Number of particles mole mol
Luminous intensity Candela cd

Length

The length of the meter was defined in 1960 as the distance between two lines on a specific
platinum–iridium bar stored under controlled conditions in France. Current requirements of
science and technology, however, necessitate more accuracy than that with which the
separation between the lines on the bar can be determined. In the 1960s and 1970s, the meter
was defined as 1 650 763.73 wavelengths of orange-red light emitted from a krypton-86 lamp.
In October 1983, however, the meter was redefined as the distance traveled by light in
vacuum during a time of 1/299 792 458 second. Table 1-2 lists approximate values of some
measured lengths.

Table 1-2 Approximate values of some measured lengths (m)

Distance from the Sun to the nearest star (Proxima Centauri) 4 x 1016
One lightyear 9.46 x 1015
Mean orbit radius of the Earth about the Sun 1.5 x 1011
Mean distance from Earth to the Moon 3.84 x 108
Distance from the equator to the North Pole 1.00 x 107
Mean radius of the Earth 6.37 x 106
Length of a football field 9.1 x 101

Mass
The SI fundamental unit of mass, the kilogram (kg), is defined as the mass of a specific
platinum–iridium alloy cylinder kept at the International Bureau of Weights and
Measures at Sèvres, France as shown in Figure 1-1. This mass standard was established in
1887 and has not been changed since that time because platinum–iridium is an unusually stable
alloy. A duplicate of the Sèvres cylinder is kept at the National Institute of Standards and

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

Technology (NIST) in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Table 1-3 lists approximate values of the
masses of various objects.

Figure 1-1 The international standard kilogram is the metal object carefully enclosed within these
nested glass containers.

Table 1-3 Masses of Various Objects (Approximate Values) (kg)

Observable Universe 1052

Milky Way galaxy 1042
Sun 1.99 x 1030
Earth 5.98 x 1024
Moon 7.36 x 1022
Shark 103
Human 102
Frog 10-1

Time
From 1889 until 1967, the unit of time was defined as a certain fraction of the mean solar day,
the average time between successive arrivals of the sun at its highest point in the sky. The
present standard, adopted in 1967, is much more precise. It is based on an atomic clock, which
uses the energy difference between the two lowest energy states of the cesium atom (133Cs).
When bombarded by microwaves of precisely the proper frequency, cesium atoms undergo a
transition from one of these states to the other. One second (abbreviated s) is defined as the
time required for 9,192,631,770 cycles of this microwave radiation.
Unit Prefixes
Once we have defined the fundamental units, it is easy to introduce larger and smaller units for
the same physical quantities. In the metric system these other units are related to the
fundamental units

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

(or, in the case of mass, to the gram) by multiples of 10 or . Thus one kilometer (1km) is

1000 meter. And one centimeter (1 cm) is meter. We usually express multiples of 10 or

in exponential notation: 1000 = 103 , = 10 , and so on. With this notation, 1 km = 103 m

and I cm = 10-2 m.
The names of the additional units are derived by adding a prefix to the name of the fundamental
unit. For example, the prefix “kilo-,” abbreviated k, always means a unit larger by a factor of
1000; thus
1 kilometer = 1 km = 103 meters = 103 m
1 kilogram = 1 kg = 103 grams = 103 g
1 kilowatt = 1 kW = 103 watts = 103 W
Table 1-4 gives some examples of the use of multiples of 10 and their prefixes with the units
of length, mass, and time. Figure 1-2 shows how these prefixes are used to describe both large
and small distances.
Table 1-4 Some Units of Length, Mass, and Time

Figure 1-2 Some typical lengths in the universe.

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

In addition to SI, another system of units, the U.S. customary system, is still used in the United
States despite acceptance of SI by the rest of the world. In this system, the units of length,
mass, and time are the foot (ft), slug, and second, respectively. We shall make some limited
use of U.S. customary units in the study of classical mechanics.
British units are now officially defined in terms of SI units, as follows:
Length: 1 inch = 2.54 cm (exactly)
Force: 1 pound = 4.448221615260 newtons (exactly)
The newton, abbreviated N, is the SI unit of force. The British unit of time is the second,
defined the same way as in SI. In physics, British units are used in mechanics and
thermodynamics only; there is no British system of electrical units.
In addition to the basic SI units of meter, kilogram, and second, we can also use other units,
such as millimeters and nanoseconds, where the prefixes milli- and nano- denote multipliers of
the basic units based on various powers of ten. Prefixes for the various powers of ten and their
abbreviations are listed in Table 1-5. For example, 10-3 m is equivalent to 1 millimeter (mm),
and 103m corresponds to 1 kilometer (km). Likewise, 1 kilogram (kg) is 10 3 grams (g), and 1
megavolt (MV) is 106 volts (V).

Table 1-5 Prefixes for powers of ten

Power Prefix Abbreviation

10-24 yocto y
10-21 zepto z
10-18 atto z
10-15 femto f
10-12 pico p
10-9 nano n
10-6 micro 
10-3 milli m
10-2 centi c
10-1 deci d
103 kilo k
106 mega M
109 giga G
1012 tera T

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University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

1015 peta P
18
10 exa E
1021 zetta Z
1024 yotta y

Density and Atomic Mass

In previous section, we explored three basic quantities in mechanics. Let us look now at an
example of a derived quantity—density. The density  (Greek letter rho) of any substance is
defined as its mass per unit volume:
𝑚
𝜌≡
𝑉
For example, aluminum has a density of 2.70 g/cm3, and lead has a density of 11.3 g/cm3.
Therefore, a piece of aluminum of volume 10.0 cm3 has a mass of 27.0 g, whereas an equivalent
volume of lead has a mass of 113 g. A list of densities for various substances is given in Table
1-6.
The numbers of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom of an element are related to the
atomic mass of the element, which is defined as the mass of a single atom of the element
measured in atomic mass units (u) where 1 u = 1.660 538 7 x 10-27 kg.
Table 1-6 Densities of various substances

Substance Density  (103 kg/m3)

Platinum 21.45
Gold 19.3
Uranium 18.7
Lead 11.3
copper 8.92
Iron 7.86
Water 1.00

The atomic mass of lead is 207 u and that of aluminum is 27.0 u. However, the ratio of atomic
masses, 207 u/27.0 u = 7.67, does not correspond to the ratio of densities, (11.3 x 103
kg/m3)/(2.70 x 103 kg/m3) = 4.19. This discrepancy is due to the difference in atomic spacings
and atomic arrangements in the crystal structures of the two elements.

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

Dimensional analysis
The word dimension has a special meaning in physics. It denotes the physical nature of a
quantity. Whether a distance is measured in units of feet or meters or fathoms, it is still a
distance. We say its dimension is length.
The symbols we use in this course to specify the dimensions of length, mass, and time are L,
M, and T, respectively. We shall often use brackets [ ] to denote the dimensions of a physical
quantity. For example, the symbol we use for speed in this course is v, and in our notation the
dimensions of speed are written [v] = L/T. As another example, the dimensions of area A are
[A] = L2. The dimensions and units of area, volume, speed, and acceleration are listed in Table
1-7. The dimensions of other quantities, such as force and energy, will be described as they are
introduced in the coming sections.
In many situations, you may have to derive or check a specific equation. A useful and powerful
procedure called dimensional analysis can be used to assist in the derivation or to check your
final expression. Dimensional analysis makes use of the fact that dimensions can be treated
as algebraic quantities. For example, quantities can be added or subtracted only if they have
the same dimensions. Furthermore, the terms on both sides of an equation must have the same
dimensions. By following these simple rules, you can use dimensional analysis to help
determine whether an expression has the correct form. The relationship can be correct only if
the dimensions on both sides of the equation are the same.
To illustrate this procedure, suppose you wish to derive an equation for the position x of a car
at a time t if the car starts from rest and moves with constant acceleration a. Later, in this
course, we shall find that the correct expression is x = ½ a t2. Let us use dimensional analysis
to check the validity of this expression. The quantity x on the left side has the dimension of
length. For the equation to be dimensionally correct, the quantity on the right side must also
have the dimension of length. We can perform a dimensional check by substituting the
dimensions for acceleration, L/T2 (Table 1-7), and time, T, into the equation. That is, the
dimensional form of the equation x=1/2 a t 2 is
𝐿
𝐿= .𝑇 = 𝐿
𝑇
The dimensions of time cancel as shown, leaving the dimension of length on the right- hand
side.
A more general procedure using dimensional analysis is to set up an expression of the form
x  a nt m

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

where n and m are exponents that must be determined and the symbol  indicates a
proportionality. This relationship is correct only if the dimensions of both sides are the same.
Because the dimension of the left side is length, the dimension of the right side must also be
length. That is,
[𝑎 𝑡 ] = 𝐿 = 𝐿 𝑇
Because the dimensions of acceleration are L/T2 and the dimension of time is T, we have
𝐿
𝑇 =𝐿 𝑇
𝑇
(𝐿 𝑇 )=𝐿 𝑇
The exponents of L and T must be the same on both sides of the equation. From the exponents
of L, we see immediately that n = 1. From the exponents of T, we see that m - 2n = 0, which,
once we substitute for n, gives us m = 2. Returning to our original expression x antm, we
conclude that x at 2. This result differs by a factor of ½ from the correct expression, which is
x=1/2 at 2.
Table 1-7 Units of area, volume, velocity, speed, and acceleration

System Area (L2) Volume (L3) Speed (L/T) Acceleration (L/T2)

SI m2 m3 m/s m/s2
U.S. customary ft2 ft3 ft/s ft/s2

Ex:-
Suppose we are told that the acceleration a of a particle moving with uniform speed v in a circle
of radius r is proportional to some power of r, say r n, and some power of v, say vm. Determine
the values of n and m and write the simplest form of an equation for the acceleration.
Sol:-
Let us take a to be:-
𝑎=𝑘𝑟 𝑣
Where k is a dimensionless constant of proportionality. Knowing the dimensions of a, r , and
v, we see that the dimensional analysis equation must be

𝐿 𝐿 𝐿
=𝐿 =
𝑇 𝑇 𝑇

This dimensional equation is balanced under the conditions

𝑛+𝑚 =𝟏 𝑎𝑛𝑑. 𝑚=𝟐

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

Therefore n = -1, and we can write the acceleration expression as:

𝑣
𝑎 = 𝑘𝑟 𝑣 =𝑘
𝑟

When we discuss uniform circular motion later, we shall see that k =1 if a consistent set of unit
is used. The constant k would not equal 1 if, for example, v were in km/h and you wanted a in
m/s^2.

Conversion of units
Sometimes it is necessary to convert units from one measurement system to another, or to
convert within a system, for example, from kilometers to meters. Equalities between SI and
U.S. customary units of length are as follows:
1 mile = 1609 m = 1.609 km 1 ft = 0.3048 m = 30.48 cm
1 m = 39.37 in. = 3.281 ft 1 in. = 0.025 4 m = 2.54 cm (exactly)
A more complete list of conversion factors can be found in Table 1-8.
Units can be treated as algebraic quantities that can cancel each other. For example, suppose
we wish to convert 15.0 in. to centimeters. Because 1 in. is defined as exactly 2.54 cm, we find
that
2.54 𝑐𝑚
15.0 in. = (15.0 in. ) = 38.1 cm
1 𝑖𝑛.
where the ratio in parentheses is equal to 1. Notice that we choose to put the unit of an inch in
the denominator and it cancels with the unit in the original quantity. The remaining unit is the
centimeter, which is our desired result.

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

Table 1-8 Conversion between SI and US systems

Problems:

1. The standard kilogram is a platinum–iridium cylinder 39.0 mm in height and 39.0 mm

in diameter. What is the density of the material?
2. A major motor company displays a die-cast model of its first automobile, made from
9.35 kg of iron. To celebrate its hundredth year in business, a worker will recast the
model in gold from the original dies. What mass of gold is needed to make the new
model?
3. What mass of a material with density  is required to make a hollow spherical shell
having inner radius r 1 and outer radius r 2?

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Physics for Engineers (C.E 112)
University of Al-Qadisiyah- College of Engineering - Civil Eng. Dept.

4. A small cube of iron is observed under a microscope. The edge of the cube is 5.00 x
10-6 cm long. Find (a) the mass of the cube and (b) the number of iron atoms in the
cube. The atomic mass of iron is 55.9 u, and its density is 7.86 g/cm 3.
5. The position of a particle moving under uniform acceleration is some function of time
and the acceleration. Suppose we write this position s = ka mt n, where k is a
dimensionless constant. Show by dimensional analysis that this expression is satisfied
if m =1 and n =2. Can this analysis give the value of k?
6. Which of the following equations are dimensionally correct?
(a)vf =vi+a x

(b) y = (2 m)cos(kx), where k = 2 m-1.

7. A rectangular building lot is 100 ft by 150 ft. Determine the area of this lot in m 2.
8. An auditorium measures 40.0 m x 20.0 m x 12.0 m. The density of air is 1.20 kg/m 3.
What are (a) the volume of the room in cubic feet and (b) the weight of air in the room
in pounds?
9. Assume that it takes 7.00 minutes to fill a 30.0-gal gasoline tank. (a) Calculate the rate
at which the tank is filled in gallons per second. (b) Calculate the rate at which the tank
is filled in cubic meters per second. (c) Determine the time interval, in hours, required
to fill a 1-m3 volume at the same rate. (1 U.S. gal =231 in.3)
10.
a. Find a conversion factor to convert from miles per hour to kilometers per hour.
b. In the past, a federal law mandated that highway speed limits would be 55mi/h.
Use the conversion factor of part (a) to find this speed in kilometers per hour.
c. The maximum highway speed is now 65 mi/h in some places. In kilometers per
hour, how much increase is this over the 55 mi/h limit?

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