Physics I – Mechanics, Waves, Heat, Electricity, and Magnetism 33
Subject Teacher: Julieta A. Malones
Module VI: Work, Energy, and Power
Module Outline
6.1 Work
6.2 Energy
6.3 Power
6.4 Simple Machines
Intended Learning Outcomes
Upon the completion of this module, the students should be able to:
Differentiate the scientific definition from the common meaning of work and energy
Relate work and energy
Calculate the work done by a force in various situations
Define kinetic energy and potential energy
Give the different forms of kinetic energy and potential energy
Define power and relate it with work
Calculate the power used in doing work
Describe and differentiate the six types of simple machines
Give the importance of machines and its efficiency
Introduction
This chapter discusses force, energy, work, power and their relationships. It presents the
dif ferent forms of energy and how it is conserved. It also illustrates how work is calculated based
on two quantities force and displacement.
Learning Content
6.1 Work
Figure 6.1 any energy exerted on the cart does no work if the cart does not move
Illustration source: Practical and Explorational Physics: Modular Approach 2nd Edition (2010)
Look at Figure 6.1. Who does more work-the boy or the girl? When do we say that work is done in
a particular action?
In everyday language, work may mean anything that people do. Work may also have
different meanings to different people. To some, reading and doing assignments are work. Adults
may go to work every day. In this example, work refers to a task that is accomplished by exerting
physical and mental efforts. Work makes us tired because we are transferring energy as we do
work. Some people even say that learning physics is a hard work! But in physics, work has a very
specific meaning.
Work is done on an object when energy is transferred to the object. In other words, work is
done when a force acts on something that undergoes a displacement from one position to
another.
The term work has an explicit, quantitative and operational definition. For work to be done, three
conditions must be met:
There must be force acting on the object.
The object has to move a certain distance called the displacement.
There must be a component of the force in the direction of the motion.
Physics I – Mechanics, Waves, Heat, Electricity, and Magnetism 34
Specifically, the work done on an object by an applied force is defined as the product of the
magnitude of the displacement multiplied by the component of the force parallel to the
displacement.
Figure 6.23 Work done by a constant force.
(a) A person pushes a lawn mower with a constant
force. The component of the force parallel to the
displacement is the work done, as shown in the
equation in the figure.
(b) A person holds a briefcase. No work is done
because the displacement is zero.
(c) The person in (b) walks horizontally while
holding the briefcase. No work is done because cos
θ is zero.
Remember:
When the component of the force is in the same
direction as the displacement, the work done is
positive. When the component of the force is
opposite to the displacement, the work done is
negative. If the force is perpendicular to the
displacement, the work is zero.
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content/uploads/sites/2952/2018/01/31192301/CNX_UPhysics_07_01_Mower.jpg
Calculating the amount of work
To determine the amount of work done on the object, we have to consider the magnitude
of the force, the displacement and the angle between them. Work is calculated by:
W = (F cos 𝚹) d or W = Fd
Where
W – work
F – force parallel to the displacement
d – displacement
𝚹 – the angle between the force and the displacement
The amount of force exerted on an object is measured in newtons (N). The displacement
made is measured in meters (m). Hence, the amount of work is measured in newton-meters (N-
m).
The Sl unit for work is the N-m, or kg • m2/s2. This combination of unit has also been given
the name joule (J), in honor of James Prescott Joule (1818-1889) for his accomplishment in the
study of work and energy.
Sample Problem
A porter pulls a 10-kg luggage along a level road for 5 m by exerting a force of 20N at an angle of
30° with the horizontal shoulder through a vertical distance of 1.5 m and carries it for another 5
m. How much work does he do in (a) pulling, (b) lifting and (c) carrying the luggage on his
shoulder?
a. Pulling the luggage
Given: F = 20N
𝚹 = 30°
d=5m
Find: W
Solution: W = (F cos 𝚹)d
= (20 N) (cos 30°) (5 m)
W = 87 J
Physics I – Mechanics, Waves, Heat, Electricity, and Magnetism 35
b. Lifting the luggage
Given: m = 10 kg
d = 1.5 m
Find: W
Solution:
First, determine the force exerted on the luggage.
F = mg
= (10 kg) (9.8 m / s2)
F = 98 kg • m/s2 or 98 N
Then, solve for W.
W= F. d
= (98 N) (1.5 m)
W= 147 J
c. Carrying the luggage
The force on the luggage is perpendicular to the direction of motion. The distance moved
in the direction of force is zero. Therefore, work is zero. Hence, the porter does no work in
carrying the luggage.
Self-Check
1. If you lift a box up three stories, how much work do you do compared to lifting a box up only
one story?
2. Richardson pulls a toy 3.0 m across the floor by a string, applying a force of 0.50 N. During the
first meter, the string is parallel to the floor. In the next two meters, the string makes an angle of
30° with the horizontal direction. What is the total amount of work done by Richardson on the
toy?
Doing work on a body, like lifting it to a higher level or pushing it to move, results in
energy increase or energy change in the body. Hence, work can be expressed as
Work = change in energy or W=∆E
From this expression, it follows that energy and work have the same unit of measure, joule.
Although work and energy are related, they are not interchangeable. Work is not energy but a
method of transferring energy. When work is done, energy is transferred. The body doing work
loses energy. The body on which the work is done gains energy.
6.2 Energy
What is energy? The word “energy” has different meanings. In daily usage, energy refers to
sources of fuel. Thus, we use the term “energy” to mean food, gasoline, coal, geothermal,
electricity, and solar. We often say we need energy to do our daily activities or a bus needs energy
to run. In physics, however, energy is the capacity of doing work. It may exist in potential, kinetic,
thermal, electrical, chemical, nuclear, or other various forms.
In this module, we will be focusing on mechanical energy, which comes in two forms:
potential energy and kinetic energy.
Potential energy
Potential energy (PE) is associated with forces that depend on the position of a body and
its surroundings. We can think of potential energy as the stored energy. Gravitational potential
energy (PEg) is the energy an object has at a height, h, above some zero reference level.
A raised stone has potential energy with respect to the ground. As we know, the work
needed to raise a stone of mass m to a height h is
W = mgh
Physics I – Mechanics, Waves, Heat, Electricity, and Magnetism 36
The same amount of work can be done by the stone after dropping through the same height h.
Accordingly, the potential energy of the stone is
PE = mgh gravitational potential energy
m PE = mgh
h g= 9.8 m/s2
The gravitational potential energy of an object depends on the reference level from which its
height is measured. For example, the potential energy of a 1.0 kg book held 10 cm above a desk is
PE = mgh = (1.0 kg) (9.8 m/s2) (0.10 m) = 0.98 J
with respect to the desk.
However, if the book is 1.0 m above the floor of the room, its potential energy is
PE = mgh = (1.0 kg) (9.8 m/s2) (1.0 m) = 9.8 J
with respect to the floor.
Kinetic energy
Kinetic energy is also called energy in motion. A moving object has kinetic energy. When a
baseball is thrown, energy is supplied to the ball causing it to rise straight up in the air. As the ball
reaches its highest point, all its kinetic energy is stored as gravitational energy. This stored energy
is once again transformed into kinetic energy as it descends to the ground.
Let’s examine how doing work on an object changes the object’s energy. If we apply force to lift a
rock off the ground, we increase the rock’s potential energy, PE. If we drop the rock, the force of
gravity increases the rock’s kinetic energy as the rock moves downward until it hits the ground.
Kinetic energy (KE) depends on the mass (m) of an object and its velocity (v).
Hence,
KE = mv2
Self-Check
1. A 15 kg sack of rice is lifted to a height of 250 cm. What is its potential energy?
2. Solve for the speed of a 1.0 N weight with a kinetic energy of 1.36 J.
6.3 Power
Recall that a rate can be used to describe a quantity, such as work, over a period of time.
Power is the rate at which work is done. In this case, rate means per unit of time. Power is
calculated by dividing the work done by the time it took to do the work.
power =
or
P=
Suppose you walk up a flight of stairs. You do work because you are lifting your body up
the stairs. You do the same amount of work whether you walk or run. The work done is the same
in either case because the net result is that you lifted up the same weight to the same height.
Physics I – Mechanics, Waves, Heat, Electricity, and Magnetism 37
But you know that if you ran up the stairs you would be more tired than if you walked up. To
understand this difference, you need to know how fast the work is done.
Power is measured in joules per second (J/s) or watts (W). Aside from these, other related
units are used.
1 N•m = 1 J
1 joule/second (J/s) = 1 watt (W)
1000 watts = 1 kilowatt (kW)
1 horsepower (hp) = 746 watts
Although horsepower is not an SI unit, it is often used in measuring the power of engines.
Sample Problem
Dan climbs a flight of stairs in 1.5 min. If he weighs 450 N and the stairs is 10 m from the
ground, how much power will he develop?
Given: t = 1.5 min = 90 s
F = 450 N
d = 10 m
Find: P
Solution: P=
•
=
( )( )
=
P = 50 N • m/s or 50 W
Did You Know?
The unit of power, watt (W), was named after the Scottish mathematician and
engineer James Watt – the man who greatly improved the steam engine developed in
1712 by American engineer Thomas Newcomen (1663-1729).
Self-Check
1. Andy and Bryan lift a 150-kg barbell at a height of 1.5 m off the ground. Andy lifts his
barbell in 1 second and Bryan lifts his barbell in 2 seconds. Who exerts more power?
6.4 Simple Machines
Simple machines make work easier, but they do not decrease the amount of work you have
to do. Why can’t simple machines change the amount of work that you do? In closed systems, the
total amount of energy is conserved. A machine cannot increase the amount of energy you put
into it.
So, why is a simple machine useful? Although it cannot change the amount of work you do,
a simple machine can change the amount of force you must apply to an object, and the distance
over which you apply the force. In most cases, a simple machine is used to reduce the amount of
force you must exert to do work. The down side is that you must exert the force over a greater
distance, because the product of force and distance, fd, (which equals work) does not change.
Physics I – Mechanics, Waves, Heat, Electricity, and Magnetism 38
Simple machines are devices that allow changing the intensity or the direction of the
energy reaching their point of entry in the form of mechanical work, and whose components are
all rigid solids.
Types of simple machines
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Lever
A lever is a simple machine that consists of a rigid object (often a bar of some kind) and a
fulcrum (or pivot). Applying a force to one end of the rigid object causes it to pivot about the
fulcrum, causing a magnification of the force at another point along the rigid object. There are
three classes of levers, depending on where the input force, output force, and fulcrum are in
relation to each other.
The earliest lever was in use as a balance scale by 5000 BCE; Archimedes is credited with
saying "Give me a place to stand and I will move the earth."
Baseball bats, seesaws, wheelbarrows, and crowbars are all types of levers.
Wheel & Axle
A wheel is a circular device that is attached to a rigid bar in its center. A force applied to
the wheel causes the axle to rotate, which can be used to magnify the force (by, for example,
having a rope wind around the axle). Alternately, a force applied to provide rotation on the axle
translates into rotation of the wheel. It can be viewed as a type of lever that rotates around a
center fulcrum. The earliest wheel and axle combination known was a toy model of a four-
wheeled cart made in Mesopotamia about 3500 BCE. Ferris wheels, tires, and rolling pins are
examples of wheels and axles.
Inclined Plane
An inclined plane is a plane surface set at an angle to another surface. This results in doing
the same amount of work by applying the force over a longer distance. The most basic inclined
plane is a ramp; it requires less force to move up a ramp to a higher elevation than to climb to that
height vertically. No one invented the inclined plane since it occurs naturally in nature, but people
used ramps to build large buildings (monumental architecture) as early as 10,000–8,500 BCE.
Archimedes's "On Plane Equilibrium" describes the centers of gravity for various geometrical
plane figures.
Physics I – Mechanics, Waves, Heat, Electricity, and Magnetism 39
Wedge
The wedge is often considered a double inclined plane—both sides are inclined—that
moves to exert a force along the lengths of the sides. The force is perpendicular to the inclined
surfaces, so it pushes two objects (or portions of a single object) apart. Axes, knives, and chisels
are all wedges. The common "door wedge" uses the force on the surfaces to provide friction,
rather than separate things, but it's still fundamentally a wedge. The wedge is the oldest simple
machine, made by our ancestors Homo erectus at least as long ago as 1.2 million years to make
stone tools.
Screw
A screw is a shaft that has an inclined groove along its surface. By rotating the screw
(applying a torque), the force is applied perpendicular to the groove, thus translating a rotational
force into a linear one. It is frequently used to fasten objects together (as the hardware screw and
bolt does). The Babylonians in Mesopotamia developed the screw in the 7th century BCE, to
elevate water from a low-lying body to a higher one (irrigate a garden from a river). This machine
would later to be known as Archimedes' screw.
Pulley
A pulley is a wheel with a groove along its edge, where a rope or cable can be placed. It
uses the principle of applying force over a longer distance, and also the tension in the rope or
cable, to reduce the magnitude of the necessary force. Complex systems of pulleys can be used to
greatly reduce the force that must be applied initially to move an object. Simple pulleys were used
by the Babylonians in the 7th century BCE; the first complex one (with several wheels) was
invented by the Greeks about 400 BCE. Archimedes perfected the existing technology, making the
first fully-realized block and tackle.
- End of Module 6 –
References:
Padua, A., & Crisostomo, R. (2010). Practical and Explorational Physics: Modular Approach (2nd
edition). Vibal Publishing House, Inc.
Urone, P., & Hinrichs, R. (2020). Physics. OpenStax
Ox Science (n.d.) Types of Simple machines with examples and Applications. Retrieved Aug 4,
2023 from https://oxscience.com/simple-machines/
OpenStax CNX (n.d.) Work. OpenStax University Physics. Retrieved Aug 5, 2023 from
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-osuniversityphysics/chapter/7-1-work/
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2023, July 27). energy. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/science/energy
Science and Tchnology physics textbook
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https://www.thoughtco.com/six-kinds-of-simple-machines-2699235
