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Grade 11 Recap - Vectors

The document provides an overview of vectors in 2D, emphasizing their magnitude and direction, and methods for adding vectors, including the tail-to-head and tail-to-tail methods. It explains how to determine the resultant vector from multiple vectors and introduces the concept of closed vector diagrams. Additionally, it covers resolving vectors into components and calculating their magnitudes and directions using Pythagoras' theorem and trigonometric ratios.

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Kiara Ramdhaw
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11 views16 pages

Grade 11 Recap - Vectors

The document provides an overview of vectors in 2D, emphasizing their magnitude and direction, and methods for adding vectors, including the tail-to-head and tail-to-tail methods. It explains how to determine the resultant vector from multiple vectors and introduces the concept of closed vector diagrams. Additionally, it covers resolving vectors into components and calculating their magnitudes and directions using Pythagoras' theorem and trigonometric ratios.

Uploaded by

Kiara Ramdhaw
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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GRADE 11 RECAP

VECTORS IN 2D

 A vector has BOTH magnitude and direction.


 The length of an arrow is an indication of its magnitude and the
arrowhead shows the direction.

 Any physical quantity represented by a vector has an arrow over the


symbol.
 If there is no arrow that means we are only talking about the
magnitude of the vector.
 Vectors can be represented on a cartesian plane (CP). The
magnitude of the vector must match the distance on the CP
 Vectors in 2D are not always parallel to the axes – sometimes they
might be at an angle to the axes.
 Positive angles are specified as anti-clockwise from the positive x-
axis.
 Negative angles are specified as clockwise from the positive x-axis.

Resultant vector
 If we have multiple vectors acting at once, we can represent them
using ONE vector called the RESULTANT VECTOR. It has the same
effect as adding all the vectors together.
 Vectors that are parallel can be shifted to fall on the same line –
these are called co-linear vectors.
 To add co-linear vectors we use the TAIL-TO HEAD METHOD.
Resultant of perpendicular vectors
 We apply the same principle to vectors that are perpendicular.

 TAIL-TO-HEAD METHOD
- The tail of one vector is placed at the head of the other.
- In 2D, the vectors may not be co-linear.
- The order in which the vectors are drawn does not matter.
- The resultant vector is drawn from the tail of the first vector to
the head of the last vector.
Example
Represent the following forces on a cartesian plane and draw the
resultant vector.
STEP 1: Draw the cartesian plane
STEP 2: Draw the first vector from the origin of the cartesian plane.
STEP 3: Draw the second vector (the tail of the second vector must be
placed at the head of the first vector).
STEP 4: Draw the resultant vector from the tail of the first vector to the
head of the last vector

NOTE: If we had drawn F2 first and then F1, we would still end up with the
same resultant vector – the order in which the vectors are drawn does not
matter.
 TAIL-TO-TAIL METHOD
- The vectors are drawn at the origin, the tail of one vector joins to
the tail of the other.
- From the head of the second vector, a line is drawn parallel to the
first vector.
- From the head of the first vector, a line is drawn parallel to the
second vector.
- From the origin to where the 2 lines intersect, that is the
resultant vector.

Example
Represent the following vectors and their resultant vector on a
cartesian plane using the tail-to-tail method.
STEP 1: Draw the cartesian plane
STEP 2: Draw the first vector from the origin
STEP 3: Draw the tail of the second vector from the tail of the first
vector
STEP 4: Draw a line from the head of vector 1 that is parallel to
vector 2
STEP 5: Draw a line from the head of vector 2 that is parallel to
vector 1
STEP 6: Draw a line from the origin to where the two constructed
lines intersect to form the resultant vector

Tail-to-tail method when you have more than 2 vectors:


1. First find Rx (resultant vector in x-direction) by adding all the
vectors in the x-direction
2. Find Ry (resultant vector in y-direction) by adding all the vectors
in the y-direction.
3. Then use the normal tail-to-tail method to find the resultant of Rx
and Ry

NOTE: For Rx and Ry – add the vectors facing the same direction
and subtract those facing in the opposite direction.
Closed vector diagrams
A closed vector diagram is a set of vectors drawn on the Cartesian
plane using the tail-to-head method and that has a resultant with a
magnitude of zero.
The vectors form a closed polygon. The last vector ends where the
first vector starts.
Using Pythagoras to find the magnitude of the resultant
vector R
 We can use the Theorem of Pythagoras to find the magnitude of the
resultant R between Rx and Ry because the three vectors form a
right-angled triangle.

Example
Determine the magnitude of the resultant vector for the following
vectors:
F1 = 1N in the positive y-dir
F2 = 1N in the positive y-dir
F3 = 2N in the positive y-dir
F4 = 2N in the positive x-dir
F5 = 2N in the positive x-dir
F6 = 1,5 N in the positive x-dir
Determining magnitude and direction of resultant vectors
 The magnitude is determined by theorem of Pythagoras
 The angle is determined by trigonometric ratios

Example
A force of 40N in the positive x-direction acts simultaneously to a force of
30N in the positive y-direction. Calculate the magnitude and direction of
the resultant force.
1.3 Components of vectors
 A single vector can be broken down into a number of vectors – these
vectors are called components of the original vector.
 The process of breaking a vector into its components is called
resolving it into its components.
 It is most useful to resolve a vector into components which are at
right angles to each other – usually horizontal and vertical.
 If R is a vector, Rx is the horizontal component and Ry is the vertical
component.
 The resolved vectors Rx and Ry form a right-angled triangle – so we
can use Pythagoras and trig identities to determine the magnitude
and directions.
Example
A force a 250N acts at an angle of 30° to the positive x-axis. Resolve the
force into its components parallel to the x- and y-axis.
Example
A force of 12,5N acts at an angle of 230° to the positive x-axis. Resolve
this force into the components parallel to the x- and y-axis.
Additional problems

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