Physics Problems

Contents

1 Homework 1: Math Background 1

2 Homework 2: 1D Motion 4

3 Homework 3: 2D Motion 9

4 Homework 4: Newton’s Laws 14

5 Homework 5: Energy 18

6 Homework 6: Momentum 23

7 Homework 7: Rotation 27

8 Homework 8: Torque 31

9 Homework 9: Solids and Liquids 38

10 Homework 10: Oscillations and Waves 43

11 Homework 11: Ideal Gas and Kinetic Theory 49

12 Homework 12: Heat, Phase Changes, and Transfer 52

13 Homework 13: Thermodynamics and Engines 56

Note: Eventually I will get a selected few solutions for the tough problems
in each homework.

1 Homework 1: Math Background

Question 1: Trig Function (30 Points): Use the figure to find the value of
the trigonometric functions.

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(a) What is the value of sin θ?

(b) What is the value of cos θ?

(c) What is the value of tan θ?

Question 2: Trig Functions (60 Points): The angle θ is given in the figure
below.

(a) Find cos θ.

(b) Find sin θ.

(c) Find tan θ.

(d) Find sec θ.

(e) Find csc θ.

(f) Find cot θ.

Question 3: Trig Functions (50 Points): Let

4 π
tan θ = ,0 < θ <
9 2

(a) Find sec θ

(b) Find csc θ

(c) Find cos θ

(d) Find sin θ

(e) Find cot θ

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Question 4: Chicken Consumption Model (20 Points): For 1983 through
1989, the per capita consumption of chicken in the U.S. increased at a rate that
was approximately linear. In 1983, the per capita consumption was 33.3 pounds,
and in 1989 it was 48 pounds.

(a) Write a linear model for per capita consumption of chicken in the U.S.
Let t represent time in years, where t = 3 represents 1983. Let y represent
chicken consumption in pounds.

(b) What would you expect the per capita consumption of chicken to be in
1995?

Question 5: Mammal Hearts (40 Points): In mammals, the weight of

the heart is approximately 0.5% of the total body weight. Write a linear model
that gives the heart weight in terms of the total body weight. Use the model to
find

(a) the weight of the heart of a human whose weight is 144 lbs.
Answer in units of lbs.

(b) the weight of the heart of a cow whose weight is 1499 lbs.
Answer in units of lbs.

(c) the weight of the heart of an elephant whose weight is 11905 lbs.
Answer in units of lbs.

(d) the weight of the heart of a whale whose weight is 2.32 × 105 lbs.
Answer in units of lbs.

Question 6: Quadratic Solve (10 Points):

(a) Solve

x2 + 12x − 3 = 0

by completing the square.

Question 7: Algebra in Physics (20 Points):

Suppose that d a particle travels in time t is

d(t) = d0 + vt + at2 /2

(a) Write an expression that would solve for a.

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(b) Supposing d(t) is known to have value D, what procedure will find the
time t at which this happens?

Question 8: Vector Problem (10 Points):

(a) Find the vector component of vector ⃗v .

2 Homework 2: 1D Motion
Question 1: Position vs Time (30 Points) The scale on the horizontal axis
is 5 s per division and on the vertical axis 5 m per division.

(a) What is the time represented by the third tic mark on the horizontal axis?
Answer in units of s.

(b) What is the position represented by the fourth tic mark on the vertical
axis?

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 Answer in units of m.

(c) What is the position when t = 15 s?

Answer in units of m.

Question 2: 1998 AP Physics C (10 Points) The graph shows the ve-
locity v as a function of time t for an object moving in a straight line.

(a) Show a graph that shows the corresponding displacement x as a function of

time t for the same time interval.

Question 3: Bird and Runner (20 Points) A runner is jogging in a straight

line at a steady vr = 3.2 km/hr. When the runner is L= 4.3 km from the finish
line, a bird begins flying straight from the runner to the finish line at vb = 12.8
km/hr (4 times as fast as the runner). When the bird reaches the finish line, it
turns around and flies directly back to the runner

(a) What cumulative distance does the bird travel? Even though the bird is a
dodo, assume that it occupies only one point in space (a “zero” length bird),
travels in a straight line, and that it can turn without loss of speed.
Answer in units of km.

(b) After this first encounter, the bird then turns around and flies from the
runner back to the finish line, turns around again and flies back to the runner.
The bird repeats the back and forth trips until the runner reaches the finish
line.
How far does the bird travel from the beginning (including the distance trav-
eled to the first encounter)?
Answer in units of km.

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Question 4: Hewitt (10 Points) A reconnaissance plane flies 630 km away
from its base at 826 m/s, then flies back to its base at 1239 m/s.

(a) What is its average speed?

Answer in units of m/s.

Question 5: Darting Child (10 Points) Ann is driving down a street at 51

km/h. Suddenly a child runs into the street.

(a) If it takes Ann 0.776 s to react and apply the brakes, how far will she
have moved before she begins to slow down?
Answer in units of m.

Question 6: Kinematics (10 Points) The graph shows position as a function

of time for two trains running on parallel tracks. At time t = 0 the position of
both trains is 0 (at the origin).

(a) What true statement can be said about when the trains have the same ve-
locity?

Question 7: Antilock Brakes (10 Points) The following acceleration vs

time plots show data gathered from an automobile fitted with an accelerometer.
In each case the driver accelerated to cruising speed and then slammed on the
brakes. In one case the car is equipped with an antilock braking system (ABS),
while in the other the car is not. ABS tends to prevent skidding and did just
that in this experiment, allowing a more rapid deceleration.

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(a) Which data set, the upper or lower, more likely came from the car equipped
with ABS, and why?

Question 8: Hockey Puck Acceleration (10 Points) Henry hits a hockey

puck in the positive x-direction at time, t ≈ t0 . The puck is then stopped by a
net starting at time, t ≈ t1 .

(a) What would a curve that describes the acceleration of the hockey puck
if we ignore any effects of friction look like?

Question 9: Rebounding Tennis Ball (10 Points) A tennis ball with

a speed of 17.3 m/s is moving perpendicular to a wall. After striking the wall,
the ball rebounds in the opposite direction with a speed of 10.8125 m/s

(a) If the ball is in contact with the wall for 0.013 s, what is the average accel-
eration of the ball while it is in contact with the wall? Take “toward the wall”
to be the positive direction.
Answer in units of m/s2 .

Question 10: 1993 AP Physics C (10 Points) A 500-kilogram sports car

accelerates uniformly from rest, reaching a speed of 30 meters per second in 6
seconds.

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(a) What distance has the car traveled during the 6 seconds?

Question 11: Describing Motion (20 Points) A car initially at rest on

a straight road accelerates according to the acceleration vs time plot.

(a) What is the best description of the motion of the car? Take forward to be
the positive direction.

(b) What would a graph of velocity vs time of the car look like?

Question 12: Bursting the Bubble (10 Points) You are trying to find
out how high you have to pitch a water balloon in order for it to burst when it
hits the ground. You discover that the balloon bursts when you have pitched it
to a height of 11 m.

(a) With what velocity did the balloon hit the ground? The acceleration of
gravity is 9.8 m/s2 . The positive direction is up, so the velocity when it hits is
negative.
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 13: Rock Tossed Upward (10 Points) Henry has tossed a rock
upward. It has already been released and is moving upward at time t = 0, turns
around at t1 , and hits the ground at t2 .

(a) What would a graph of the acceleration of the rock look like?

Question 14: High Pop-Up (10 Points) During a baseball game, a bat-
ter hits a high pop-up.

(a) If the ball remains in the air for 6.51 s, how high above the point where
it hits the bat does it rise? Assume when it hits the ground it hits at exactly
the level of the bat. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .
Answer in units of m.

Question 15: Stopping a Locomotive (10 Points) An engineer in a loco-

motive sees a car stuck on the track at a railroad crossing in front of the train.
When the engineer first sees the car, the locomotive is 360 m from the crossing

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and its speed is 26 m/s.

(a) If the engineer’s reaction time is 0.76 s, what should be the magnitude
of the minimum deceleration to avoid an accident?
Answer in units of m/s2 .

Question 16: Dropped Tennis Ball (30 Points) A tennis ball is dropped
from 1.74 m above the ground. It rebounds to a height of 0.942 m.

(a) With what velocity does it hit the ground? The acceleration of gravity
is 9.8 m/s2 . (Let down be negative.)
Answer in units of m/s.

(b) With what velocity does it leave the ground?

Answer in units of m/s.

(c) If the tennis ball were in contact with the ground for 0.0103 s, find the
acceleration given to the tennis ball by the ground.
Answer in units of m/s2 .

3 Homework 3: 2D Motion
Question 1: Vector Addition (20 Points)

⃗
(a) Express the vector R

⃗ B,
in terms of A, ⃗ C,
⃗ D,
⃗ the edges of the parallelogram.

(b) Express the vector P⃗ in terms of A,

⃗ B,
⃗ C,
⃗ D,
⃗ the edges of the parallelo-
gram.

Question 2: Magnitude of a Vector (10 Points)

(a) Vector B⃗ has x, y, and z components of 6.2, 9.2, and 8.9 units, respec-
⃗
tively. Calculate the magnitude of B.

⃗ B,
Question 3: Vectors (10 Points) Vectors A, ⃗ C,
⃗ D,
⃗ and E
⃗ are shown in

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the figure. For convenience, the tails of each vector are arbitrarily located at
(0,0).

⃗ = +A
(a) Draw the vector R ⃗−B
⃗ −C
⃗ −D
⃗ + E.
⃗

Question 4: Perpendicular Displacements (10 Points) Two airplanes

leave an airport at the same time. The velocity of the first airplane is 680 m/h
at a heading of 65.4◦ . The velocity of the second is 620 m/h at a heading of 178◦ .

(a) How far apart are they after 3.5 h?

Answer in units of m.

Question 5: Two Snowballs (20 Points) One strategy in a snowball fight

is to throw a snowball at a high angle over level ground. While your opponent
is watching this first snowball, you throw a second snowball at a low angle and
time it to arrive at the same time as the first.

(a) Assume both snowballs are thrown with the same initial speed 16.6 m/s.
The first snowball is thrown at an angle of 72◦ above the horizontal. At what
angle should you throw the second snowball to make it hit the same point as
the first? Note the starting and ending heights are the same. The acceleration
of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(b) How many seconds after the first snowball should you throw the second
so that they arrive on target at the same time?
Answer in units of s.

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Question 6: Emergency Rations (30 Points) An Alaskan rescue plane
traveling 41 m/s drops a package of emergency rations from a height of 117 m
to a stranded party of explorers. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) Where does the package strike the ground relative to the point directly
below where it was released?
Answer in units of m.

(b) What is the horizontal component of the velocity just before it hits?
Answer in units of m/s.

(c) What is the vertical component of the velocity just before it hits? (Choose
upward as the positive vertical direction)
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 7: Place Kick (10 Points) To win the game, a place kicker must
kick a football from a point 23 m (25.1528 yd) from the goal, and the ball
must clear the crossbar, which is 3.05 m high. When kicked, the ball leaves the
ground with a speed of 17 m/s at an angle of 55.4◦ from the horizontal. The
acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) By how much vertical distance does the ball clear the crossbar?
Answer in units of m.

Question 8: Projectile Cat (10 Points) A cat chases a mouse across a

0.67 m high table. The mouse steps out of the way, and the cat slides off the
table and strikes the floor 1.7 m from the edge of the table. The acceleration of
gravity is 9.81 m/s2 .

(a) What was the cat’s speed when it slid off the table?
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 9: Battleship Trajectories (10 Points) Given: The battleship

and enemy ships A and B lie along a straight line. Neglect air friction.
A battleship simultaneously fires two shells with the same initial velocity at
these two enemy ships.

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(a) If the shells follow the parabolic trajectories shown in the figure, which ship
gets hit first?

Question 10: Wind and a Jet (10 Points) A jet airliner moving initially
at 689 mph (with respect to the ground) to the east moves into a region where
the wind is blowing at 424 mph in a direction 59◦ north of east.

(a) What is the new speed of the aircraft with respect to the ground?
Answer in units of mph.

Question 11: Cheetah and Gazelle (20 Points) A cheetah can run at
a maximum speed 105 km/h and a gazelle can run at a maximum speed of 71.8
km/h.

(a) If both animals are running at full speed, with the gazelle 72.6 m ahead,
how long before the cheetah catches its prey?

(b) The cheetah can maintain its maximum speed for only 7.5 s.
What is the minimum distance the gazelle must be ahead of the cheetah to
have a chance of escape? (After 7.5 s the speed of cheetah is less than that of
the gazelle.)
Answer in units of m.

Question 12: Serway (10 Points) Cliff divers at Acapulco jump into the
sea from a cliff 31.6 m high. At the level of the sea, a rock sticks out a horizon-
tal distance of 7.72 m. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) With what minimum horizontal velocity must the cliff divers leave the top
of the cliff if they are to miss the rock?
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 13: Holt (10 Points) Salmon often jump waterfalls to reach their
breeding grounds.

(a) Starting downstream, 2.7 m away from a waterfall 0.639 m in height, at

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what minimum speed must a salmon jumping at an angle of 33.9◦ leave the
water to continue upstream? The acceleration due to gravity is 9.81 m/s2 .
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 14: Projected from a building (10 Points) A ball is thrown

horizontally from the top of a building 120 m high. The ball strikes the ground
69 m horizontally from the point of release.

(a) What is the speed of the ball just before it strikes the ground?
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 15: Ski Jump (30 Points) A ski jumper travels down a slope
and leaves the ski track moving in the horizontal direction with a speed of 22
m/s as in the figure. The landing incline below her falls off with a slope of θ =
32◦ . The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) Calculate the distance d she travels along the incline before landing.
Answer in units of m.

(b) Determine how long the ski jumper is airborne.

Answer in units of s.

(c) What is the magnitude of the relative angle ϕ with which the ski jumper
hits the slope?
Answer in units of ◦ .

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4 Homework 4: Newton’s Laws
Question 1: Conceptual Forces (20 Points) A book is at rest on an incline
as shown below. A hand, in contact with the top of the book, produces a
constant force Fhand vertically downward.

(a) Draw a correct free body diagram with the correct directions for each force.

(b) For the normal force exerted on the book by the wedge in the diagram, which
force(s) complete(s) the force pair for Newton’s third law (action-reaction)?

Question 2: Free Body Diagram of Balloon (20 Points) A balloon is

waiting to take off. As seen in the figure below, the balloon’s basket sits on a
platform which rests on the ground. The balloon is pulling up on the basket,
but not hard enough to lift it off the platform.

(a) What is the free-body diagram for the platform?

(b) What is the free-body diagram for the basket?

Question 3: Gravitational Force Component (10 Points) You place a

box weighing 200.4 N on an inclined plane that makes a 37.7◦ angle with the
horizontal.

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(a) Compute the component of the gravitational force acting down the inclined
plane.
Answer in units of N.

Question 4: Hewitt (10 Points)

(a) If an object is not accelerating, how many forces act on it?

Question 5: Holt (20 Points) A gust of wind blows an apple from a tree.
As the apple falls, the force of gravity on the apple is 9.40 N downward, and
the force of the wind on the apple is 1.06 N to the right.

(a) What is the magnitude of the net external force on the apple?
Answer in units of N.

(b) What is the direction of the net external force on the apple (measured
from the downward vertical, so that the angle to the right of downward is posi-
tive)?
Answer in units of ◦ .

Question 6: Force and Motion (20 Points) Consider the collision between
a car and a light truck whose weights are equal (M = m).

(a) If they are moving at the same speed when they collide, compare the size
(or magnitude) of the forces between the car and the truck. Friction is so small
that it can be ignored.

(b) Compare the forces if the light truck is standing still when the car hits
it.

Question 7: Forces (10 Points) Consider a horse pulling a buggy. Is the

following statement true?

The weight of the horse and normal force exerted by the ground on the horse
constitute an interaction pair that are always equal and opposite according to
Newton’s third law.

Question 8: Reaction Force (10 Points) A book rests on the shelf of a

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bookcase.

(a) What is the reaction force to the force of gravity acting on the book?

Question 9: Falling Apple (10 Points) When you drop a 0.44 kg apple,
Earth exerts a force on it that accelerates it at 9.8 m/s2 toward the earth’s
surface. According to Newton’s third law, the apple must exert an equal but
opposite force on Earth.

(a) If the mass of the earth 5.98 × 1024 kg, what is the magnitude of the
earth’s acceleration toward the apple?Question 10: Force between Two
Boxes (10 Points) Consider the following system, where F = 130 N, m = 7
kg, and M = 9 kg

(a) What is the magnitude of the force with which one block acts on the other?

Question 11: Atwood Machine (20 Points) A light, inextensible cord

passes over a light, frictionless pulley with a radius of 15 cm. It has a(n) 14 kg
mass on the left and a(n) 7.4 kg mass on the right, both hanging freely. Initially
their center of masses are a vertical distance 3.5 m apart. The acceleration of
gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) At what rate are the two masses accelerating when they pass each other?
Answer in units of m/s2 .

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(b) What is the tension in the cord when they pass each other?
Answer in units of N.

Question 12: Elevator Acceleration (20 Points) An elevator accelerates

upward at 1.2 m/s2 . The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) What is the upward force exerted by the floor of the elevator on a(n) 89
kg passenger?
Answer in units of N.

(b) If the same elevator accelerates downwards with an acceleration of 1.2 m/s2 ,
what is the upward force exerted by the elevator floor on the passenger?
Answer in units of N.

Question 13: Hitting the Brakes (30 Points) You are driving at the speed
of 27 m/s (60.4102 mph) when suddenly the car in front of you (previously
traveling at the same speed) brakes and begins to slow down with the largest
deceleration possible without skidding. Considering an average human reaction,
you press your brakes 0.564 s later. You also brake and decelerate as rapidly as
possible without skidding. Assume that the coefficient of static friction is 0.862
between both cars’ wheels and the road. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) Calculate the acceleration of the car in front of you when it brakes.
Answer in units of m/s2 .

(b) Calculate the braking distance for the car in front of you.
Answer in units of m.

(c) Find the minimum safe distance at which you can follow the car in front of
you and avoid hitting it (in the case of emergency braking described here).
Answer in units of m.

Question 14: Block on an Incline (30 Points) A block is at rest on the

incline shown in the figure. The coefficients of static and kinetic friction are µs
= 0.58 and µk = 0.49, respectively. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

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(a) What is the frictional force acting on the 37 kg mass?
Answer in units of N.

(b) What is the largest angle which the incline can have so that the mass does
not slide down the incline?
Answer in units of ◦ .

(c) What is the acceleration of the block down the incline if the angle of the
incline is 37◦ .
Answer in units of m/s2 .

5 Homework 5: Energy
Question 1: Concept (10 Points) This question is typical on some driver’s
license exams: A car moving at 50 km/h skids 14 m with locked brakes.

(a) How far will the car skid with locked brakes at 100 km/h? Assume that
energy loss is due only to sliding friction.
Answer in units of m.

Question 2: Kinetic Energy System (10 Points) Two identical round

blue balls are moving directly toward one another at the same speed v.

(a) What is the total kinetic energy of the system of the two objects?

Question 3: Energy of a Bike (10 Points) Shawn and his bike have a
total mass of 47.6 kg. Shawn rides his bike 2.1 km in 14.2 min at a constant
velocity. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) What is Shawn’s kinetic energy?

Answer in units of J.

Question 4: Conceptual (30 Points) The current theory of the structure

of the Earth, called plate tectonics, tells us that the continents are in constant
motion. Assume that the North American continent can be represented by a
slab of rock 4950 km on a side and 38 km deep and that the rock has an average
mass density of 2860 kg/m3 . The continent is moving at the rate of about 4.8
cm/year.

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(a) What is the mass of the continent?
Answer in units of kg.

(b) What is the kinetic energy of the continent?

Answer in units of J.

(c) A jogger (of mass 73 kg) has the same kinetic energy as that of the continent.
What would his speed be?
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 5: Work Done by a Force (20 Points) A force F⃗ = Fx î + Fy ĵ

⃗ = sx î + sy ĵ where Fx =
acts on a particle that undergoes a displacement of S
10 N, Fy = −4 N, sx = 1 m, and sy = 1 m.

(a) Find the work done by the force on the particle.

Answer in units of J.

(b) Find the angle between F⃗ and ⃗s.

Answer in units of ◦ .Question 6: Object Lowered (10 Points) An ob-
ject with mass M is attached to the end of a string and is raised vertically at a
g
constant acceleration of 10 .

(a) If it has been raised a distance l from rest, how much work has been done
by the tension in the string?

Question 7: Work on a Crate (20 Points) A crate is lifted vertically

1.5 m and then held at rest. The crate has weight 100 N (i.e., it is supported
by an upward force of 100 N).

(a) How much work was done in lifting the crate from the ground to its fi-
nal position?

(b) Now suppose the crate is lifted so rapidly that air resistance was signifi-
cant during the raising. How much work was done by the lifting force as the
box was raised 1.5 m?

Question 8: Dragging a Block (20 Points) An 18 kg block is dragged

over a rough, horizontal surface by a constant force of 152 N acting at an angle
of 32.7◦ above the horizontal. The block is displaced 25.4 m, and the coefficient
of kinetic friction is 0.249.

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(a) Find the work done by the 152 N force. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8
m/s2 .
Answer in units of J.

(b) Find the magnitude of the work done by the force of friction.
Answer in units of J.

Question 9: Work Done by Friction (10 Points) A block of mass m

is pushed a horizontal distance D from position A to position B, along a hori-
zontal plane with friction coefficient µ. Then the mass is pushed from B to A.

(a) If the horizontal force pushing the mass from A to B is P⃗ , and the force
pushing the mass from B to A is −P⃗ , what is the total work done by friction?

Question 10: 1998 AP Physics B (10 Points) A rock of mass m is thrown

horizontally off a building from a height h. The speed of the rock as it leaves
the thrower’s hand at the edge of the building is v0 , as shown.

(a) What is the kinetic energy of the rock just before it hits the ground?

Question 11: Crate on an Incline (20 Points) A crate is pulled by a

force (parallel to the incline) up a rough incline. The crate has an initial speed
shown in the figure below. The crate is pulled a distance of 9.26 m on the incline
by a 150 N force. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

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(a) What is the change in kinetic energy of the crate?
Answer in units of J.

(b) What is the speed of the crate after it is pulled the 9.26 m?
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 12: Five Ramps (10 Points) Five ramps lead from the ground to
the second floor of a workshop, as sketched below. All five ramps have the same
height; ramps B, C, D and E have the same length; ramp A is longer than the
other four. You need to push a heavy cart up to the second floor and you may
choose any one of the five ramps.

(a) Assuming no frictional forces on the cart, which ramp would require you to
do the least work?

Question 13: Inclined Plane Conservation of Energy (10 Points) A

block is released from rest, at a height h, and allowed to slide down an inclined
plane. There is friction on the plane. At the bottom of the plane, there is a
spring that the block will compress. After compressing the spring, the block
will slide up the plane to some maximum height, hA , after which it will again

21
slide back down.

(a) How much work is done on the block between its release at height h and its
ascent to its next maximum height?

Question 14: Elevator Work Energy (10 Points) An elevator of mass

m is initially at rest on the first floor of a building. It moves upward, and
passes the second and third floors with a constant velocity, and finally stops at
the fourth floor. The distance between adjacent floors is h.

(a) What is the net work done on the elevator during the entire trip, from the
first floor to the fourth floor?Question 15: Stretching a Spring (20 Points)
The force required to stretch a Hooke’s-law spring varies from 0 N to 51.6 N
as we stretch the spring by moving one end 5.88 cm from its unstressed position.

(a) Find the force constant of the spring.

Answer in units of N/m.

(b) Find the work done in stretching the spring.

Answer in units of J.

Question 16: Cheerleader Lift (10 Points) A cheerleader lifts his 63 kg

partner straight up off the ground a distance of 0.36 m before releasing her.
Assume the partner’s velocity is zero at the beginning and the end of the lift.
The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) If he does this 14 times, how much work has he done?

Answer in units of J.

Question 17: Holt (30 Points) A 4.0 kg block is pushed 2.0 m at a constant
velocity up a vertical wall by a constant force applied at an angle of 29.0◦ with
the horizontal, as shown in the figure. The acceleration of gravity is 9.81 m/s2 .

If the coefficient of kinetic friction between the block and the wall is 0.30, find

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(a) the work done by the force on the block.
Answer in units of J.

(b) the work done by gravity on the block.

Answer in units of J.

(c) the magnitude of the normal force between the block and the wall.
Answer in units of N.

Question 18: Driving up Pike’s Peak (10 Points) The engine of a 2000
kg Mercedes going up Pike’s Peak delivers energy to its drive wheel at the rate
100 kW.

(a) Neglecting air resistance, what is the largest speed the car can sustain on the
steep Pike’s Peak mountain highway, where the road is 30◦ to the horizontal?
The acceleration due to gravity is 10 m/s2 .

6 Homework 6: Momentum
Question 1: Momentum Comparison (10 Points) A bowling ball of mass
9 kg moves in a straight line at 3.26 m/s.

(a) How fast must a Ping-Pong ball of mass 2.254 g move in a straight line
so that the two balls have the same momentum?
Answer in m/s.

Question 2: Rebounding Ball (10 Points) A 537 g ball strikes a wall

at 14.8 m/s and rebounds at 11.3 m/s. The ball is in contact with the wall for
0.039 s.

(a) What is the magnitude of the average force acting on the ball during the
collision?
Answer in units of N.

Question 3: Force on a Cart (10 Points) A constant force is exerted

for a short time interval on a cart that is initially at rest on an air track. This
force gives the cart a certain final speed. Suppose we repeat the experiment but,
instead of starting from rest, the cart is already moving with constant speed in
the direction of the force at the moment we begin to apply the force.

(a) After we exert the same constant force for the same short time interval,
what is the increase in the cart’s speed?

23
Question 4: Bullet Striking a Block (20 Points) A bullet of mass M1
is fired towards a block of mass m2 initially at rest at the edge of a frictionless
table of height h as in the figure. The initial speed of the bullet is vi . Con-
sider two cases, a completely inelastic one and an elastic one, where the bullet
bounces off the block.

tAB
(a) What is the ratio of the flight time; i.e., tA′ B ′ ?

(b) Denote the speeds of block at point A and A′ (the same point for differ-
ent two cases) to be vA and vA ′ respectively. What is the ratio of the speeds
vA
vA ′ ?

Question 5: Collision of Pucks (10 Points) Two pucks of equal mass

collide. One puck (puck A) is stationary before the collision. After the collision
the puck that was initially stationary moves along in the same direction in which
the puck that hit it (puck B) was initially moving.

(a) What statement would be correct if the total energy of the system is con-
served during the collision (elastic collision)?

Question 6: 1998 AP Physics C (10 Points) An object having an ini-

tial momentum that may be represented by the vector below strikes an object
that is initially at rest.

24
(a) What would a set of vectors look like that represents the momenta of the
two objects after the collision?

Question 7: Tipler (10 Points) A woman of mass 58 kg jumps off the

bow of a 47 kg canoe that is intially at rest.

(a) If her velocity is 3.5 m/s to the right, what is the velocity of the canoe
after she jumps? Answer in units of m/sî. Answer in units of m/sî.

Question 8: Inertial Mass (10 Points) You are given two carts, A and B.
They look identical, and you are told that they are made of the same material.
You place A at rest on an air track and give B a constant velocity directed to the
right so that it collides elastically with A. After the collision, both carts move
to the right, the velocity of B being smaller than what it was before the collision.

(a) What can you conclude?

Question 9: Car and Truck (10 Points) A compact car and a large truck
collide head on and stick together.

(a) Which undergoes the larger change in the magnitude of momentum?

Question 10: Holt (10 Points) A grocery shopper tosses a(n) 8.7 kg bag
of rice into a stationary 19.8 kg grocery cart. The bag hits the cart with a
horizontal speed of 5.4 m/s toward the front of the cart.

(a) What is the final speed of the cart and bag?

Answer in units of m/s.

Question 11: 1993 AP Physics C (40 Points) A massless spring with

force constant 503 N/m is fastened at its left end to a vertical wall, as shown
below. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

Initially, the 6 kg block and 3 kg block rest on a horizontal surface with the 6
kg block in contact with the spring (but not compressing it) and with the 3 kg
block in contact with the 6 kg block. The 6 kg block is then moved to the left,
compressing the spring a distance of 0.6 m, and held in place while the 3 kg
block remains at rest as shown below.

25
(a) Determine the elastic energy U stored in the compressed spring.
Answer in units of J.

(b) The 6 kg block is then released and accelerates to the right, toward the
3 kg block. The surface is rough and the coefficient of friction between each
block and the surface is 0.5 . The two blocks collide, stick together, and move
to the right. Remember that the spring is not attached to the 6 kg block.
Find the speed of the 6 kg block just before it collides with the 3 kg block.
Answer in units of m/s.

(c) Find the final speed of both blocks (stuck together) just after they col-
lide.
Answer in units of m/s.

(d) Find the horizontal distance the blocks move before coming to rest.
Answer in units of m.

Question 12: Neutron Nucleus Collision (20 Points) A neutron in a

reactor makes an elastic headon collision with the nucleus of an atom initially
at rest. Assume: The mass of the atomic nucleus is about 13.7 the mass of the
neutron.

(a) What fraction of the neutron’s kinetic energy is transferred to the atomic
nucleus?

(b) If the initial kinetic energy of the neutron is 1.93 × 10−13 J, find its fi-
nal kinetic energy.
Answer in units of J.

Question 13: Exhaust Gases from a Jet (20 Points) A jet aircraft is
traveling at 290 m/s in horizontal flight. The engine takes in air at a rate of
39.3 kg/s and burns fuel at a rate of 1.37 kg/s. The exhaust gases are ejected
at 441 m/s relative to the aircraft.

(a) Find the thrust of the jet engine.

Answer in units of N.

(b) Find the delivered power.

Answer in units of W.

26
Question 14: Return to the Shuttle (10 Points) A(n) 58.4 kg astronaut
becomes separated from the shuttle, while on a space walk. She finds herself 64.2
m away from the shuttle and moving with zero speed relative to the shuttle. She
has a(n) 0.924 kg camera in her hand and decides to get back to the shuttle by
throwing the camera at a speed of 12 m/s in the direction away from the shuttle.

(a) How long will it take for her to reach the shuttle? Answer in minutes.

Question 15: Tipler (10 Points) A rocket burns fuel at a rate of 217 kg/s
and exhausts the gas at a relative speed of 4 km/s.

(a) Find the thrust of the rocket.

Answers in units of MN.

7 Homework 7: Rotation
Question 1: Rotation of Tires (10 Points) A car accelerates uniformly
from rest and reaches a speed of 11.7 m/s in 3.7 s. The diameter of a tire is
71.2 cm.

(a) Find the number of revolutions the tire makes during this motion, assuming
no slipping.
Answer in units of rev.

Question 2: Holt (10 Points) A figure skater begins spinning counterclock-

wise at an angular speed of 4.2 π rad/s. During a 4.4 s interval, she slowly pulls
her arms inward and finally spins at 8.4 π rad/s

(a) What is her average angular acceleration during this time interval?
Answer in units of rad/s2 .

Question 3: Holt (10 Points) Earth orbits the sun once every 365.25 days.

Find the average angular speed of Earth about the sun.

Answer in units of rad/s.

Question 4: Spinning Disk (20 Points) A disk with a radius of 0.1 m

is spinning about its center with a constant angular speed of 10 rad/sec.

(a) What are the speed and magnitude of the acceleration of a bug clinging
to the rim of the disk?

(b) Let the turntable spin faster and faster, with constant angular accelera-

27
tion α
⃗ Sketch the direction of the acceleration vector α
⃗ of the bug.

Question 5: Rotating Paper Disks (10 Points) The speed of a moving

bullet can be determined by allowing the bullet to pass through two rotating
paper disks mounted a distance 82 cm apart on the same axle. From the angular
displacement 28.4◦ of the two bullet holes in the disks and the rotational speed
867 rev/min of the disks, we can determine the speed of the bullet.

(a) What is the speed of the bullet?

Answer in units of m/s.

Question 6: Holt (10 Points) A potter’s wheel moves from rest to an angular
speed of 0.20 rev/s in 29.2 s.

(a) Assuming constant angular acceleration, what is its angular acceleration

in rad/s2 ?
Answer in units of rad/s2 .

Question 7: Tipler (10 Points) The tape in a videotape cassette has a

total length 241 m and can play for 2.3 h. As the tape starts to play, the full
reel has an outer radius of 47 mm and an inner radius of 10 mm. At some point
during the play, both reels will have the same angular speed.

(a) What is this common angular speed?

Answer in units of rad/s.

Question 8: Rotating Tire (10 Points) The driver of a car traveling at

46.5 m/s applies the brakes and undergoes a constant deceleration of 2.8 m/s2 .

(a) How many revolutions does each tire make before the car comes to a stop,
assuming that the car does not skid and that the tires have radii of 0.17 m?
Answer in units of rev.

Question 9: Coin on a Turntable (10 Points) A coin is placed 32 cm

from the center of a horizontal turntable, initially at rest. The turntable then

28
begins to rotate. When the speed of the coin is 130 cm/s (rotating at a con-
stant rate), the coin just begins to slip. The acceleration of gravity is 980 cm/s2 .

(a) What is the coefficient of static friction between the coin and the turntable?

Question 10: Amusement Park Ride (20 Points) An amusement park

ride consists of a rotating circular platform 7.66 m in diameter from which 10
kg seats are suspended at the end of 3.71 m massless chains. When the system
rotates, the chains make an angle of 33.1◦ with the vertical. The acceleration
of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) What is the speed of each seat?

Answer in units of m/s.

(b) If a child of mass 57.2 kg sits in a seat, what is the tension in the chain (for
the same angle)?
Answer in units of N.

Question 11: Weightless in a Plane (10 Points) An aerobatic airplane

pilot experiences weightlessness as she passes over the top of a loop-the-loop
maneuver. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

(a) If her speed is 310 m/s at this time, find the radius of the loop.
Answer in units of km.

Question 12: Acceleration in a Circular Track (10 Points) To test the

performance of its tires, a car travels along a perfectly flat (no banking) circular
track of radius 75.7 m. The car increases its speed at uniform rate of

d|v| 2
at ≡ = 4.74 m/s
dt
until the tires start to skid.

29
(a) If the tires start to skid when the car reaches a speed of 16.9 m/s, what
is the coefficient of static friction between the tires and the road? The acceler-
ation of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

Question 13: Car on a Banked Curve (10 Points) A highway curves

to the left with radius of curvature of 49 m and is banked at 30◦ so that cars
can take this curve at higher speeds. Consider a car of mass 1546 kg whose tires
have a static friction coefficient 0.77 against the pavement.

(a) How fast can the car take this curve without skidding to the outside of the
curve? The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .
Answer in units of m/s.

Question 14: Serway (20 Points) Objects with masses of 150 kg and 795
kg are separated by 0.343 m. A 46.1 kg mass is placed midway between them.

(a) Find the magnitude of the net gravitational force exerted by the two larger
masses on the 46.1 kg mass. The value of the universal gravitational constant
is 6.672 × 10−11 N · m2 /kg2 .
Answer in units of N.

30
(b) Leaving the distance between the 150 kg and the 795 kg masses fixed, at
what distance from the 795 kg mass (other than infinitely remote ones) does
the 46.1 kg mass experience a net force of zero?
Answer in units of m.

Question 15: Conceptual (10 Points) You weigh 760 N.

(a) What would you weigh if the Earth were eight times as massive as it is
and its radius were five times its present value?
Answer in units of N.

Question 16: Apollo Astronauts (20 Points) On the way to the moon, the
Apollo astronauts reach a point where the Moon’s gravitational pull is stronger
than that of Earth’s.

(a) Find the distance of this point from the center of the Earth. The masses of
the Earth and the Moon are 5.98 × 1024 kg and 7.36 × 1022 kg, respectively,
and the distance from the Earth to the Moon is 3.84 × 108 m.
Answer in units of m.

(b) What would the acceleration of the astronaut be due to the Earth’s gravity
at this point if the moon was not there? The value of the universal gravitational
constant is 6.672 × 10−11 N · m2 /kg2 .
Answer in units of m/s2 .

8 Homework 8: Torque
Question 1: Holt (20 Points) The arm of a crane at a construction site is
18.0 m long, and it makes an angle of 12.8◦ with the horizontal. Assume that
the maximum load the crane can handle is limited by the amount of torque the
load produces around the base of the arm.

(a) What maximum torque can the crane withstand if the maximum load the
crane can handle is 841 N?
Answer in units of N · m

(b) What is the maximum load for this crane at an angle of 28.7◦ with the
horizontal?
Answer in units of N.

Question 2: Serway (10 Points)

(a) If the torque required to loosen a nut that is holding a flat tire in place

31
on a car has a magnitude of 35 N · m, what minimum force must be exerted by
the mechanic at the end of a 29 cm-long wrench to loosen the nut?
Answer in units of N.

Question 3: Serway (20 Points) The figure shows a claw hammer as it

pulls a nail out of a horizontal board.

(a) If a force of magnitude 62.5 N is exerted horizontally as shown, find the force
exerted by the hammer claws on the nail. (Assume that the force the hammer
exerts on the nail is parallel to the nail).
Answer in units of N.

(b) Find the force exerted by the surface on the point of contact with the
hammer head. Assume that the force the hammer exerts on the nail is parallel
to the nail.
Answer in units of N.

Question 4: Ladder (20 Points) A ladder rests against a vertical wall.

There is no friction between the wall and the ladder. The coefficient of static
friction between the ladder and the ground is µ = 0.636.

32
Consider the following expressions:

A1: f = Fw
A2: f = Fw sin θ

B1 = N = W
2
B2 = N = W

C1: lFw sin θ = 2Fw cos θ

C2: lFw sin θ = lW cos θ
C3: lFw sin θ = 12 lW cos θ,
where
f : force of friction between the ladder and the ground,
Fw : normal force on the ladder due to the wall,
θ: angle between the ladder and the ground,
N : normal force on the ladder due to the ground,
W : weight of the ladder, and
l: length of the ladder.

(a) Identify the set of equations which is correct.

(b) Determine the smallest angle θ for which the ladder remains stationary.
Answer in units of ◦ .

Question 5: Ladder (10 Points) A 21.3 kg person climbs up a uniform

ladder with negligible mass. The upper end of the ladder rests on a frictionless
wall. The bottom of the ladder rests on a floor with a rough surface where the

33
coefficient of static friction is 0.28 . The angle between the horizontal and the
ladder is θ. The person wants to climb up the ladder a distance of 2.2 m along
the ladder from the ladder’s foot.

(a) What is the minimum angle θm in (between the horizontal and the ladder)
so that the person can reach a distance of 2.2 m without having the ladder slip?
The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

Question 6: Tipler (20 Points) A square plate is produced by welding

together four smaller square plates, each of side a. The weight of each of the
four plates is shown in the figure

(a) Find the x-coordinate of the center of gravity (as a multiple of a).
Answer in units of a.

(b) Find the y-coordinate of the center of gravity (as a multiple of a).

34
 Answer in units of a.

Question 7: Bricks on the Brink (10 Points) A uniform brick of length

15 m is placed over the edge of a horizontal surface with a maximum overhang
of 7.5 m attained without tipping.

Now two identical uniform bricks of length 15 m are stacked over the edge of a
horizontal surface.

(a) What maximum overhang is possible for the two bricks (without tipping)?
Answer in units of m.

Question 8: Balancing Rock (10 Points) A 9 kg rock is suspended by

a massless string from one end of a 6 m measuring stick.

(a) What is the weight of the measuring stick if it is balanced by a support force
at the 1 m mark? The acceleration of gravity is 9.81 m/s2 .
Answer in units of N.

Question 9: Complex Atwood Machine (10 Points) An Atwood machine

is constructed using two wheels (with the masses concentrated at the rims). The
left wheel has a mass of 2.1 kg and radius 21.69 cm. The right wheel has a mass
of 2.6 kg and radius 28.73 cm. The hanging mass on the left is 1.67 kg and on
the right 1.09 kg.

35
(a) What is the acceleration of the hanging mass on the left? Use down as the
positive direction. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .
Answer in units of m/s2 .

Question 10: Serway (10 Points) A horizontal 628 N merry-go-round of

radius 1.76 m is started from rest by a constant horizontal force of 61.3 N ap-
plied tangentially to the merry-go-round.

(a) Find the kinetic energy of the merry-goround after 2.87 s. The accelera-
tion of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 . Assume the merry-go-round is a solid cylinder.
Answer in units of J.

Question 11: Holt (10 Points) A solid sphere rolls along a horizontal, smooth
surface at a constant linear speed without slipping.

(a) What is the ratio between the rotational kinetic energy about the center
of the sphere and the sphere’s total kinetic energy?

Question 12: Holt (10 Points) A regulation basketball has a 31 cm di-

ameter and may be approximated as a thin spherical shell.

(a) How long will it take a basketball starting from rest to roll without slip-
ping 2.4 m down an incline that makes an angle of 11.6◦ with the horizontal?
The acceleration of gravity is 9.81 m/s2 .
Answer in units of s.

Question 13: Dishonest Shopkeeper (10 Points) Two pans of a balance

are 51.9 cm apart. The fulcrum of the balance has been shifted 1.32 cm away
from the center by a dishonest shopkeeper.

(a) By what percentage is the true weight of the goods being marked up by
the shopkeeper? Assume the balance has negligible mass.
Answer in units of %.

Question 14: Baseball Energies (10 Points) The center of mass of a

pitched baseball of radius 3.02 cm moves at 31.8 m/s. The ball spins about

36
an axis through its center of mass with an angular speed of 168 rad/s. Treat
the baseball as if it is a solid sphere rotating about its center (I = 52 M R2 ).

(a) Calculate the ratio of the rotational energy to the translational kinetic en-
ergy.

Question 15: Figure Skater Spin (20 Points) A figure skater on ice spins
on one foot. She pulls in her arms and her rotational speed increases.

(a) Why does her rotational speed increase?

(b) What also happens when she pulls her arms in?

Question 16: Mimic a Spinning Skater (20 Points) A student sits on

a rotating stool holding two 4 kg objects. When his arms are extended hori-
zontally, the objects are 0.9 m from the axis of rotation, and he rotates with
angular speed of 0.63 rad/sec. The moment of inertia of the student plus the
stool is 8 kg m2 and is assumed to be constant. The student then pulls the
objects horizontally to a radius 0.27 m from the rotation axis.

(a) Calculate the final angular speed of the student.

Answer in units of rad/s.

(b) Calculate the change in kinetic energy of the system.

Answer in units of J.

Question 17: Serway (20 Points) A merry-go-round rotates at the rate

of 0.19 rev/s with an 91 kg man standing at a point 3 m from the axis of rota-
tion.

(a) What is the new angular speed when the man walks to a point 1 m from the
center? Consider the merry-go-round is a solid 18 kg cylinder of radius of 3 m.
Answer in units of rad/s.

37
(b) What is the change in kinetic energy due to this movement?
Answer in units of J.

Question 18: Man in a Boat (10 Points) A 97.8 kg man sits on the
stern of a 3.4 m long boat. The prow of the boat touches the pier, but the
boat isn’t tied. The man notices his mistake, stands up and walks to the boat’s
prow, but by the time he reaches the prow, it’s moved 1.62 m away from the pier.

(a) Assuming no water resistance to the boat’s motion, calculate the boat’s
mass (not counting the man).
Answer in units of kg.

9 Homework 9: Solids and Liquids

Question 1: Serway (10 Points) Bone has a Young’s modulus of about 1.8
× 1010 Pa. Under compression, it can withstand a stress of about 1.51 × 108
Pa before breaking.

(a) Assume that a femur (thigh bone) is 0.59 m long, and calculate the amount
of compression this bone can withstand before breaking.
Answer in units of mm.

Question 2: Conceptual (20 Points)

(a) How much pressure is applied to the ground by a 59 kg man who is standing
on square stilts that measure 0.04 m on each edge?
Answer in units of Pa.

(b) What is this pressure in pounds per square inch?

Answer in units of lb/in2 .

Question 3: Hailstones on the Window (20 Points) In a 53 s inter-

val, 976 hailstones strike a glass window of area 0.561 m2 at an angle 62◦ to the
window surface. Each hailstone has a mass of 3 g and speed of 13.2 m/s.

(a) If the collisions are elastic, find the average force on the window.
Answer in units of N.

(b) Find the pressure on the window.

Answer in units of N/m2 .

Question 4: Nuclear Explosion Pressure (10 Points) If a 1-megaton

nuclear weapon is exploded at ground level, the peak overpressure (that is, the

38
pressure increase above normal atmospheric pressure) will be 0.2 atm at a dis-
tance of 6 km. Atmospheric pressure is 1.013 × 105 Pa.

(a) What force due to such an explosion will be exerted on the side of a house
with dimensions 3.94 m × 19.1 m?
Answer in units of N.

Question 5: Mercury and Water (20 Points) A heavy liquid with a den-
sity 13 g/cm3 is poured into a U-tube as shown in the lefthand figure below.
The left-hand arm of the tube has a cross-sectional area of 8.23 cm2 , and the
right-hand arm has a cross-sectional area of 4.66 cm2 . A quantity of 108 g of a
light liquid with a density 0.83 g/cm3 is then poured into the right-hand arm
as shown in the right-hand figure below.

(a) Determine the height L of the light liquid in the column in the right arm of
the U-tube, as shown in the second figure above.
Answer in units of cm.

(b) If the density of the heavy liquid is 13 g/cm3 , by what height h1 does
the heavy liquid rise in the left arm?
Answer in units of cm.

Question 6: Tipler (10 Points)

(a) Find the density of seawater at a depth where the pressure is 440 atm

39
if the density at the surface is 1100 kg/m3 . Seawater has a bulk modulus of 2.3
× 109 N/m2 . Bulk modulus is defined to be
ρ0 ∆P
B≡
∆ρ

Answer in units of kg/m3 .

Question 7: Holt (10 Points)

(a) Calculate the depth in the ocean at which the pressure is three times atmo-
spheric pressure. Atmospheric pressure is 1.013 × 105 Pa. The acceleration of
gravity is 9.81 m/s2 and the density of sea water is 1025 kg/m3 .
Answer in units of m.

Question 8: Steel Floating in Mercury (10 Points) Consider a steel

ball floating on the surface of mercury in a half-filled container.

(a) What happens when the rest of the container is filled with water? Mercury
is denser than steel, and both are denser than water. Mercury and water do not
mix.

Question 9: Holt (10 Points) Oil having a density of 930 kg/m3 floats
on water. A rectangular block of wood 4.05 cm high and with a density of 969
kg/m3 floats partly in the oil and partly in the water. The oil completely covers
the block.

(a) How far below the interface between the two liquids is the bottom of the
block?
Answer in units of m.

Question 10: Serway (20 Points) An object weighing 304 N in air is im-
mersed in water after being tied to a string connected to a balance. The scale
now reads 272 N. Immersed in oil, the object appears to weigh 281 N.

(a) Find the density of the object.

Answer in units of kg/m3 .

(b) Find the density of the oil.

Answer in units of kg/m3 .

40
Question 11: Submerged Wood Block (10 Points) A light spring of con-
stant 180 N/m rests vertically on the bottom of a large beaker of water. A 4.07
kg block of wood of density 615 kg/m3 is connected to the top of the spring and
the block-spring system is allowed to come to static equilibrium.

(a) What is the elongation ∆L of the spring? The acceleration of gravity is 9.8
m/s2 .
Answer in units of cm.

Question 12: Weighing an Alloy under Water (20 Points) A beaker

of mass 1.1 kg containing 2.8 kg of water rests on a scale. A 3.2 kg block of
a metallic alloy of density 4700 kg/m3 is suspended from a spring scale and is
submerged in the water of density 1000 kg/m3 as shown in the figure.

(a) What does the hanging scale read? The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .
Answer in units of N.

(b) What does the lower scale read?

41
 Answer in units of N.

Question 13: Fireman and Hose (10 Points) A fireman standing on a

4.7 m high ladder operates a water hose with a round nozzle of diameter 1.41
inch. The lower end of the hose (4.7 m below the nozzle) is connected to the
pump outlet of diameter 2.43 inch. The gauge pressure of the water at the pump
is
(gauge) abs
Ppump = Ppump − Patm
= 23 PSI = 158.579 kPa.

(a) Calculate the speed of the water jet emerging from the nozzle. Assume that
water is an incompressible liquid of density 1000 kg/m3 and negligible viscosity.
The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .

Question 14: Serway (10 Points) A jet of water squirts out horizontally
from a hole on the side of the tank as shown below.

(a) If the hole has a diameter of 3.89 mm , what is the height of the water above
the hole in the tank?
Answer in units of cm.

Question 15: Oil Flowing in a Pipe (10 Points) A horizontal pipe of

diameter 1.04 m has a smooth constriction to a section of diameter 0.624 m.
The density of oil flowing in the pipe is 821 kg/m3 .

42
(a) If the pressure in the pipe is 8980 N/m2 and in the constricted section
is 6735 N/m2 , what is the rate at which oil is flowing?
Answer in units of m3 /s.

Question 16: Constricted Pipe (10 Points) Water flows at speed of 4.2
m/s through a horizontal pipe of diameter 3.4 cm. Suppose a thick pipe is con-
nected to a thinner pipe. In the first pipe the gauge pressure P1 of the water is
1.6 atm . The diameter of the smaller section is 2.2 cm.

(a) Please find the gauge pressure of the water flowing through the smaller pipe
Atmospheric pressure is 1.013 × 105 Pa. The density of water is 1000 kg/m3 .
The viscosity of water is negligible.
Answer in units of atm.

10 Homework 10: Oscillations and Waves

Question 1: Spring Constant (10 Points) A common technique used to
measure the force constant k of a spring is the following: Hang the spring
vertically, then allow a mass m to stretch it a distance d from the equilibrium
position under the action of the “load” mg.

43
(a) Find the spring constant k if the spring is stretched a distance 57 m by a
suspended weight of 25 N. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 .
Answer in units of N/m.

Question 2: Serway (10 Points) A load of 46 N attached to a spring hanging

vertically stretches the spring 5.4 cm. The spring is now placed horizontally on
a table and stretched 15 cm.

(a) What force is required to stretch it by this amount?

Answer in units of N.

Question 3: Maximum Displacement in Simple Harmonic Motion (10

Points)

(a) When is the displacement maximum in simple harmonic motion?

Question 4: 1993 AP Physics B (10 Points)

(a) When an object oscillating in simple harmonic motion is at its maximum

displacement from the equilibrium position, what is true of the values of its
speed and the magnitude of the restoring force?

Question 5: Simple Harmonic Oscillator (10 Points) A particle exe-

cutes simple harmonic motion with an amplitude of 1.87 cm.

(a) At what positive displacement from the midpoint of its motion does its
speed equal one half of its maximum speed?
Answer in units of cm.

44
Question 6: Conceptual Wavelength Question (10 Points) Two waves
have the same speed. The first has twice the frequency of the second.

(a) Compare the wavelengths of the two waves.

Question 7: Visible Light (10 Points) The wavelength of light visible to

the human eye is on the order of 7 × 10−7 m.

(a) Find the frequency of the lightwave if the speed of light in air is 2.99792 ×
108 m/s.
Answer in units of s−1 .

Question 8: 1993 AP Physics B (10 Points) The figure shows two wave
pulses that are approaching each other.

(a) Which of the following best shows the shape of the resultant pulse when the
centers of the pulses, points P and Q, coincide?

Question 9: Reflection (10 Points) You are given f1 (x), a transverse wave
that moves on a string that ends and is FIXED in place at x = 5 m. As the
problem begins, the wave is moving to the right at v = 1 m/s.

Consider the image of the wave reflected about the FIXED point x = 5 m in
the following diagram. The image will be moving to the left at v ′ = −1 m/s (in
the opposite direction from the real wave).

45
(a) What is the shape of the wave on the string after 3 s?

Question 10: Conceptual (10 Points) A dog can hear sounds in the range
from 15 to 50,000 Hz.

(a) What wavelength corresponds to the upper cut-off point of the sounds at
20◦ C where the sound speed is 344 m/s?
Answer in units of m.

Question 11: Serway (10 Points) A sound wave has a frequency of 658
Hz in air and a wavelength of 0.51 m.

(a) What is the temperature of the air?

Relate the speed of sound in air to temperature in units of Kelvin, but an-
swer in units of Celsius.
Assume the velocity of sound at 0◦ C is 329 m/s.
Answer in units degC.

Question 12: Intensity of a Rock Group (10 Points) A rock group is

playing in a bar. Sound emerging from the door spreads uniformly in all direc-
tions. The intensity level of the music is 77.5 dB at a distance of 5.49 m from
the door.

(a) At what distance is the music just barely audible to a person with a normal
threshold of hearing? Disregard absorption.
Answer in units of m.

Question 13: Sound Intensity Shorter (10 Points) The sound level pro-
duced by one singer is 62.2 dB.

(a) What would be the sound level produced by a chorus of 35 such singers

46
(all singing at the same intensity at approximately the same distance as the
original singer)?
Answer in units of dB.

Question 14: Serway (10 Points) A phone cord is 2.33 m long. The cord
has a mass of 0.17 kg. A transverse wave pulse is produced by plucking one end
of the taut cord. The pulse makes four trips down and back along the cord in
0.865 s.

(a) What is the tension in the cord?

Answer in units of N.

Question 15: Serway (20 Points) A cello string vibrates in its fundamental
mode with a frequency of 112 1/s. The vibrating segment is 49.7 cm long and
has a mass of 1.38 g.

(a) Find the tension in the string.

Answer in units of N.

(b)

Find the frequency of the string when it vibrates in nine segments.

Answer in units of 1/s.

Question 16: Standing Waves (10 Points) A string is stretched to a length

of 361 cm and both ends are fixed.

(a) If the density of the string is 0.039 g/cm, and its tension is 923 N, what is
the fundamental frequency?
Answer in units of Hz.

Question 17: Serway (10 Points) The human ear canal is about 2.7 cm
long and can be regarded as a tube open at one end and closed at the eardrum.

(a) What is the fundamental frequency around which we would expect hear-
ing to be most sensitive? Assume the speed of sound in air to be 339 m/s.
Answer in units of kHz.

47
Question 18: Standing Waves (30 Points) An open vertical tube has water
in it. A tuning fork vibrates over its mouth. As the water level is lowered in
the tube, the eighth resonance is heard when the water level is 127.5 cm below
the top of the tube.

(a) What is the wavelength of the sound wave? The speed of sound in air is 343
m/s.
Answer in units of cm.

(b) What is the frequency of the sound wave; i.e., the tuning fork?
Answer in units of s− 1.

(c) The water continues to leak out the bottom of the tube. When the tube
next resonates with the tuning fork, what is the length of the air column?
Answer in units of cm.

48
11 Homework 11: Ideal Gas and Kinetic Theory
Question 1: Numerically Equal (10 Points) Two thermometers are cali-
brated, one in degrees Celsius and the other in degrees Fahrenheit.

(a) At what temperature are their readings numerically the same?

Answer in units of K.

Question 2: Temperature Difference (10 Points)

(a) What is a temperature difference of 5 K is equal to?

textbfQuestion 3: Railroad Rail Expansion (20 Points) A steel railroad track

has a length of 34 m when the temperature is 2◦ C.

(a) What is the increase in the length of the rail on a hot day when the tem-
perature is 40◦ C? The linear expansion coefficient of steel is 11 × 10−6 (◦ C)−1 .

(b) Suppose the ends of the rail are rigidly clamped at 2◦ C to prevent ex-
pansion. Calculate the thermal stress in the rail if its temperature is raised to
40◦ C. Young’s modulus for steel is 20 × 1010 N/m2 .
Answer in units of N/m2 .

Question 4: Mercury Expansion (10 Points) A mercury thermometer

is constructed as shown. The capillary tube has a diameter of 0.0061 cm, and
the bulb has a diameter of 0.25 cm.

(a) Neglecting the expansion of the glass, find the change in height of the mer-
cury column for a temperature change of 27◦ C. The volume expansion coefficient
for mercury is 0.000182 (◦ C)−1 .
Answer in units of cm.

49
Question 5: Serway (10 Points) Two concrete spans of a 310 m long bridge
are placed end to end so that no room is allowed for expansion.

(a) If the temperature increases by 20◦ C, what is the height to which the spans
rise when they buckle? Assume the thermal coefficient of expansion is 1.2 ×
10−5 (◦ C)−1 .
Answer in units of m.

Question 6: Tire Gauge Pressure (10 Points) An automobile tire having

a temperature of −0.81◦ C (a cold tire on a cold day) is filled to a gauge pressure
of 26 lb/in2 .

(a) What would be the gauge pressure in the tire when its temperature rises to
25◦ C? For simplicity, assume that the volume of the tire remains constant, that
the air does not leak out and that the atmospheric pressure remains constant
at 14.7 lb/in2 .
Answer in units of lb/in2 .

Question 7: Concept (10 Points) Consider two equal-sized rooms connected

by an open door. One room is maintained at a higher temperature than the
other.

(a) Which room contains more air molecules?

Question 8: 1998 AP Physics B (10 Points) The absolute temperature of

a sample of monatomic ideal gas is doubled at constant volume.

(a) What effect, if any, does this have on the pressure and density of the sample
of gas?

Question 9: Volume of an Ideal Gas (10 Points)

(a) What is the volume of 2.7 mol of an ideal gas at a pressure of 3 atm and a
temperature of 0◦ C? 1 liter = 0.001 m3 and 1 atm = 101300 Pascals.

Question 10: 1998 AP Physics B (10 Points)

(a) What would be an incorrect assumption of the classical model of an ideal gas?

Question 11: 1998 AP Physics B (10 Points) A sample of an ideal gas

50
is in a tank of constant volume. The sample absorbs heat energy so that its
temperature changes from 384 K to 768 K.

(a) If v1 is the average speed of the gas molecules before the absorption of
heat and v2 their average speed after the absorption of heat, what is the ratio
v2
v1 ?

Question 12: Internal Energy of Helium (10 Points) The universal gas
constant is 8.31451 J/K · mol.

(a) Calculate the change in internal energy of 2 mol of helium gas when its
temperature is increased by 9 K.
Answer in units of J.

Question 13: Tipler (10 Points)

(a) Find the total translational kinetic energy of 0.5 L of oxygen gas held at a
temperature of 6◦ C and a pressure of 1.5 atm.
Answer in units of J.

Question 14: Serway (10 Points) Boltzmann’s constant is 1.38066×10−23

J/K, and the universal gas constant is 8.31451 J/K · mol.

(a) If 2.4 mol of a gas is confined to a 6.3 L vessel at a pressure of 11.5 atm,
what is the average kinetic energy of a gas molecule?
Answer in units of J.

Question 15: Conceptual (10 Points) A glass of water sits on a table.

The temperature of the water is the same as that of the glass.

(a) Which would move faster, the silicon dioxide (SiO2 ) molecules that make
up the glass or the water (H2 O) molecules?

Question 16: Conceptual (10 Points) You use energy to heat your home.

(a) What ultimately happens to the energy that you pay for in your heating bill?

Question 17: Holt (10 Points) A 0.60 kg spike is hammered into a rail-
road tie. The initial speed of the spike is equal to 2.8 m/s.

(a) If the tie and spike together absorb 61.7 percent of the spike’s initial ki-
netic energy as internal energy, calculate the increase in internal energy of the
tie and spike.
Answer in units of J.

Question 18: Molecule Escaping the Earth (20 Points) If it has enough

51
kinetic energy, a molecule at the surface of the Earth can escape the Earth’s
gravitation. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s2 , and the Boltzmanns’ con-
stant is 1.38066 × 10−23 J/K.

(a) Using energy conservation, determine the minimum kinetic energy needed
to escape in terms of the mass of the molecule m, the free-fall acceleration at
the surface g, and the radius of the Earth R.

(b) Calculate the temperature for which the minimum escape energy is 15 times
the average kinetic energy of an oxygen molecule.
Answer in units of K.

12 Homework 12: Heat, Phase Changes, and

Transfer
Question 1: Heat (10 Points) Which of the following would require the
greatest number of calories?

(1) Heating 100 g of water from 10◦ C to 50◦ C.

(2) Heating 1 g of water from 10◦ C to 80◦ C.
(3) Heating 1000 g of water from 10◦ C to 12◦ C.
(4) Heating 10 g of water from 10◦ C to 40◦ C.

Question 2: Serway (10 Points) A 62.2 kg weight-watcher wishes to climb

a mountain to work off the equivalent of a large piece of chocolate cake rated at
571 (food) Calories.

(a) How high must the person climb? The acceleration due to gravity is 9.8
m/s2 and 1 food Calorie is 103 calories.
Answer in units of km.

Question 3: Conceptual (10 Points) Consider the following statements.

(1) Heat flows from an object in liquid state to an object in solid state;
(2) Heat flows from an object at higher temperature to an object at lower tem-
perature;
(3) Heat flows from an object with higher thermal energy to one with lower
thermal energy.

(a) Which statements are true?

Question 4: Kinetic into Thermal Energy (10 Points) A 5 g lead bullet

moving at 289 m/s strikes a steel plate and stops.

52
(a) If all its kinetic energy is converted to thermal energy and none leaves the
bullet, what is its temperature change? Assume the specific heat of lead is 128
J/kg ·◦ C.
Answer in units of ◦ C.

Question 5: Equilibrium Temperature (10 Points) A 300 g glass ther-

mometer initially at 32◦ Cis put into 245 cm3 of hot water at 83◦ C.

(a) Find the final temperature of the thermometer, assuming no heat flows
to the surroundings. The specific heat of glass is 0.2 cal/g ·◦ C and of water 1
cal/g ·◦ C.

Question 6: Water to Ice (10 Points) A 44 g ice cube at -15◦ C is dropped

into a container of water at 0◦ C.

(a) How much water freezes onto the ice? The specific heat of ice is 0.5 cal/g
·◦ C and its heat of fusion of is 80 cal/g.
Answer in units of g.

Question 7: Hewitt (10 Points) Which statement is wrong?

(1) Different substances have different thermal properties due to differences

in the way energy is stored internally in the substances.
(2) When the same amount of heat produces different changes in temperature
in two substances of the same mass, we say that they have different specific heat
capacities.
(3) Each substance has its own characteristic specific heat capacity.
(4) emperature measures the average kinetic energy of random motion, but not
other kinds of energy.
(5) Adding the same amount of heat to two different objects will produce the
same increase in temperature.

Question 8: Cooling a Hot Ingot (10 Points) A 0.0582 kg ingot of metal

is heated to 232◦ C and then is dropped into a beaker containing 0.424 kg of
water initially at 18◦ C.

(a) If the final equilibrium state of the mixed system is 20.4◦ C, find the specific
heat of the metal. The specific heat of water is 4186 J/kg ·◦ C.
Answer in units of J/kg·◦ C.

Question 9: Serway (10 Points) Three liquids are at temperatures of 2◦ C,

23◦ C, and 29◦ C, respectively. Equal masses of the first two liquids are mixed,
and the equilibrium temperature is 14◦ C. Equal masses of the second and third
are then mixed, and the equilibrium temperature is 25.8◦ C.

53
(a) Find the equilibrium temperature when equal masses of the first and third
are mixed.
Answer in units of ◦ C.

Question 10: Freezing Water (10 Points) What happens when water
freezes?

Question 11: Holt (10 Points) A jar of tea is placed in sunlight until it
reaches an equilibrium temperature of 30.4◦ C . In an attempt to cool the liquid,
which has a mass of 166 g, 137 g of ice at 0.0◦ C is added.

(a) At the time at which the temperature of the tea is 27.8◦ C , find the mass
of the remaining ice in the jar. The specific heat of water is 4186 J/kg ·◦ C.
Assume the specific heat capacity of the tea to be that of pure liquid water.
Answer in units of g.

Question 12: Heat Flow in Brick Wall (10 Points) The brick wall (of
thermal conductivity 0.45 W/m ·◦ C) of a building has dimensions of 1.8 m by
12 m and is 18 cm thick.

(a) How much heat flows through the wall in a 9.2 h period when the aver-
age inside and outside temperatures are, respectively, 14◦ C and 6◦ C?
Answer in units of MJ.

Question 13: Nail in Ice (10 Points) An iron nail is driven into a block of
ice by a single blow of a hammer. The hammerhead has a mass of 0.8 kg and
an initial speed of 2.1 m/s. Nail and hammer are at rest after the blow.

(a) How much ice melts? Assume the temperature of both the ice and the
nail is 0◦ C before and after. The heat of fusion of ice is 80 cal/g.
Answer in units of g.

Question 14: Holt (10 Points)

(a) How much energy is required to change a 44 g ice cube from ice at -15◦ C to
steam at 116◦ C? The specific heat of ice is 2090 J/kg ·◦ C, the specific heat of
water is 4186 J/kg ·◦ C, the specific heat of stream is 2010 J/kg ·◦ C, the heat of
fusion is 3.33 × 105 J/kg, and the heat of vaporization is 2.26 × 106 J/kg.
Answer in units of J.

Question 15: Serway (10 Points) A 20 g block of ice is cooled to -62 ◦ C. It

is added to 524 g of water in an 80 g copper calorimeter at a temperature of 21◦ C.

(a) Find the final temperature. The specific heat of copper is 387 J/kg ·◦ C
and of ice is 2090 J/kg ·◦ C . The latent heat of fusion of water is 3.33 × 105
J/kg and its specific heat is 4186 J/kg ·◦ C.

54
 Answer in units of ◦ C.

Question 16: Cooling Tea (10 Points) One liter of water at 39◦ C is used
to make iced tea.

(a) How much ice at 0 ◦ C must be added to lower the temperature of the
tea to 18 ◦ C? The specific heat of water is 1 cal/g ·◦ C and latent heat of ice is
79.7 cal/g.
Answer in units of g.

Question 17: Heat and Temperature (40 Points) Consider a perfectly

insulated cup (no heat can leak in or out of the cup) containing a mixture of
50 grams of ice and 50 grams of water at 0 ◦ C. A small coffee cup heater inside
the cup allows heat to be transferred to the ice and water mixture. Heat is
transferred at a steady rate and the mixture is stirred continuously so that the
temperature is always uniform throughout the mixture.
For each question, draw the shape of the temperature-time graph that best
describes the temperature of the mixture during the time interval described.

(a) There is still some ice at the end of the time interval, but it has not yet
melted completely.

(b) There is some ice at the beginning of the time interval, but all of the ice
disappears before the end of the interval.

(c) The ice is completely melted before the time interval begins, but no boiling
occurs during the interval.

(d) The water is boiling during the entire time interval.

Question 18: Serway (10 Points) A box with a total surface area of 1.42
m2 and a wall thickness of 2.19 cm is made of an insulating material. A 14.6 W
electric heater inside the box maintains the inside temperature at 13.3◦ C above
the outside temperature.

(a) Find the thermal conductivity of the insulating material.

Answer in units of W/m·◦ C.

Question 19: Concept (10 Points) Why are icebergs often surrounded by
fog?

55
13 Homework 13: Thermodynamics and Engines
Question 1: Work and Heat (20 Points) An ideal gas at temperature T0
is slowly compressed at constant pressure of 2 atm from a volume of 10 liters to
a volume of 2 liters. Then the volume of the gas is held constant while heat is
added, raising the gas temperature back to T0 .

(a) Calculate the work done ON the gas.

1 atm = 1.0×105 Pascals and 1 liter = 0.001 m3 .

(b) Calculate the heat flow INTO the gas

Question 2: Serway (10 Points) A sample of helium behaves as an ideal gas

as it is heated at constant pressure from 278 K to 353 K.

(a) If 100 J of work is done by the gas during this process, what is the mass of
the helium sample? The universal gas constant is 8.31451 J/mol · K.
Answer in units of g.

Question 3: Isothermal Compression (30 Points) Two moles of helium

gas initially at 320 K and 0.45 atm are compressed isothermally to 1.81 atm.

(a) Find the final volume of the gas. Assume that helium behaves as an ideal
gas. The universal gas constant is 8.31451 J/K × mol.
Answer in units of m3 .

(b) Find the work done by the gas.

Answer in units of kJ.

(c) Find the thermal energy transferred.

Answer in units of kJ.

Question 4: Tipler (20 Points) An ideal gas, initially at a volume of 1.33333

L and pressure of 6 kPa, undergoes isothermal expansion until its volume is 8
L and its pressure is 1 kPa.

(a) Calculate the work done by the gas during this process.
Answer in units of J.

(b) Find the heat added to the gas during this process.
Answer in units of J.

Question 5: Serway (20 Points) A gas expands from I to F in the fig-

ure. The energy added to the gas by heat is 473 J when the gas goes from I to
F along the diagonal path.

56
(a) What is the change in internal energy of the gas?
Answer in units of J.

(b) How much energy must be added to the gas by heat for the indirect path
IAF to give the same change in internal energy?
Answer in units of J.

Question 6: Internal Energy Change (30 Points) 5.9 cm3 of water is

boiled at atmospheric pressure to become 4896.4 cm3 of steam, also at atmo-
spheric pressure.

(a) Calculate the work done by the gas during this process. The latent heat of
vaporization of water is 2.26 × 106 J/kg.
Answer in units of J.

(b) Find the amount of heat added to the water to accomplish this process.
Answer in units of J.

(c) Find the change in internal energy.

Answer in units of J.

Question 7: Tipler (10 Points) An engine using 1 mol of an ideal gas

initially at 19.1 L and 405 K performs a cycle consisting of four steps:

1) an isothermal expansion at 405 K from 19.1 L to 38.4 L;

2) cooling at constant volume to 246 K;

57
3) an isothermal compression to its original volume of 19.1 L; and
4) heating at constant volume to its original temperature of 405 K.

(a) Find its efficiency. Assume that the heat capacity is 21 J/K and the univer-
sal gas constant is 0.08206 L × atm/mol/K = 8.314 J/mol/K. Give your answer
in the form of a percentage.

Question 8: Serway (30 Points) An engine absorbs 2396 J from a hot

reservoir and expels 528 J to a cold reservoir in each cycle.

(a) What is the engine’s efficiency? Answer with an efficiency in decimal form.

(b) How much work is done in each cycle?

Answer in units of J.

(c) What is the mechanical power output of the engine if each cycle lasts for
0.195 s?
Answer in units of kW.

Question 9: Steam Engine Efficiency (10 Points) A steam engine (as-

sume a Carnot engine) has an efficiency of 75.1%.

(a) If the waste heat has a temperature of 78.9◦ C, what is the temperature
of the boiler?
Answer in units of ◦ C.

Question 10: Carnot Thermal Energy (20 Points) A Carnot engine has
a power output of 136 kW. The engine operates between two reservoirs at 26◦ C
and 339◦ C.

(a) How much thermal energy is absorbed each hour?

Answer in units of J.

(b) How much thermal energy is lost per hour?

Answer in units of J.

Question 11: Refrigerator Compressor (10 Points) The interior of a

refrigerator has a surface area of 5.3 m2 . It is insulated by a 2 cm thick material
that has a thermal conductivity of 0.0117 J/m · s ·◦ C. The ratio of the heat
extracted from the interior to the work done by the motor is 7.3 % of the theo-
retical maximum. The temperature of the room is 27◦ C, and the temperature
inside the refrigerator is 6◦ C.

(a) Determine the power required to run the compressor.

Answer in units of W.

58
59