Grade 9 Force Notes

Forces
(Adapted from www.sasolinzalofoundation.org.za )

A force is a push or a pull on an object. The unit in which we measure force is a newton (N).

Forces can have the following effects:

• Forces can change the shape of an object. This is called deformation. The
deformation can be in the form of compression or extension (Tension)

• Forces can change the motion of an object. If an object is stationary, a force can cause the object to
start moving. Or, if an object is already moving, a force can cause an object to speed up or slow down.

• Forces can change the direction in which an object is moving.

Describing the motion of an object.

When an object is moving, we say it has a velocity. Velocity is the rate of change of the position of an object.

Velocity is the speed of an object and the direction in which it is moving. Speed describes only how fast an
object is moving, whereas velocity gives both.

An object can move at constant velocity. This means it travels at the same speed in the same direction. For
example a car travelling along the highway at 100 km/h in a straight line has a constant velocity. However,
what happens when the car moves faster or slows down?

We know that we can change the motion of an object by applying a force to make it speed up or slow down.
The velocity of the object is changing over time due to a force acting on it. This is called acceleration.

Acceleration is the rate of change of a body's velocity with time. In other words,

(it is a measure of how an object's speed changes every second.)

Equilibrium and Resultant forces

What we saw in the last activity is that whenever one object exerts a force on a second object, the second
object exerts a force back on the first object.
We say that forces act in pairs. Newton called the one force the action, and the other force the reaction.
If you exert a force on the wall, you experienced the wall exerting a force back on you. Forces act in pairs on
different objects. Since the wall doesn’t move, the two forces are equal in magnitude but opposite in
direction. (There is NO Resultant Force)

The effect of the different forces acting together depends on how big each force is and what direction each
force is acting in. When two or more forces act on an object, then the forces combine to make a net (overall)
force.

The resultant force is the single Force which has the same effect as all applied forces combined

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Grade 9 Force Notes

Representing Forces with a diagram.

The above situation can be represented using a Free Body Diagram as follows

In a Free Body Diagram we use a large dot to represent the object on which the force is acting and arrows to
represent the magnitude and direction of each force, we also include numerical values for each force.

We can then calculate the resultant Force by applying a number line addition system; e.g

-10 N + 6N = -4N The resultant Force thus has a magnitude of 4N to the left (negative direction on a
number line)

In this example, both Forces are in the same direction; we thus draw one force after the other both acting to
the right of the dot (body representing the go-kart)

Using the number line addition system. The resultant magnitude of the Force would be

+7N + 10N = +17N to the right (positive direction)

The magnitude of a Force can be measured using a Spring

Balance ( a device in which a gradated cylinder works against a
spring, thus giving a measurement of the amount of force
exerted.

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Grade 9 Force Notes

Types of Forces

There are two types of forces:

• Contact forces: objects are in contact with each other and exert forces on each other.

• Non-contact (field) forces: objects are not in contact with each other and exert forces on each other.

Friction (Contact Force)

What happens when you kick a ball across the grass? The ball moves quickly at first but then slows down
again. Something has caused the ball to slow and stop moving. If the motion of the ball has changed then a
force must have been exerted on it. The force which opposes motion is called friction.

Friction forces always act in the opposite direction to the motion of the object. Friction resists movement
when the object and surface are in contact. What does that mean? It means that if the ball is moving forward
then friction acts backwards on the ball.

The Normal Force is also a contact force – we will examine Normal Forces later)

Video: Feather and Coin in a vacuum (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AV-qyDnZx0A&t=3s)

Non Contact Forces (Field Forces)

A field is a region in space where an object (with certain properties) will experience a force. Field forces are
non-contact forces. Non-contact forces are forces which act over a distance. They do not have to be touching.

The most common examples of fields are:

• gravitational field

• magnetic field

• electric field

When we discussed contact forces, we spoke about pushes and pulls. However, with field forces, it is better to
talk about repulsion and attraction.

Gravitational forces

The force which causes things to fall down towards the center of the Earth and prevents us from falling off the
planet is the gravitational force. Gravitational forces exist between any two objects with mass and they are
forces of attraction (pull).

The gravitational force is a force that attracts objects with mass towards each other. Any object with mass
exerts a gravitational force on any other object with mass. The Earth exerts a gravitational pull on you, the
desks in your classroom and the chairs in your classroom, holding you on the surface and stopping you from
drifting off into space.

The name of the force exerted by gravity is weight

IMPORTANT Weight is a force and is therefore measured in Newtons.

When you stand on the ground, you exert a force on the ground (weight) but the ground exerts a reaction
force back on you. This reaction contact force prevents you from penetrating the ground. This is called the
normal force.

The normal force always acts perpendicularly to the surface that the object is resting on.

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Grade 9 Force Notes

If we thus re-consider the go kart example above, a more correct free body diagram would be…

Where F1 + F2 = the Applied Force (FA)

The Frictional Force (Ff) is in the opposite direction to the applied

force.

The Resultant Force (FR) is thus equal to the applied force minus the
frictional force.

Since the go kart has a mass, it’s weight is the force exerted on it by
gravity (straight down) and since the earth exerts a reaction force on
the go kart in the opposite direction, the Normal Force (N) is upwards. The weight and the normal force are
equal in magnitude but opposite in direction.

Calculating Weight

The mass of an object is the amount of matter in the object. It tells you how many particles you have. Do you
remember learning about atoms in Matter and Materials? So, for example, the mass of a wooden block tells us
how many atoms there are. Mass is measured in kilograms (kg) and is independent of where you measure it. A
wooden block with a mass of 10 kg on Earth also has a mass of 10 kg on the Moon.

However, an object's weight can change as it depends on the product of the mass of the object and also the
strength of the gravitational force acting on it. Weight is measured in newtons (N) as it is the gravitational
force of attraction exerted on an object by the Earth (or Moon or any other planet). Therefore, the weight of
an object will change when weighed in different places.

On Earth the gravitational force causes us all to accelerate towards the centre of the Earth. The acceleration is
called gravitational acceleration. (g)

On Earth it is 9,8 m/s2 (or m.s -2).

Objects are in free-fall when the only force acting on them is the gravitational force. (no friction)

Weight (w) is calculated by multiplying an object's mass (m) by the gravitational acceleration (g):

W=mxg

Weightlessness

The weight of a person is the force of gravitational attraction to the Earth that person experiences. Someone
in free-fall feels weightless but they have not lost their weight. They are still experiencing the Earth's
gravitational attraction. The only reason the astronauts float is because they are in free-fall and their moving
spacecraft is also in free-fall with them, falling at the same rate. Therefore, the astronauts appear to float
when compared with the spacecraft because they are both falling at the same rate.

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Grade 9 Force Notes

Worksheet

Using acceleration due to gravity on earth = 9,8m.s -2

1. Find the weight of a 60 kg astronaut on earth .

2. Find the weight of the same object on a planet where the gravitational attraction has been reduced to
1/10 of the earth’s pull. Show all working.
3. A backpack weighs 8.2 newtons and has a mass of 5 kg on the moon. What is the strength of gravity
on the moon?
4. A physical science text book has a mass of 2.2 kg
a. What is the weight on the Earth?
b. What is the weight on Mars (g = 3.7 m.s -2 )
c. If the textbook weights 19.6 newtons on Venus, what is the strength of gravity on Venus?
5. Of all the planets in our solar system, Jupiter has the greatest gravitational strength.
a. If a 0.5 kg pair of running shoes would weigh 11.55 newtons on Jupiter, what is the strength
of gravity there?
b. If he same pair of shoes weighs 0.3 newtons on Pluto, what is the strength of gravity on
Pluto?
c. What does the pair of shoes weigh on earth?

Newton's first law of motion

An object continues in a state of rest or uniform motion (motion with a constant velocity) unless it is acted
on by an unbalanced (net or resultant) force.

This property of an object, to continue in its current state of motion (or remain at rest) unless acted upon by a
net force, is called inertia.

Newton's second law of motion

If a resultant force acts on a body, it will cause the body to accelerate in the direction of the resultant force.
The acceleration of the body will be directly proportional to the resultant force and inversely proportional to
the mass of the body.

Represented mathematically Fres = m x a F = ma

Force is a vector quantity – it has a direction.

Newton’s third law of motion.

Whenever a force is applied by an object on another object, the second object applies and equal but
opposite force back on the first object.

Worked example:
A 10 kg box is placed on a table. A horizontal force of magnitude 32 N is
applied to the box. A frictional force of magnitude 7 N is present between
the surface and the box.

a) Draw a force diagram indicating all of the forces acting on the box.
b) Calculate the acceleration of the box.

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Grade 9 Force Notes

A) Free body diagram

Normal Force N↑ = w↓

F applied 32N
Friction 7N

Weight (mg)

B) Fr = 32 – 7 = 25N (to the left)

a = Fr / m
a = 25/10
a = 2,5 m.s – 2 to the left

Multiple Choice Practise

1. Inertia is that property of a particle whereby the particle:

A Needs a force to accelerate it

B Comes to rest when the force that has set it in motion is removed
C Has kinetic energy
D Is not able to move

2. In an isolated system, a resultant force acts on a body and produces an acceleration of a. If the mass of
the body is doubled, the acceleration will now be:
A Zero
B 0,5 a
C a
D 2a

3. If the mass and weight of an astronaut are measured on the earth and on the moon respectively, we
will find that the masses and weights are as follows:

mass on earth and on moon weight on earth and on moon

a different different
b same different
c same same
d different same

4. An electric toy train moves at constant velocity on rails. From this can be deduced that:
A The movement takes place under frictionless conditions
B There are no forces acting on the train
C All forces acting on the train are in equilibrium
D There is a resultant force acting on the train in the direction of the movement of the train

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Grade 9 Force Notes

5. Two forces of 30 N and 20 N respectively are acting on the 2 kg block as in the drawing.
The block is on a horizontal, frictionless surface. What is the magnitude of the acceleration of the
block?
A 15 m.s – 2
B 25 m.s – 2
C 10 m.s – 2 20N 2kg 30N
–2
D 5 m.s

6. Which one of the following situations best illustrates the idea of inertia?
A A person without a seat belt strikes the windscreen if the car stops suddenly.
B There is a force of attraction between any two masses in the universe
C Even though we throw an object upwards it will eventually fall down
D A hammer striking a nail will drive the nail into a piece of wood

7. A fisherman hangs the fish he catches from a scale which records the weight in newtons. The scale has
a mass of 1 kg and the fish a mass of 10 kg. What is the reading on the scale? (you may assume g = 10
m.s – 2)
A 10 N
B 90 N
C 100 N
D 110 N

8. An object is dropped from a helicopter which is ascending vertically at 7 m.s-1. What is the magnitude
and direction of the acceleration of the object at the moment it is released?
(you may assume g = 10 m.s – 2)
A 3 m.s-2 ; downward
B 10 m.s-2 ; upward
C 7 m.s-2 ; upward
D 10 m.s-2 ; downward

9. A resultant, horizontal force causes a 5 kg mass to accelerate at 8 m.s-2. When the same force is
applied to a 4 kg mass, what will its acceleration (in m.s-2) be?
A 4,0
B 5,0
C 8,0
D 10,0

Long Questions
1. A constant resultant force of magnitude 50 N accelerates a trolley of mass 12,5 kg on a long, level and
frictionless track.
A Show by calculation that the magnitude of the acceleration experienced by the trolley is 4,0
m.s -2. (4)
B At the acceleration in (a) above, how long (in seconds) will it take for the velocity of the
trolley to increase from 1 m.s-1 to 9 m.s-1? (4)

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Grade 9 Force Notes

C If the 50 N force is suddenly removed, describe the subsequent motion of the trolley. State
fully a physical law which supports your answer. (4)

2. A motor car slides off the road while trying to go round a bend on a wet slippery road.
A What property of the car makes it tend to go straight on when the driver tries to turn on a
wet slippery road? (2)
B State Newton’s First Law of Motion. (3)
C Give the mathematical equation which expresses Newton’s second Law of Motion.
(2)

WORK and ENERGY

Work is the product of the Applied Force(F) and the Distance(s) that the object moves in the direction of the
Force.
W = Fs
But, since F = ma
W= mas

The units for work are N.m OR kg.m2.s – 2

And, since work done is energy transferred, work can also be measured in Joules (J)

Energy

Energy is the ability to do work and occurs in different forms. These forms include:

1. Potential Energy
2. Kinetic Energy
3. Heat Energy
4. Electrical Energy
5. Chemical Energy
6. Nuclear Energy

We will discuss these six forms of energy in brief, but just be aware that this list is not complete. There are
others that could also be mentioned.

Potential Energy (Ep): The ability an object has due to either it’s position (stored gravitational potential
energy) or due to another form of stored energy. (Ep = mgh)
Kinetic Energy (Ek): The energy an object has due to its motion (velocity). ( Ek = ½ mv 2 )

The Law of conservation of Mechanical Energy

Perhaps one of the most important concepts in Physics is to be found in the Principle of the Conservation of
Energy.

This principle states that: Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, merely changed from one form to
another. Consider the pendulum example below.

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Grade 9 Force Notes

Maximum Potential Energy Zero Kinetic Energy

Zero Kinetic Energy Maximum Potential Energy

Increasing Kinetic Energy

Increasing Potential Energy
Decreasing Potential Energy
Decreasing Kinetic Energy
Zero Potential Energy
Maximum Kinetic Energy

The Pendulum illustrates the interchange of energy from Potential

to Kinetic and vice versa.

Power

Power is the rate at which work is done

Or
Power is the rate at which energy is transferred.

Power is thus measured in Joules per second ( J.s – 1 ) or Watts. (W)

Work Multiple Choice Practise

1. A metal sphere falls free from rest. Ignoring air friction, which row in the table below represents the
change (if any) in the acceleration and mechanical energy of the sphere as it falls?

acceleration mechanical energy

a increases remains constant

b remains constant decreases

c remains constant remains constant

d increases increases

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Grade 9 Force Notes

2. Two heavy metal spheres with different masses are dropped from a high tower. Air resistance can be
ignored. As the spheres approach the ground they will have the same …

a) Momentum
b) Potential energy
c) Kinetic energy
d) Velocity

3. A simple pendulum with mass m swings to and fro. At position B

the values of the potential energy and kinetic energy are as
follows:

Ep Ek

a maximum maximum

b maximum minimum A C

c minimum minimum

d minimum maximum B

4. A ball is dropped vertically from rest. Ignore air resistance. Which one of the following remains constant
while the ball is moving downwards?

a) Displacement
b) Kinetic energy
c) Velocity
d) Acceleration

5. A moving object possesses E joule of kinetic energy. If the velocity of the object doubles, its kinetic
energy, in joule, will be:

a) ½E
b) E
c) 2E
d) 4E

6. Observe the pendulum in the drawing. At the highest point A of its swing the
ball has 500 J potential energy in respect to the level of its lowest point.

At the lowest point B of its swing the ball has 500 J of kinetic energy. The
total mechanical energy of this system is ____J.

a) 0
b) 250
c) 500
d) 1000 A

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Grade 9 Force Notes

7. For a falling object, which one of the following will not increase?

a) Acceleration
b) Velocity
c) Kinetic energy
d) Potential energy

8. The kinetic energy of an object is E. Which factor will decrease the kinetic energy of the object the
most?

a) The half of the mass only

b) The doubling of the mass and the half of the velocity
c) The half of the mass and velocity
d) The doubling of the velocity and the half of the mass

9. The diagram shows a hydro-electric generation system. Which of the

following gives the correct order of the energy changes that occur?
Dam
Wall
a) Kinetic → electric → potential
b) Kinetic → potential → electric Water
c) Potential → electric → kinetic
generator
d) Potential → kinetic → electric

Dam Wall

10 The speed of a moving object is doubled. The kinetic energy of the object will now be:

a) Four times greater

b) Two times greater
c) Four times smaller
d) Two times smaller

11. An object of mass 0,2 kg is thrown vertically upwards. A its highest point its potential energy is 300 J.
When it is 15 m above the ground its potential energy is 30 J. The kinetic energy of the object when it is
15 m above the ground is:

a) 200 J
b) 230 J
c) 270 J
d) 300 J

12. The unit J.s-1 is a unit of:

a) Power
b) Potential difference
c) Energy
d) Work

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Grade 9 Force Notes

Long Questions

1. A coconut picker with a mass of 50 kg climbs up a 12 m high coco palm. After picking the coconuts, he
slides own the trunk at a constant speed of 3 m.s-1.
a) Calculate the amount of work that he does against gravity in order to climb to the top of the tree.
(4)
b) What is his gravitational potential energy at the top of the tree? (2)
c) Calculate his kinetic energy at the moment just before he reaches the ground. (4)
d) Explain this apparent loss of energy as he slides from the top to the bottom of the tree.
(4)

2. A toy truck of mass 0,4 kg rolls from rest from the edge of a slope 1,2 m above the lowest level and
proceeds through point B as shown.
a) Calculate the potential energy of the truck, relative
to point B, just before it is released from point A.
(3) A
b) Assuming no friction, what will the truck’s kinetic
energy be at point B? Briefly explain. (3) 1,2 m
c) Hence calculate the speed of the truck at point B.
(5)

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