Engineering Science A ENG3011

Kinetics

Newton’s Law of Motion

There are three physical laws of Newton's laws of motion. They cover the description of
forces acting on body and motion.

Newton’s First Law of Motion

Newton’s first law of motion states that an object will continue its state of rest or uniform
motion in a straight line, unless it is acted on by some external forces to change that state.

Newton’s Second Law of Motion

Newton’s second law of motion states that:
The acceleration of a body is directly
proportional to the applied force and inversely proportional to the mass of the body. The
result can be expressed as

F = ma,

Where F is the applied force in newtons (N), m is the mass in kilograms (kg), and a is the
acceleration (m/s² or ms-2).

Example 1
A single force of 10 N acts on a body of mass 1 kg. Calculate the acceleration of the body.

Solution
F
Given: a = m
10
=
1

= 10 m/s² or 10 ms-2

Example 2
Find the force required to move a 10 kg through a distance of 5 m from rest in 10 s.

Solution
Given s = ut + ½ at²
5 = 0 +½ x a x 10²
a = 0.1 m/s²

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Given F = ma
= 10 x 0.1
=1N

Newton’s Third Law of Motion

Newton’s first and second laws deal with the motion of an object under a resultant force.
The third law deals with the interaction of two objects with two forces acting on them.
Newton’s third law states that action-reaction forces are equal in size, opposite in direction
and act on different bodies.
When a boy steps from a boat, he pushers backwards on the boat and at the same time the
boat pushes him forwards.
By the Newton’s third law of motion, the case above shows if a body A exerts a force on
body B, then body B will exerts an equal but opposite force on body A.

For example of action-reaction forces, when force A pulls B close to A, at the same time,a
reaction force pulls A close to B.

For example of action-reaction forces, a rocket is propelled up as gas is ejected out.

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Work, Power and Energy

Work (W) is done when a force is applied to a body and the body moves in the direction of
the force. The amount of work done is measured by the product:

force x distance moved by point of application of force.

W = Fs

Example 3
A force of 10 N moves a body 10 m in the direction of the force. What is the work done?

Solution
Given: W = Fs
= 10N x 10 m
= 100 Nm = 100 J

If the forces is in Newtons (N) and the distance in metres (m), thus, the unit of work would
be newtowns-metres (Nm). A unit of work is equal to one newton-metre which is defined in
the SI system as the joule (J). The joule (J) is also the unit if energy and heat.

Unit of Work = J = Nm
It is convenient to use the following multiples:
kilojoule (kJ) = 103 J
megajoule (MJ) = 106 J

Example 4
There is a 10N force with 60 deg. to the direction of the movement. Find the work done by
force on the body which is moved 10 m.

By W = F x s =10 N x cos 60 x 10m = 50Nm

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Example 5
A 80N force is used to pull a body on a rough surface with friction of 12N. It is moved 7m.
(a) Find work done on the body by the force.
(b) Find energy loss due to friction.
(c) Find net work done on the body.

Solution
(a) 80N x 7m = 560J
(b) 12N x 7m = 84J
(c) 560J 84J = 476J

Power
Power is the rate of doing work. In SI system the basic unit is the watt (W) which is defined
as a rate of working equal to one joule per second.
work Energy
Power = time
= time

Unit of Power = 1 watt = 1 J/s = 1 Nm/s

Example 6
A trailer is pulled by a vehicle with a horizontal force of 5000 N, it moves a distance of 10 m
in 5s along a horizontal road. Find the power exerted by the vehicle on the trailer.

Solution
W = Fs = 5000 x 10 = 50000J
P = W/t = 50000/5 = 10000W

Example 7
A 20N force is pulling a body with constant speed 1.5m/s. Find power required.

Solution
P = work/time = force x distance/time
= force x velocity
= 20N x 1.5m/s
= 30W

Type of energy

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Work = force x distance = F x s

Potential Energy = mgh
Kinetic Energy = 1/2 mv2
Unit of Energy = J

Potential Energy
To lift an object of mass m to height (h), work has to be done. Since the force applied
vertically upwards is given by

F = mg

The work done is equal to

W = Fs = mgh

This is called the potential energy (P.E = mgh)

Units of PE = kg (m/s²) m = J

Example 8
Find the potential energy of a 5 kg mass at a height of 100 m above the ground.

Solution
PE = mgh
= 5 kg x 10ms-2 x 100m
= 5000 J

Kinetic Energy
When an object of mass m rests on a horizontal frictionless surface with a constant force (F)
applied to it, it will accelerate in the direction of the force.

Work has been done, transferring energy to the object.

From Newton’s second law, F = ma and the distance s travelled by the object is given by

s = ut + ½ at²
Since u = 0, s = ½ at²
Thus, final velocity v is given by v = u + at = at
The work done is given by W = Fs

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Therefore, W = ma x ½ at²
= ½ m(at)² = ½ mv²

The change of kinetic energy of an object possesses due to the change of its velocity.
KE = ½ mv²
Unit of KE = kg (m/s) ² = J

Example 9
Find the kinetic energy of a 10 kg object travelling at 5 m/s.

Solution
By KE = ½ mv²
= ½ x10 x 25
= 125 J

Principle of Conservation Energy

The law of conservation of energy states that energy can be transformed from one form into
another, but it cannot be created or destroyed. When an object falls from height (h) to the
ground, it loses potential energy (PE) equal to mgh but gains kinetic energy (KE) as speed
gains.

In the relationship between PE and KE during a falling of object, PE = mgh and KE = 0

Hence, PE = 0,
KE = ½mv² = mgh

Example 10
A 10 kg mass is thrown to a height of 10 m.

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(a) What is its kinetic energy at this height?

(b) What is its potential energy at this height?
(c) What is its velocity as it hits the ground again?

Solution
(a) KE = 0 since it is at rest when at the maximum height

(b) PE = mgh
= 10 x 10 x 10
= 1000 J

(c) KE gained = PE lost

½mv² = 1000 J
½ x 10 x v² = 1000 J
v² = 200
v = 14.14 m/s

For the application, electricity can be generated by making use of the conversion of potential
energy to kinetic energy. In a hydroelectric power station, the turbines are moved by water
falling from great height. The power can be calculated by the mass flow rate of falling water
and the height (h).

Example 11
Calculate the power generated by a hydroelectric power station constructed at a height 100m
and a mass flow rate of 1000kg/s?

Solution
PE = mgh = 1000x 10 x 100 = 1000000 J
Power P = W/ t =1000000 J/s = 1000 kW

Momentum
In physics, the quantity of “motion” is called “linear momentum” or “momentum”.

Linear Momentum
The momentum of an object is the product of its mass and velocity.
p = mv
Unit of momentum = kg m/s = Ns

Example 12
A hammer of mass 2kg and moving at velocity (v) produces the same effect as a hammer of

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mass 1 kg and velocity 2v.

Solution
Given p = mv
= 2kg x v
= 1kg x 2v

Example 13
Calculate the momentum of a 0.5 kg object moving at 10 m/s.

Solution
p = mv
= 0.5 x 10
= 5 kgm/s

Momentum and Newton’s Second Law of Motion

Newton’s second law of motion can be written as

v-u
F = ma , a =
t
m(v - u) mv - mu
F= =
t t

change of momentum
Force =
time

Change of momentum = mv - mu
= Ft
= Impulse

Example 14
A force acting on a 10kg object changes the speed of the object from 5m/s to 12 m/s without
changing its direction. Find value of change of momentum.

Solution
Change of momentum = mv –mu
= 10 x 12 - 10 x 5 = 70 kg m/s

Impulse
The product “Ft = mv – mu” is called the impulse of the motion. It measures how hard and

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how long a force is exerted.

Ft = mv – mu
Impulse = change of momentum

The SI units for impulse is the newton second (Ns).

Example 15
A 20N force applied on a mass of 0.6kg for 0.3s. The mass is accelerated from rest. Find the
velocity.

Solution
Given Ft = mv -mu
20 N x0.3s = 0.6kg (v - 0)
v = 10m/s

Force
The rate of change of momentum is equal to the external force.
mv - mu
Force =
t

Example 16
A 360kg car is decelerating from 80km/hr to 50km/hr within 6s. Find the braking force.

Solution
mv - mu
By Force =
t

 50km 80km 
360kg   
 3600s 3600s 
Force =
6s
= - 0.5kN

Principle of conservation of momentum

If there is no external impulse applied to a body, or a system of bodies, then the total linear
momentum of the body or system remains constant in both magnitude and direction

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providing that there is no external force and the total mass remains unchanged. The equation
of the conservation of momentum is shown below:

momentum before collision = mometum after collision

m1 u1 + m2 u2 = m1 v1 + m2 v2

Example17
A trolley of mass 1000 kg moving at 1 m/s collides with a stationary car of mass 500kg. They
stick together after the collision. Find the common velocity.

Solution
Total momentum before collision = total momentum after collision
m1u1 + m2u2 = (m1 + m2)v
1000 x 1 + 500 x 0 = (1000 + 500) x v
v = 1000/1500
v = 0.67 m/s

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