High School

A car with a mass of 1,128 kg accelerates from 20 m/s to 25 m/s over a time period of 4.7 seconds. Determine the force experienced by the car.

Answer :

To calculate the force experienced by a 1,128-kg car that accelerates from 20 m/s to 25 m/s over 4.7 seconds, the car's acceleration is first determined using the formula a = (vf - vi) / t, which comes out to approximately 1.064 m/s². Applying Newton's second law (F = ma), the force is found to be approximately 1,200 Newtons.

To calculate the force experienced by the car, we can use Newton's second law of motion, which states that the force acting on an object is equal to the mass of the object multiplied by its acceleration (F = ma). First, we need to find the acceleration of the car.

The acceleration can be determined using the formula for acceleration (a = (vf - vi) / t), where vf is the final velocity, vi is the initial velocity, and t is the time taken to change from vi to vf.

For our problem:

  • Initial velocity (vi) = 20 m/s
  • Final velocity (vf) = 25 m/s
  • Time (t) = 4.7 s
  • Mass (m) = 1,128 kg

Calculating acceleration:

a = (25 m/s - 20 m/s) / 4.7 s = 5 m/s / 4.7 s ≈ 1.064 m/s²

Now, we use Newton's second law to find the force:

F = ma

F = 1,128 kg * 1.064 m/s² ≈ 1,200 N (rounded to the nearest hundredth)

Therefore, the force experienced by the car is approximately 1,200 Newtons.