Lecture Notes: Free-Body Diagrams

Newport AP PhysicsC. Appel

Intro
- Consider a dogsled being pulled (horizontally) across icy ground.
- What forces act of the sled?
- The weight, F
g
, of the sled
- The normal force, F
n
.
- The tension in the rope, F
T
.
- We can draw a diagram of these forces on the sled. This is called a free-body diagram.
- Suppose we wanted to find the acceleration of the sled in terms of F
T
, and the mass of the sled, m.
- The free-body diagram is 2-dimensional. This makes the problem complex. We can simplify it if we
consider the dimensions separately. For example, all the forces in the y direction and all the forces in the x
direction.
- Since the sled stays on the surface there is no acceleration in the y direction. Therefore, we only need to
worry about the x direction (since there is no friction).
- Indicate the positive direction.
- Write an expression for Newtons second law
- F
x
= F
T
= ma a = F
T
/ m
General Method
Draw a neat diagram.
Isolate the object (as a particle) of interest, and draw a free-body diagram showing each external force that acts
on the object. If there is more than one object of interest in the problem, draw a separate free-body diagram
for each.
Choose a convenient coordinate system for each object and apply Newtons second law, a m F =

, in
component force. If the direction of the acceleration is known, choose a coordinate axis to be parallel to it.
For objects sliding along a surface, choose one coordinate axis parallel to the surface and the other
perpendicular to it.
Solve for the unknowns in the resulting equations.
Check to see whether your results have the correct units and seem reasonable. Substituting extreme values into
your solution is a good way to check your work for errors.
Sample Problems
- A passenger of mass 72.2 kg is riding in an elevator while standing on a platform scale. What does the scale
read when the elevator is (scale reads apparent weight, which is also the normal force).
(a) descending with constant velocity and
(b) ascending with acceleration 3.20 m/s
2
?
- Answers:
(a) 708 N
(b) 939 N
- A picture weighing 8.0 N is supported by two wires with tension F
T1

and F
T2
, as shown. Find each tension.
1. Draw a free-body diagram for the picture.
2. Apply Newtons 1
st
or 2
nd
to the x and y components.
3. Solve the x component equation for F
T2
in terms of F
T1
.
4. Substitute and solve for F
T1
.
5. Use F
T1
to find F
T2
.

m
60 30
F
T1
F
T2
- Answer:
F
T1
= 4 N
F
T2
= 2.3 N
- A block of mass m = 15.0 kg is hung by 3 strings as shown. What are the
tensions in the three strings?
- Answers:
T
C
= 147 N
T
A
= 108 N
T
B
= 132 N
- A sled of mass m = 7.5 kg is pulled along a frictionless horizontal surface
by a cord. A constant force of F
P
= 21.0 N is applied to the cord.
Analyze the motion if
(a) the cord is horizontal
(b) the cord makes an angle of 15 with the horizontal.
- Answers:
(a) a = 2.80 m/s
2

(b) a = 2.70 m/s
2

- The figure shows a block of mass m
1
on a frictionless horizontal
surface. The block is pulled by a string of negligible mass which
is attached to a hanging block of mass m
2
. The string passes over
a pulley whose mass is negligible and whose axle rotates with
negligible friction. Find the tension in the string and the
acceleration of each block.
- Answer:
g
m m
m m
T
2 1
2 1
+
=
g
m m
m
a
2 1
2
+
=
- Consider two unequal masses connected by a string that passes over an ideal pulley
(whose mass is negligible and whose axle rotates with negligible friction). Let m
2
be
greater than m
1
. Find the tension in the string and the acceleration of the masses.
- Answer:
g
m m
m m
T
2 1
2 1
2
+
=
g
m m
m m
a
1 2
1 2
+

=
- Consider the system shown, where m
1
= 9.5 kg, m
2
= 2.6 kg and u = 34. The system
is released from rest. Describe the motion.
- Answer:
g
m m
m m
a
2 1
1 2
sin
+

=
u

( ) u sin 1
2 1
2 1
+
+
= g
m m
m m
T
a = -2.2 m/s
2

T = 31 N

m
45 30
A B
C

m
1
m
2

m
1
m
2

m
1
m
2