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BIRMINGHAM METROPOLITAN COLLEGE

Introduction to Physics

(Code 10329)

Solving problems in basic Physics | Matthew Uren

(All diagrams drawn using Microsoft Visio)

Course Tutor: Dave Sadler

Birmingham Metropolitan College
BMC Number: 131437827

Matt Uren

1. A ball of mass 0.5kg is tied to a thread and rotated at a constant angular velocity of
10rads/s in a circle of radius 1m. Calculate:
a) The centripetal acceleration
b) The tension in the thread

a) Centripetal acceleration is worked out by using the formula:

V^2

In this formula, V stands for linear velocity and the R stands for the radius of the circle.
Linear Velocity is solved by using the equation WR = V, where W stands for angular velocity and R is the
radius.
Angular Velocity = 10 rads/s
Radius = 1m

WR = V 10 * 1 = 10 m/s

So our linear velocity is 10 m/s. By putting this back into the formula for centripetal acceleration we get.

10^2
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= 100 m/s2

b) The tension in the thread is also known as the centripetal force, this is worked out by using
The formula:

^2

where m is the mass, v is the linear velocity and r is the radius.

Mass = 0.5kg
Linear Velocity = 10 m/s
Radius = 1m

0.510^2
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Matt Uren

50
1

= 50 Newtons

2. A) A tank of mass 4800kg is climbing an incline of 12 degrees to the horizontal.

Determine the increase in potential energy of the tank as it moves 40m up the
incline.
B) The potential energy of a mass is increased by 20kJ when it is lifted vertically
through a height of 25m. It is then released and allowed to fall freely. Neglecting
air resistance, find its kinetic energy and its velocity after it has fallen 10m.

a) To work out the potential energy we need to find the height, we do this by using
trigonometry.

Using the sin rule, we take the sin value of

12 and multiply it by 40 to get the opposite
length to angle a.

40m

Sin(12) * 40 = 8.316467633 simplified to 8m.

12

Potential Energy = mass * gravity * height. So

4800 * 9.81 * 8 = 376704 Joules or 376.7kJ

b) Potential energy lost is kinetic energy gained; using this rule we divide 20,000 Joules by 25
which gives us 800, then multiply 800 by 15 to get the remaining potential energy which is
12000 Joules.
So the kinetic energy gained is 8000 Joules or 8 kJ.

To get the velocity, first we must transpose the formula for potential energy to get the mass, and then
transpose the formula for kinetic energy to get the velocity.
20000
9.8125

= 81.54 = simplify to 82.

8000
0.582

= v2 = 195

Take the square root of 195 to find the velocity 195 = 13.96 m/s

Matt Uren

3. A resistor network consists of 30, 45 and 90 resistors connected in parallel. This

parallel arrangement is connected in series with another parallel connection
consisting of an 80 and a 1200 resistor. This total network is connected to a 250v
supply. Draw a circuit diagram and calculate:

Total circuit current

Current in each resistor
Voltage across each resistor
Power dissipated in the 90 resistor

The total current in a series network is always constant, so to find out the current, we must divide the
voltage by the total resistance. However due to the resistors being wired up in parallel, we must use two
formulas to find out the resistance.
To calculate resistance across a 2 resistor parallel network (Network B)
To calculate resistance across a 3 resistor parallel network (Network A) -

12
1:2

801200
80:1200

1
1:2:3

= 75

1
30:45:90

= 15

Total circuit resistance is 90, so we divide 250V by 90 which gives us 2.7A for the total circuit current.

To find the current in each resistor, we need to figure out the voltage in each parallel network, we do this
by multiplying the total resistance in each parallel network by the total circuit current.
Voltage in network A = 15 * 2.7 = 41.6V (Simplified) | Voltage in network B = 75 * 2.7 = 208.3 (Simplified)
So for the resistors in network A: R1 = 41.6 / 30 = 1.38 amps
R2 = 41.6 / 45 = 0.925 amps
R3 = 41.6 / 90 = 0.4629 amps
And for the resistors in network B: R4 = 208.3 / 80 = 2.60416 amps
R5 = 208.3 / 1200 = 0.17361 amps

Matt Uren