Practice Exam 2 – Hand-graded Problem Solution

An ice block of mass m is initially at rest at location 1 on a smooth semicircular track in a

vertical plane. A little later it is sliding through location 2.

A) Use a fundamental principle to find the block’s speed at 2. Be very clear about the
principle you use, about the system you apply it to, about the objects in the system’s
surroundings that interact significantly with it and about any approximations you make.
Apply the Energy Principle to the block-track-Earth system. We find that
DEsys = Wsurr �0J
since nothing in the system’s surroundings does significant work on it. [The system
is in contact with the atmosphere, but the buoyant force on the block is negligible
because the density of ice is much greater than the density of air and the aerodynamic
drag force is negligible because the block’s speed v is never very big. Pressure
forces do no work on the track or on the Earth because they do not move.]
In this situation the only contributions to the system’s energy that change from the
initial state 1 to the final state 2 are the block’s kinetic energy and the block-Earth
gravitational potential energy (approximations making this so are discussed below).
1
DEsys ,21 �DKb ,21 + DU bE ,21 � mv22 + mg Dy21 = 0J � v2 = 2 gR
2
Approximations:
The track and Earth remain at rest so their kinetic energies do not change.
Since the ice block is slippery, friction between the track and block is negligible and
the internal energies of the block and track do not change.
1
K block � mv 2 , since the block’s speed is small compared to c.
2

**If student applies the energy principle to the system consisting of just the block,
they must correctly discuss the work done by gravity rather than DU bE ,21 .
B) Use a fundamental principle to find the net force acting on the block when it is at
location 2. Be very clear about the principle you use and about the system you apply it to.
Make the same approximations you made in part A.

Apply the Momentum Principle to the system consisting of just the block. It tells us
that when the block is at location 2
r
dpblock r r
= Fnet �Fnet yˆ
dt
since aerodynamic drag and friction between the block and track are negligible and
since ŷ points toward the center of the block’s circular path.
r r
dpblock dpblock mv 2
So, = yˆ � 2 yˆ = 2mgyˆ , where we’ve used our result from part A,
dt dt ^ R
r
leads to the conclusion that Fnet �2mgyˆ .

C) What objects are interacting significantly with the block when it is at location 2, and
what force does each exert on it? Make the same approximations you made in A and B.

Given the approximations we’ve made, the only forces contributing to the net force on
the
r block when it is at location 2 are the gravitational force exerted by the Earth,
r
Fg = -mgyˆ and the normal force exerted by the track, Ft .

Since the net force

r on the blockris the
r sum of those
r two forces,
r we have
Fnet �2mgyˆ = Fg + Ft = -mgyˆ + Ft � Ft = 3mgyˆ