Experiment 101

Newton’s Second Law of Motion

Analysis
Physics is about asking fundamental questions and trying to answer them by
observing and experimenting. In this experiment, the main topic is all about
Newton’s Second Law of Motion that states the net forces is required for a body to
have acceleration. If net force is applied on a body, body will accelerate in the
direction of the net force. The acceleration of the body is also directly proportional
to the net force but inversely proportional to its mass.
Figure 1.
Newton's first law of motion states: A
body in motion tends to remain in motion, a
body at rest tends to remain at rest unless acted
on by an outside force. So, if an object is
moving – its inertia (mass) will tend to keep it in
motion, and if something is at rest, its inertia
will tend to keep it at rest. If no net force acts on
a body, the body’s velocity cannot change. That
is, the body cannot accelerate. According to
Newton, an object will only accelerate if there is
a net or unbalanced force acting upon it. The
presence of an unbalanced force will accelerate
an object - changing its speed, its direction, or
both its speed and direction. The first law of motion is summarized in Figure 1.
Newton's second law of motion states that a force, acting on an object, will
change its velocity by changing either its speed or its direction or both. Newton's
second law of motion pertains to the behavior of objects for which all existing
 Figure 2.
forces are not balanced. The second law states
that the acceleration of an object is dependent
upon two variables - the net force acting upon
the object and the mass of the object. The
acceleration of an object depends directly upon
the net force acting upon the object, and
inversely upon the mass of the object. As the
force acting upon an object is increased, the
acceleration of the object is increased. As the
mass of an object is increased, the acceleration
of the object is decreased. The second law of
motion is summarized in Figure 2.
Newton's third law is for each activity, there is an equivalent and inverse
response. The announcement implies that in each cooperation, there is a couple of
powers following up on the two associating objects. The span of the powers on the
main protest breaks even with the measure of the power on the second question.
The course of the power on the main question is inverse to the heading of the
power on the second protest. Powers dependably come in sets - equivalent and
inverse activity response compel sets.
Newton defined momentum (P) as the product of mass and velocity. The
change in momentum ∆P is brought about by the impulse (∆P) acting on the body,
𝐹𝑛𝑒𝑡 ∆𝑡 = ∆𝑃 (Equation 1)
As ∆t approaches zero, the instantaneous rate of change of momentum is,
∆𝑃 𝑑𝑃 𝑑(𝑚𝑣)
𝐹𝑛𝑒𝑡 = lim = = (Equation 2)
∆𝑡→0 ∆𝑡 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡

Since for most object, mass is constant,

𝑑𝑣
𝐹𝑛𝑒𝑡 = 𝑚 (Equation 3)
𝑑𝑡

This verbal statement can be expressed in equation form as follows:

𝐹𝑛𝑒𝑡
𝑎=
𝑚
 The above equation is often rearranged to a more familiar form as shown
below. The net force is equated to the product of the mass times the acceleration.
𝐹𝑛𝑒𝑡 = 𝑚𝑎 (Equation 4)
The materials that were used in this experiment are:
 1 pc dynamics track with pulley
 1 pc dynamics cart
 1.5 m string
 2 pcs photogates
 1 pc smart timer
 1 pc set of weights
 1 pc weight hanger

The objectives of this experiment are to verify the relationships between a

body’s acceleration and net force, and between acceleration and mass; to verify the
direct proportionally of acceleration and net force if the mass of the body is
constant; to verify the inverse proportionality of acceleration and mass if the net
force is constant. The first part of the experiment is “Constant Mass, Changing Net
Forces”. The first procedure is to place the dynamics track on the laboratory table.
Make sure that it is horizontal by placing the dynamics cart on the track. If the
dynamics cart does not move, then the track is already horizontal. Otherwise, make
the necessary adjustments. Next is to get the mass of the dynamics cart. Write this
under m1 in Table 1. Set the first photogate at the 20cm mark of the dynamics
track and the second photogate at the 70cm track. This is the distance in which the
cart can travel. Write this under s in Table 1. Plug the first photogate to the number
1 slot of the smart timer and the second photogate to the number 2 slot. Then set
 the smart timer by pressing the “Select Measurement” button until it shows
“Time”. Set the mode by pressing the “Select Mode” button until it shows “Time:
Two Gates”. After that, tie one end of the string to the cart and the other end to the
weight hanger. Set the dynamics cart on one end of the track and the weight hanger
over the pulley. For the first trial, use a total mass of 20g for the hanging weight.
Write this under m2 in Table 1. Release the cart. Read and write the time of travel
from the smart timer under t in Table 1. Repeat everything using masses of 40g,
60g, 80g, and 100g. Write the data in appropriate spaces in Table 1. After getting
all the data, compute the accepted value of the acceleration, the experimental value
of the acceleration and the percentage error for each trial. Lastly, from the data,
draw the acceleration (experimental value) vs. net force graph.
TABLE 1. CONSTANT MASS, CHANGING NET FORCE
Mass of Cart, m1 = 0.5063 kg
Distance Traveled, s = 0.5 m
TRIAL Total Net force, Acceleration Time of Acceleration % Error
hanging m2g (accepted travel, t (exp. value),
mass, m2 value), a a
1 0.02 kg 0.196 0N 0.3724 m/s2 1.7100 s 0.3420 m/s2 8.1633%
2 0.06 kg 0.5880 N 1.0383 m/s2 1.0249 s 0.9757 m/s2 6.0291%
3 0.01 kg 0.9800 N 1.6164 m/s2 1.7632 s 1.7168 m/s2 6.2113%
Based on the results gathered at Table 1, the acceleration of the cart is
directly proportional to the total hanging weight. And in effect, the acceleration
increases as the hanging mass increases. With the force of gravity at constant rate,
the force pulling on the cart increases as the weight increases. It is due to the
proportional pull on the hanging mass as it increases in weight, and by Newton’s
2nd Law, it is also expected that acceleration will increase proportionally.
 The next part of the experiment is “Changing mass, Constant Net Force”.
For the first trial, get the mass of the cart and release the cart. Read and write the
time of travel under t in table 1. For trials 2-5, add masses of 100g, 200g, 300g,
and 400g to the cart and write this under total mass of cart m2. After getting all the
data, compute the accepted value of the acceleration, the experimental value of the
acceleration, and the percentage error for each trial. Lastly, from your data draw
the acceleration (experimental value) vs. mass graph.
TABLE 2. CHANGING MASS, CONSTANT NET FORCE
Total hanging mass, m2 = 0.1000 kg Net Force, m2g = 0.98 N
Distance Traveled, s = 0.5000 m
TRIAL Mass of cart + Acceleration Time of Acceleration % Error
mass added, m1 (accepted travel, t (exp. value),
value), a a
1 0.5063 kg 1.6164 m/s2 0.77 10s 1.6823 m/s2 4.0770%
2 0.6063kg 1.6164 m/s2 0.7710 s 1.6823 m/s2 4.0770%
3 0.7056 kg 1.3875 m/s2 0.8423 s 1.4095 m/s2 1.5856%

Conclusion
In conclusion, Newton's second law gives the clarification to the conduct of
articles whereupon the powers don't adjust. The law expresses that uneven powers
cause articles to quicken with a speeding up that is straightforwardly corresponding
to the net power and conversely relative to the mass. Two unequal weights on a
shaft with pivot of revolution at its focal point of gravity can accomplish harmony
in a model equalization by differing the switch arm of each. As the weight from a
side builds, the switch arms diminish so it turns out to be nearer to the hub of pivot
than the lighter weight. At the point when a pillar's pivot of revolution isn't on its
focal point of gravity, the one with longer switch arm ought to have weights to
accomplish harmony. To adjust a pillar, the switch arm ought to likewise diminish
as the weight increments. For a body to accomplish harmony, the torque ought to
dependably be equivalent to zero, enabling no turn to occur.