*Chapter 3

Forces and Pressure

 A force can cause many things to move or stop. When a force causes
an object to turn, this turning effect is called moments (torque).
Example: A person sitting on a see-saw

 The moment of force depends on two things:

 the size of the force
 perpendicular distance from the force applied to the
pivot
 The unit is in newton-meter (Nm)
 Moment = F x d
F: Force applied
d: Perpendicular distance from the force to the pivot
 Moment can be either clockwise or anticlockwise
 In equilibrium, total clockwise moments = total anti-clockwise
moments about the same pivot.
 Equilibrium - when the resultant forces acting on a body are
zero and the resultant moment is also zero.

 Is it in equilibrium?
Answer:
*
 Defined as the point through which the whole weight of the object
acts and is the same for all orientations.
 does not need to be within the object itself (eg. Donut)

Regular objects:

 Examples: a) Double Decker bus has heavy metal panels at its

bottom to make it more stable b) Racing car has wider base and
low centre of gravity.
 *
 There are three states of equilibrium:
 Stable equilibrium
 Unstable equilibrium
 Neutral equilibrium

 Stable Equilibrium:
- If the body returns to its original position after being displaced slightly it
is said to be in STABLE EQUILIBRIUM
- Example: A book lying on a table is in stable equilibrium.
- Explanation: If the book is lifted from one edge and then allowed to
fall, it will come back to its original position.
 Unstable Equilibrium:
- If the body continues to move away from its original position
after being displaced, it is said to be in UNSTABLE
EQUILIBRIUM
- Example: Pencil standing on its point or a stick in vertically
standing position
- Explanation: If thin rod standing vertically is slightly disturbed
from its position it will not come back to its original position.

 Neutral Equilibrium:
- If an object remains wherever it is after being displaced, it is said
to be in NEUTRAL EQUILIBRIUM
- Example: rolling ball
- If a ball is pushed slightly to roll, it will neither come back to its
original nor it will roll forward rather it will remain at rest
 Stretching happens when the material or object is pulled while
compression happens when the material or object is squashed
 If a material returns to its original size and shape when you remove the
forces stretching it,we say that the material is demonstrating elastic
behaviour.
 A plastic (or inelastic) material is one that stays deformed after you
have taken the force away. If deformation(change in shape) remains
after the forces are removed then it is a sign of plastic behaviour.
 If you apply too big a force, a material will lose its elasticity.

Hooke's Law
 The extension of a material or a spring is its increase in length when
pulled.
 Hooke’s Law says that the extension of an elastic object is directly
proportional to the force applied to it. In other words:
-if the force applied is doubled, the extension doubles
-if no force is applied, there is no extension
You can investigate Hooke’s Law using a spring:
1. Hang the spring from a stand and clamp
2. Measure its length with a ruler
3. Hang an empty slotted mass carrier from the lower end and measure the
new length of the spring
4. Keep adding more slotted masses, measuring the new length each time
For mass added, calculate the extension (new length – length at start). You
can then plot a force-extension graph:
-plot force on the vertical (y) axis
-plot extension on the horizontal (x) axis
The graph should be a straight line that passes through the origin (0,0).
 Load = spring constant x extension

F=kx
Where:.
F = tension acting on the spring.
x is extension = (l-lo); l is the stretched length and lo is original length, and.
k is the gradient of the graph above. It is known as the spring constant.

Elastic limit: point at which the spring will not return to its original
shape after being stretched (stops obeying Hooke’s Law)
*
What would be more painful?
What would be more painful?
Force is measured in Newtons (N)
Area is measured in square metres (m2 )
The unit of pressure is Newtons per square metre (N/m2 )
Another name for Newton per square metre is the Pascal
(Pa)