THE COPPERBELT UNIVERSITY

PHYSICS DEPARTMENT

INTRODUCTORY PHYSICS

PH 110

TUTORIAL BOOKLET

2017/18 ACADEMIC YEAR

NAME:……………………………………….. S.I.N. :…………………………

LECTURE GROUP: …………………………. TUTORIAL GROUP:……….

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 PREFACE

Physics is the most fundamental of the natural sciences which deals with the structure and
behavior of matter. It is the science concerned with the description of the interactions of energy,
matter, space, and time. Physics is especially interested in what fundamental mechanisms
underlie every phenomenon. It plays a very central role in the technological and economic
advancement of a nation.

What then is Physics? It can be defined as follows:

i. Physics is the study of the laws of Nature and the application of these laws to non-living
things.
ii. It is the science of matter and energy and the relations between them.
iii. It is the body of knowledge gained from the study of natural phenomena.

Physicists work in all sectors of the economy especially in different branches of science and
engineering and make important contributions to applied sciences.

D. M. Fubara, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Hacourt, Nigeria in an
Internal Report on Physics and Development No. 3, Miramare – Trieste May 1983 had this to say
about Physics:

“Physics is the descriptive formulation of the universe as a system of concepts expressible

mathematically. The universe is physics. The conquest of the universe is development.
Development is a measure of the advancement in science, engineering and technology arising
solely from resolved physics concepts. Therefore development is a progressive resolution of
physics concepts.”

Is Physics difficult?

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The answer can be yes or no. With the right attitude and approach the answer is no otherwise it is
yes. This is true for all the other courses you will be taking. In the lectures we will cover only the
most important parts. Therefore you should read the textbook very carefully. Read again and
again until you understand the concepts. Do not try to memorize a lot facts or rules. The most
important thing is to learn how to answer questions and solve end of chapter problems. As
mentioned earlier, memorizing is not very helpful instead you must understand how a particular
problem is solved. Remember it not beneficial work in isolation from one course mates but rather
work cooperatively with them. The lectures will be complimented by tutorial sessions which will
be conducted once in a week.

The PH 110 tutorials aim at training you in solving Physics problems particularly those related to
the theory covered in lectures so that you can achieve a good understanding of the theory. It is
therefore recommended that you participate actively in tutorial sessions. To a large measure, this
will certainly improve your PH 110 results and might even be the decisive factor of whether you
will pass the course or not. A quick glance at the PH 110 past examination papers, which you can
find from the short loan section of the library, will show you at once that more marks are
assigned to problems and very few to definitions and explanations.

The tutorials will be organized as follows: You will do one tutorial sheet from your tutorial
booklet per week. You are strongly advised to solve the problems before hand at home and then
these problems will then be discussed as group in the tutorial session. Each one of you is
expected to go to the board and make an oral presentation of the solution to group members. You
should rise and shine and do not be shy! The tutorial session will be moderated by the tutor and
s/he will intervene only if you fail to solve a problem, or to present an alternative way of solving
a problem, or to clarify any matter.

It is of vital importance that you prepare for the tutorial by solving problems beforehand at
home. This will help you identify where your own difficulties lie otherwise just copying from the
board what other people are doing will not help you much and you will lose most of its value.
You must remember that at university level, you must go to knowledge and not the other way
round.

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The best way to learn Physics is through actively solving problems. Remember that just as
listening to recordings won't teach you to play piano (though it can help), merely reading a
textbook won't teach you physics (though it too can help). You MUST work the problems. Your
text books contain a large number of solved problems in every chapter. It would be a good idea
to test your understanding by closing the book and try these problems on your own and then refer
to the book if you get stuck. It is good practice to test your test your understanding of the
concepts you learn in class while ideas are still fresh in mind. Don’t wait until the end!

Your performance in tutorials will be assessed taking some tutorial tests, commonly known as
quizzes, during the year. The quizzes will not be announced earlier and will be taken during the
first 10-15 minutes of a normal tutorial session after the normal tutorial session will continue.
The tutorial test problems which you will be required to solve will be randomly picked from the
tutorial sheet by your tutor. The problems will be of standard hardness, meaning that they will
neither be too difficult nor too simple. Each quiz will be marked out of 10 and at the end of the
year ALL the tests will counted, contributing five percent (5 %) of your continuous assessment.

You can find a lot of problems related to the PH 110 course in the following books:

1. Fredrick. J. Bueche and Euegene Hecht, College Physics, 9th ed., Shaum’s Outlines Series,
McGraw-Hil, USA.
2. Serway Jewett, Physics for Scientists and Engineers, 6th edition, (2004), Thomson
Brooks/Cole .

3. A. Halpern, 3000 Solved Problems in Physics, Shaum’s Solved Problem Series, McGraw-
Hil, USA.
4. F. J. Bueche, Principles of Physics,(1995), 6th ed., McGraw-Hill, USA.
5. F. W. Sears, M. W. Zemansky, and H. D. Young, University Physics, Addison Wesley, 1987.

The list of references given above is by no means exhaustive, so you may refer to any refer to
any other book you find appropriate. Whenever you encounter difficulties do not hesitate to
consult your group tutor or even your lecturer. Remember that your own classmates are an
invaluable source of information who you can easily consult any time.

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The marks for PH 110 will be distributed as follows:
Sessional Examination: 60 %
Tests: 30 %
Labs: 10 %

PHYSICS PROBLEM SOLVING HINTS

Having tools and knowing how to use these tools are two different things. Very often one may
know and understand certain concepts but the challenge is knowing when and where to apply
these concepts to specific problems in physics. The best way to test you understanding of the
concepts you learn in class is to solve problems which must be done not long after you have
covered certain concepts. When solving any physics problem you need to follow some
procedures in order to obtain the correct solution. The following procedures are quite useful:
(a). Understand the Problem.
You must understand the problem you are solving for you to obtain the correct solution.
This requires reading the problem very carefully. If you do not understand some of the
terms and/or concepts in the problem go back to the material on which the problem is
based. Problems can either be qualitative or quantitative in nature. For quantitative
problems it is good practice to estimate the magnitude of the answer you expect.
(b). Analyze the Problem
After understanding the problem, break it into its components so that you can identify the
i. given data
ii. target variable(s) i.e. unknown variable(s) and
iii. relevant concepts such as equation(s), law(s), or definition(s) that connects
the data to the unknown(s).
(c). Plan the Solution
After identifying the target variables assign specific symbols to them and then make a
connection between the given data and the unknown(s) as a series of discrete steps. In
most cases this will involve manipulation of the identified mathematical or physical
expressions so as to write them in terms of the unknown quantities.

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(d). Execute the Solution
After making a clear connection between the data and the unknowns, it only remains to
do the mathematics. It is usually advisable to work with symbols and then substitute
numerical values at the very end. Before you substitute numerical values ensure that all
ancillary operations such conversion of units to the appropriate form has been done.
Ensure that you have used the correct signs, exponents and units. You must keep a sharp
eye on units because they often provide useful clues.
(e). Evaluate your Answer
The aim of solving physics problems is gain a better understanding and not necessarily to
obtain a number or formula. You must therefore examine your answer to see whether
i. It makes sense
ii. It has the correct units
iii. It really answers the question at hand.
iv. Your mathematics is right.
(f). Presentation of the Solution
Your solution must be logically and coherently presented. You must show your reasoning
and working as clearly as possible with appropriate diagrams where necessary. You must
also ensure that your answer is legible (readable), that is, both your handwriting and font
size MUST be comfortable for your instructor. This will definitely save a lot of time!
Adapted from: University of Zambia Introductory Physics Tutorial Problem booklet and
University Physics with modern physics by Sears and Zemansky

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Some commonly used symbols and abbreviations
: is much less than
: is much greater than
w.r.t. : with respect to
q.e.d. : Latin phrase quod erat demonstrandum, meaning "which is what had to be proved".
(used in proofs)

: not equal to
: is proportional to
 : infinity
 : perpendicular to
 : because
 : the sum of
dx
x = : the derivative of x w.r.t. time
dt
// : is parallel to
Some Definitions
Accuracy: the degree to which a measured value agrees with correct value for that measurement

Precision: the degree to which repeated measurements agree with each other

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Uncertainty: a quantitative measure of how much your measured values deviate from a standard
or expected value

PH 110 COURSE OUTLINE

1. Units and Measurements:
Base quantities and their S.I units -derived quantities and their SI units-dimensional equations for
derived quantities-use dimensions to check the homogeneity of physical equations-use basic
appliances – vernier calipers, micrometer screw gauge, beam balance, stop watch etc in
measurements.

2. Scalar and Vector quantities.

Distinguish between scalar and vector quantities Derive expression for the resultant of two
vectors Parallelogram, triangle and polygon rules to add vectors. Verify parallelogram law of
forces. Resolve a vector into two perpendicular vectors. Use analytical method to add a number
of coplanar vectors acting at a point.

3. Kinematics.
Define displacement, speed, velocity and acceleration. Displacement-time graph velocity –time
graph equations of motion for uniformly accelerated motion, solving problems Equations of
motion for bodies projected vertically upwards and falling under gravity. Determine ‘g’ using
simple pendulum and centi-seconds timer. Derive expressions for h max, t, and R max for an
inclined projectile

4. Dynamics.
Newton’s laws of motion. Verify using ticker timer. Solve problems. State the law of
conservation of momentum-Elastic and inelastic collisions; energy and momentum changes.

5. Forces
Types of forces Use a vector diagram to represent forces in equilibrium. Define moment of a
force and torque. State the principle of moments-conditions of equilibrium for a system of
coplanar forces. F x = 0;  Fy = 0;   0 . Verify the principle of moments. Laws of

friction. Coefficient of friction; experiments on static and kinetic friction. Effects of friction.

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6. Work, Energy, Power
Define work. Derive kinetic energy E k = ½ m v2 Distinguish between gravitational potential
energy, electrical potential energy and elastic potential energy. Derive the formula E p =mgh
for potential energy change near the Earth’s surface, Define power as work done per unit time
and derive it as the product of force and velocity. State the law of conservation of energy.
Explain solar, geothermal, fusion, wind ocean and biogas as alternative sources for diminishing
energy.

7. Simple Machines.
Define mechanical advantage, velocity ratio and efficiency and state the law of the machines as
E = a L + b and use it in solving problems. Derive expressions for the limiting efficiency and
limiting mechanical advantage for a machine. Explain the working of simple machines such as
levers, pulleys, inclined plane, wheel and axle, screw jack, and hydraulic press and derive the
expression for their efficiencies.

8. Motion in a circle
Explain the meaning of ‘uniform circular motion’. Express angular displacement in radians.
Derive the relation between linear velocity and angular velocity. Show that centripetal
v2 v2
acceleration is given by a   2 r ; also a = . and centripetal force by Fc = m . Explain
r r
centrifugal force as a force equal and opposite to centripetal force. Applications of centripetal
force and centrifugal force.

9. Gravitational Field.
State Kepler’s laws of planetary motion. Newton’s law of Universal Gravitation. Define
gravitational constant ‘G’. Newton’s law in deriving an expression to determine the mass of the
Sun. Derive the expression, g = GM / r 2 for the gravitational field strength of a point mass,
gravitational field and electric field. Show an understanding of the geostationary orbits and their
applications. Understand the concept of escape velocity and recall and use the equation v =
2GMe / re
10. Rotational Motion.
Explain the difference between circular motion and rotational motion Use equations of angular
motion. Derive expression for the kinetic energy of a rotating body and define moment of inertia

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as I=  mi ri . Derive expression for the moment of inertia of a flywheel. Determine the moment
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of inertia of a flywheel. Derive the relationship between torque, moment of inertia and angular
velocity. Define angular momentum and use the equation L  I . State the law of conservation
of angular momentum and give a few applications solve problems in solving problems.

11. Oscillations.
Explain the meaning of the terms; amplitude, frequency, angular velocity, period, phase
difference ,period in terms of both frequency and angular velocity. Derive y = r sin t, V = +/- 
(r2- x 2) 1/2 and a = -  2x for a body in SHM. Graphical illustration of the change in displacement,
velocity and acceleration during SHM with time. Describe the interchange between kinetic and
potential energy during SHM. Practical examples of damping oscillations with particular
reference to the effects of degree of damping and the importance of critical damping in the case
as car suspension system. Explain the meanings of forced oscillations, resonance and sharpness
of resonance.

12. Elastic properties of Solid

Describe the behaviour of springs in terms of load and extension, elastic limit .State Hooke’s law
and explain spring constant. Verify Hooke’s law and determine spring constant. Define the terms
stress, strain and Young’s modulus. Determine young’s modulus of a metal wire. Distinguish
between elastic and plastic deformation of a material. Deduce the strain energy in a deformed
material (W = ½ F s). Show that the energy per unit volume of a stretched string is = ½ x stress x
strain. Understand the force- extension graph for ductile, brittle and polymeric materials
including an understanding of ultimate tensile stress.

13. Fluids in Motion.

Explain steady flow, turbulent flow, laminar flow and viscosity. Derive and use the equation of
continuity. Derive Bernoulli’s equation and use it in solving problems. Apply Bernoulli’s
equation in aerofoil, spinning ball, Bunsen burner, carburetor, sprayer etc Define viscosity and
give the S I unit and dimension of viscosity.

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14. Temperature scales.
Explain the different physical quantities that vary with temperature for different thermometers.
Describe the principal features of liquid in glass, resistance, constant volume and constant
pressure thermometers and their relative advantages and disadvantages. Describe the range of the
different types of thermometers.

15. Thermal Expansion.

Define linear, areal and cubic expansivities. Determine the linear expansivity of a metal rod.
Define real and apparent expansivities of a liquid and determine them experimentally Solve
problems Describe anomalous expansion of water. State, verify and use Boyle’s law, Charle’s
law and Pressure law. Draw the volume- temperature and pressure – temperature graphs and
determine the relationship between Kelvin scale and Celsius scale of temperatures. Describe
some of the consequences and application of expansion.

16. Heat Transfer.

Describe qualitatively conduction, convection, evaporation and radiation. Explain the meaning
of temperature gradient. Define thermal conductivity, thermal resistance and thermal
conductance and use them in solving problems. Determine the thermal conductivity of a good
conductor. Explain the Lee’s disc method to determine the conductivity of a bad conductor.
Explain the applications of good conductors and bad conductors in heat transfer. Explain
convection currents in domestic hot water systems and sea and land breezes.

17. Heating Matter.

Define heat capacity and specific heat capacity (c) Determine the specific heat capacity of a solid
and a liquid using electrical method. Explain the method of mixtures. Continuous flow method.
Define specific latent heat of ice and of steam. Determine the specific latent heat of ice and of
steam by the method of mixtures. Explain the different methods of applying cooling correction.
Newton’s law of cooling. Solve problems involving heat capacity and latent heats.

18. Direct current Circuits.

Define charge, current, potential difference, resistance, power and energy and their units. State
and verify Ohm’s law, resistors in series and in parallel. Define temperature coefficient of
resistance .Experiment to determine temperature coefficient of resistance. Sketch and explain the

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I-V characteristics of a metallic conductor at constant temperature, a filament lamp and a semi
l
conductor diode. Define resistivity and use R  . in calculations. Determine resistivity of a
A
wire using a metre bridge. e. m. f. of a cell and internal resistance r = (E -V)/I. State Kirchoff’s
laws and use them in simple circuits. Use potentiometer to determine the ratio of e. m. fs of two
cells, ratio of small resistances and to determine the internal resistance of a cell.

19. Ray Optics.

Define refractive index and use the equation n1 sin 1  n2 sin  2 .; show that n = 1/ sin C.
Determine ‘n’ using real depth and apparent depth and using air cell. Total reflection prisms.
Applications of fibre optics in industries, medicine and in telecommunications. Use spectrometer
to determine the refractive index of a glass prism.

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 Tutorial Sheet 1
Units and Measurements

1. The radius of an atom is 0.5 . What is the total atomic volume in m3 of a mole of hydrogen
atom? 1 angstrom unit ( ) = 10-10 m

2. Prove that the following equations are dimensionally consistent

(a) Potential energy = ,

(b) Kinetic energy =

(c) Pressure =

(d) Period of the pendulum (T) =

3. The velocity of a particle varies with time according to the relation

Find the dimensions of , and

4. Stoke’s formula gives an expression for the viscous force acting on a small sphere moving
through a homogenous viscous fluid. The viscous force (F) acting on the sphere depends on the
viscosity of the fluid , the radius of the sphere r, and the velocity of the sphere v. Derive Stoke’s
formula using dimensional analysis.

5.The diameter of a wire is measured 0.236 cm with the help of a screw gauge. The least count of
the screw gauge is 0.001 cm. Calculate the possible percentage error in the measurement

6. The consumption of natural gas by a company satisfies the empirical equation

V  1.50 t  0.00800 t 2

where V is the volume in millions of cubic feet and t is the time in months. Express this equation
in units of cubic feet and seconds. Put the proper units on the coefficients. Assume a month is 30
days.

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7. An iron nucleus has a radius of 5.4 fm and a mass of 93 yg. (a) What is its mass per unit
volume in kg/m3? (b) If the earth had the same mass per unit volume, what would its radius be?
(The mass of the earth is 5.98 × 1024 kg.)

8. Every year the United States generates 160 million tons of municipal solid waste and a grand
total of 10 billion tons of solid waste of all kinds. If one allows one cubic meter of volume per
ton, how many square miles of area at an average height of 10 m are needed for landfill each
year?

9. Approximately how many raindrops fall on a one-acre lot during a one-inch rainfall? Explain
your reasoning.

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 Tutorial Sheet 2
Vectors

1. A ship is steaming due east at a speed of 12ms -1. A passenger runs across the deck at a speed
of 5ms-1 toward north. What is the resultant velocity of the passenger relative to the sea?

2. A plane is travelling as fast as it can due north at 500 miles per hour (mph). There is a strong
wind blowing to the east at 50 mph. What is the maximum speed of the plane when there is no
wind?

3. You find yourself pacing, in a deep thought about a physics problem. First you walk 12 meters
due east. Then, you walk 6 meters due north. Then you doze off and find yourself 50 meters
from your starting place, north of east. How far did you walk while you were not paying
attention?
 
4. Vector A has a magnitude of 10 units and makes 60◦ with the positive x-axis. Vector B has a
 
magnitude of 5 units and is directed along the negative x-axis. Find (a) the vector sum A  B
 
(b) the vector difference A  B

5. The equation gives the force on an electric point charge moving with velocity

through a uniform magnetic field . Find the force on a proton of coulomb

moving with velocity in a magnetic field of 0.5 tesla.

6. Physical quantities may be classified as scalars and vectors. Which of the following are scalars
and which ones are vectors: Displacement, Momentum, Energy, Charge and half-life?

7. A cube is placed so that one corner is at the origin and the three edges are along the x-, y- and
z-axes of a coordinate system. Use vectors to compute

(a) the angle between the edge along the z-axis (line ab) and the diagonal from the origin and to
the opposite corner (line ad), and

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(b) the angle between line ac (the diagonal of a face) and line ad.

 
8. A force A is added to another force B that has the x and y components equal to -10 N and 8
N respectively. The resultant of the two forces is in the positive x direction and has a magnitude
of 12 N.

(i) Find the x and y components of the force A , and
(ii) the angle it makes with respect to the positive x-axis.

9. A golfer takes three puts to get his ball into the hole once he is on the green. The first putt
displaces the ball 12 ft north, the second 6.0 ft southeast, and the third 3.0 ft southwest. What
displacement was needed to get the ball into the hole on the first putt?
 
10. Vector A has a magnitude of 5.0 units and is directed east. Vector B is directed 45o west of
north and has a magnitude of 4.0 units.
(a) Construct vector diagrams for calculating
 
(i) A B , and
 
(ii) A B

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    
(b) Estimate the magnitudes and directions of A  B and A  B from your diagrams.
 
11. Two vectors A  4 ˆ
i  3 ˆ
j  ˆ
k and B   iˆ  ˆj  4 kˆ . Find
 
(a) A B
 
(b) A B
   
(c) a vector C such that A  B  C  0.
 
(d) a unit vector perpendicular to both A and B .

 
(e) the angle between vectors A and B .

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 Tutorial Sheet 3
Kinematics

1. A particle moves along a straight line and O is the fixed point on that line. The displacement x
meters of the particle from O at time t seconds is given by:

Draw a displacement-time graph for the interval for the time from t = 0 to t = 6 s. From the
graph find

(a) the average velocity over the time interval from t= 0 to t = 4 s

(b) the distance covered in the interval from t = 0 to t = 4 s

(c) the instantaneous velocity at t = 4 s

(d) the time at the velocity is zero

2. A car covers first half of the distance between two places at a speed of 40 km/h and the second
half at 60 km/h. What is the average speed of the car?

3. A bullet strikes a uniform plank with a velocity of 400 m/s and comes out with half velocity.
What would be the velocity if the plank were only half thick?

4. A particle is projected vertically up from the foot of the tower 392 m high with a velocity 98
ms-1. At the same instant another body is dropped from the top. Find when and where they will
meet?

5. A particle moves in the xy plane such that, at time t, its displacement from a fixed point O is

given by r  4t iˆ  (3t  5 t 2 ) ˆj . Find the velocity vector at time t and hence find the velocity
components when t=0. Show that the acceleration is constant. Do you notice anything significant
about this acceleration?

6. A projectile is launched on level ground. At the peak of its trajectory, it is 7.5 meters high. It
lands 10 meters from where it was launched. At what angle was the projectile launched?

7. Prove that the time of flight and the horizontal range of a projectile are connected by the
equation
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1. A boy is standing on a bridge 15 m above the water level. He throws a ball vertically upward
with an initial speed of 15 ms-1.

(a) How high will the ball rise in relation to the water level?

(b) How long will the ball take to hit the water surface?

8. At a circus a “human cannonball” is shot out of the cannon with a speed of 15 ms -1. The
cannon barrel is pointed 35o above the horizontal.

(a) How far from the end of the cannon should the net be placed?

(b) If the person is accelerated uniformly from rest to 15 ms -1 in 3 meters inside the barrel, how
large a force must push on the person? Give your answer in terms of W, the weight of the person.

9. A motorcycle policeman hidden at an intersection observes a car that ignores a stop sign,
crosses the intersection, and continues on at constant speed. The policeman starts off in pursuit
2.0 s after the car has passed the stop sign, accelerates at 6.2 m/s 2 until his speed is 110 km/h,
and then continue s at this speed until he catches the car. At that instant, the car is 1.4 km from
the intersection. How fast was the car traveling?

10. The one-dimensional motion of a particle is plotted in the Figure below.

(a) What is the acceleration in the intervals AB, BC, and CE?
(b) How far is the particle from its starting point after 10 s?
(c) Sketch the displacement of the particle as a function of time; label instants A, B, C, D, and E
on your figure.
(d) At what time is the particle traveling most slowly?

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11. A parachutist after bailing out falls 50 m without friction. When the parachute opens, he
decelerates downward 2.0 m/s2. He reaches the ground with a speed of 3.0 m/s.
(a) How long is the parachutist in the air?
(b) At what height did he bail out?
12. An aircraft flies at 400 km/hr in still air. A wind of 200 2 km /hr is blowing from the south.
The pilot to travel from A to a point B north east of A. Find the direction he must steer and time
of his journey if AB = 1000 km. (Given cos 150 = 0.9659)

13. A particle moves in the x - y plane with velocity v  p iˆ  qx ˆj where iˆ and ĵ are unit
vectors in the direction of x and y-axis, p and q are constants. At the initial moment of time, the
particle was located at the point x = y = 0. Find the equation of the trajectory of the particle.

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 Tutorial Sheet 4
Dynamics (Newton’s laws)

1. The value of g at the surface of the Earth is 9.78N/kg and on the surface of Venus the
magnitude of g is 8.6N/kg. A cosmonaut has a weight of 586.6N on the surface of the Earth,
what will be her mass and weight on the surface of Venus?

2. You are driving along an empty straight road at constant speed v0. At some point you notice a
tall wall at distance X in front of you. Show that the force required to stop the car just before the
wall is

3. An elevator starts from rest and attains a speed of 5m/s in 2s. Find the mass of a 80kg man in
the elevator if the elevator is

(a) moving up

(b) moving down

4. Is it easier to move a heavy box that is sitting on the ground (a) by pulling the box from a rope
that makes an angle of 30 o with the surface or (b) by pushing the box with the force that makes
the same angle (but pointing downwards) with the surface?

5. A man of mass 70 kg and bucket of bricks of mass 100 kg are tied to the opposite ends of a
rope which passes over a frictionless pulley so that they hang vertically downwards. What is the
(a) tension in the string supporting the man?

(b) acceleration of the bucket?

6. Body A is traveling at a constant speed in a straight line. Body B remains at rest. Explain what
you know about the acceleration and the resultant of the forces acting on each body.

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7. In the pulley-block system shown, find the accelerations of A, B, C and the tension in the
string. Assume the friction to be negligible and the string to be light and inextensible. The
masses of the blocks are m, 2m and 3m respectively.

8. A 4-kg object is subjected to two forces, and . The object is at rest at the origin at time t = 0.
(a) What is the object's acceleration?
(b) What is its velocity at time t = 3 s?
(c)Where is the object at time t = 3 s?

9. Two blocks with masses 4 kg and 8 kg are connected by a string and slide down a 30 o inclined
plane as shown in the Figure below. The coefficient of kinetic friction between the 4 kg block
and the plane is 0.25 while the coefficient of kinetic friction between the 8 kg block and the
plane is 0.35.
(a) Calculate the acceleration of each block.
(b) Calculate the tension in the string.
(What happens if the positions of the blocks are reversed, so that the 4 kg block is above the 8 kg
block?

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 Tutorial Sheet 5
Static equilibrium

1. A 100kg weight is suspended vertically from the center of a rope as shown below. Determine
the tension T in the rope.

T 60 T

100kg

2. The crane shown in the Figure below consists of a uniform 2 m long beam which is allowed to
pivot around a fixed axis through A. A cable is attached to the other end of the beam B, and runs
to a winch at C, 2 m directly above A. The crane is in equilibrium in the position shown, holding
a 100 kg mass hanging from B. The beam itself has a mass of 20 kg. Find

(a) the horizontal and vertical forces exerted on the beam at point A, and

(b) the tension in the cable BC.

23
3. For the systems in equilibrium in the Figure below, find the unknown tensions and masses. In
(b) the given mass is 6 kg. Assume the pulley in (b) is frictionless.

(a) (b)

4. A uniform door dimensions 2.3 m by 1.3 m with a mass of 13 kg is supported by two hinges
placed symmetrically 0.4 m from the top and the bottom (see Figure below). Each hinge supports
half the door’s weight. Determine the horizontal and vertical components of the force exerted by
each hinge on the door.

24
5. A uniform ladder of length L and mass m1 rests against a frictionless wall. The ladder makes
an angle θ with the horizontal.
(a) Find the horizontal and vertical forces the ground exerts on the base of the ladder when a
firefighter of mass m2 is a distance x from the bottom.
(b) If the ladder is just on the verge of slipping when the firefighter is a distance d from the
bottom, what is the coefficient of static friction between ladder and ground?

6. A mobile is constructed of light rods, light strings, and beach souvenirs, as shown in the
Figure below. Determine the masses of the objects m1, m2, and m3.

25
7. A 90-N board 12 m long rests on two supports, each 1 m from the end of the board. A 360-N
block is placed on the board 3 m from one end as shown in Figure 12-53. Find the force exerted
by each support on the board.

8. A 900-N boy sits on top of a ladder of negligible weight that rests on a frictionless floor as
shown in the Figure below. There is a cross brace halfway up the ladder. The angle at the apex is
θ = 30°.
(a) What is the force exerted by the floor on each leg of the ladder?
(b) Find the tension in the cross brace.
(c) If the cross brace is moved down toward the bottom of the ladder (maintaining the same
angle θ), will its tension be greater or less?

26
9. A 100kg load is placed on a 40kg stretcher to be carried by two persons. The stretcher is 2m
long and the load is placed 0.6m from the left end. How much force must each person exert to
carry the stretcher?

10. A rod AB rests with the end A on rough horizontal ground and the end B against a smooth
vertical wall. The rod is uniform and of weight W. A mass also of weight W is attached at B. If
the coefficient of friction between the floor and the ladder is find the angle at which the rod is

inclined to the vertical when it is just about to slip.

27
 Tutorial Sheet 6
Work, Energy, and Power

1. An object of mass 15kg is pushed across a rough horizontal floor by a constant force of 70N
applied at an angle 200 below the horizontal. If the box undergoes a displacement 5m to the right,
and the coefficient of kinetic friction is 0.3, then find

(a) the acceleration of the object

(b) the work done by

(i) the applied force

(ii) the friction force
(iii) the force of gravity
(iv) the normal force
(v) the net force

2. An applied force varies with position as

where x is in meters. How much work is done on the object as it moves from x = 4m to x = 7m?

3. A force of ( ) N acts on a particle which undergoes a displacement of ( ) m, find

(a) the work done by the force on the particle

(b) the angle between the force and displacement
4. Water is being raised by a pump from a storage tank 4 meter below the ground and delivered
at 8 meter per second through a pipe at ground level. If the cross-section area of the pipe is 0.12
square meter find the work done per second by the pump (1 cubic meter of water has a mass of
1000 kilograms)

5. A train of mass 200 tons moves with constant speed of 72 km/h up an inclined hill when the
engine is working at 800 kW. Find the resistance to the motion of the train ( sin   1 50 ) .

6. Ball 1 has mass m and is moving at 5 ms -1. It collides with ball 2, of mass 2m, which is at rest.
After collision, ball 1 has a velocity of 2 ms -1 at an angle of 50o relative to its original direction.

28
(a) What is the velocity of ball 2 after the collision? (b) Determine whether this collision elastic
or inelastic. (c) If KE is lost, what percentage is lost?

7. A neutron (mass m0) moving with velocity 250 ms-1 hits a stationary nucleus of an iron atom
(mass 56m0) and rebounds back in a perfectly elastic collision. Find the velocity of the iron
nucleus after the collision, assuming it is able to move freely.

8. A model car of mass 99 g rests at the bottom of the bottom of a slope. A pellet of mass 1 g is
fired horizontally at a velocity of 200 ms -1 into the model car and remains embedded.

9. A 240 g ball is thrown straight upward with a speed of 14 ms -1.

(a) How high does it rise if the friction forces are negligible?

(b) If it rises only 6.5 m, how large is the average air resistance which impedes the motion?

(c) under the influence of the friction force in b, how fast is the ball when it returns to the
thrower?

10. A ball of mass m is suspended as a pendulum bob from a cord 3.6 m long. A force on the ball
pulls the cord to one side until it makes an angle of 60 o with the vertical, and then the system is
released.

(a) With what speed is the mass moving as it passes directly underneath the point of suspension?
(Ignore air friction.)

(b) What is the speed of the ball when the cord makes an angle of 30o with the vertical?

11. A 0.5 kg projectile is fired horizontally with an initial velocity of 2.0 ms -1 from the top of a
100-m-tall building. At the instant before the projectile hits the ground, find

(a) the work done on the projectile by the gravity,

(b) the change in kinetic energy since the projectile was fired, and

(c) the final kinetic energy of the projectile.

29
 Tutorial Sheet 7
Linear Momentum and Collisions

1. A 40g ball is travelling to right at 30cm/s while it collides with an 80g ball that is at rest.
Assuming that the collision is perfectly elastic, what is the velocity of each ball just after
collision?

2. A bullet of mass 12g and horizontal speed 70m/s strikes a block of wood of mass 400g and
instantly comes to rest with respect to the block. The block is suspended from the ceiling by
means of thin wires. Calculate the height to which the block rises. Also estimate the amount of
energy lost.

3. A body of mass 10kg initially at rest, explodes and breaks into three fragments. Two pieces
each of mass m fly perpendicular to each, each making an angle of 450 with the horizontal at a
speed of 30m/s each. What is the velocity of the other fragment of mass 3m?

4. An 8.0 g bullet is fired into a 250 g block that is initially at rest at the edge of a table of height
1.0 m as shown the Figure below. The bullet remains in the block, and after the impact the block
lands 2.0 m from the bottom of the table. Determine the initial speed of the bullet.

30
5. Consider a frictionless track as shown in the Figure below. A block of mass m1 = 5 kg is
released from point A. It makes a head-on elastic collision at point B with a block of mass m2 =
10 kg that is initially at rest. Calculate the maximum height to which m1 rises after the collision.

6. Two automobiles of equal mass approach an intersection. One vehicle is travelling with a
velocity of 13 m/s towards the east, and the other is traveling north speed v2i. Neither driver sees
the other. The vehicles collide in the intersection and stick together, leaving parallel skid marks
at an angle of 55o north of east. The speed limit for both roads is 35 mi/h, and the driver of the
northward-moving vehicle claims he was within the speed limit when the collision occurred. Is
telling the truth?

7. A friend claims that, as long as he has his seatbelt on, he can hold on to a 12 kg child in a 60
mi/h head-on collision with a brick wall in which the car passenger compartment comes to a stop
in 0.05 s. Show that the violent force during collision will tear the child from his arms. A child
should always be in a toddler seat secured with a seatbelt in the back seat of a car.

8. A 0.5 kg sphere moving with a velocity of ( 2 iˆ  3 ˆj  kˆ ) m/s strikes another sphere of mass

1.5 kg with a velocity (  iˆ  2 ˆj  3 kˆ ) m/s.

(a) If the velocity of the 0.5 kg sphere after the collision is (  iˆ  3 ˆj  8 kˆ ) m/s, find the final
velocity of the 1.5 kg sphere and identify the kind of collision (elastic, inelastic, or perfectly
inelastic).

(b) If the velocity of the 0.5 kg sphere after the collision is (  0.25 iˆ  0.75 ˆj  2 kˆ ) m/s, find the
final velocity of the 1.5 kg sphere and identify the kind of collision.

31
(c) If the velocity of the 0.5 kg sphere after the collision is (  iˆ  3 ˆj  a kˆ ) m/s, find the value
of a and the velocity of the 1.5 kg sphere after an elastic collision.

32
 Tutorial Sheet 8
Simple Machines

1. Consider a machine which an applied force moves 3.6m to raise a load by 9cm. If the
efficiency is 80% find
(a) IMA
(b) AMA
(c) the applied force that can lift a load of 960N
2. A machine consisting of a wheel of radius 0.5m and an axle of radius 10cm is used to lift
a load of mass 40kg with an effort of 100N. Taking g=10N/kg calculate
(a) IMA
(b) AMA
(c) the efficiency
3. The screw of a mechanical press has a pitch of 0.2cm. The diameter of the wheel to
which the tangential force is applied is 55cm. If the efficiency is 40%, how large must F
be to produce a force of 12kN in the press?
4. What is the mechanical advantage of a nail puller where you exert a force 45cm from
the pivot and the nail is 1.8cm on the other side? What minimum force must you exert to
apply a force of 1250N to the nail?

5. Suppose you needed to raise a 250kg mower a distance of 6.0 cm above the ground to change a
tire. If you had a 2.0m long lever, where would you place the fulcrum if your force was limited to
300 N?

33
6. In the wheelbarrow, the load has a perpendicular lever arm of 7.50cm, while the hands have a
perpendicular lever arm of 1.02m.
(a) What upward force must you exert to support the wheelbarrow and its load if their
combined mass is 45.0 kg?
(b) What force does the wheelbarrow exert on the ground?

7. A typical car has an axle with 1.10cm radius driving a tire with a radius of 27.5cm.
What is its mechanical advantage assuming the very simplified model in the diagram?

34
8. If you used an ideal pulley of the type shown in the diagram to support a car engine of
mass 115 kg.

(a) What would be the tension in the rope?

(b) What force must the ceiling supply, assuming you pull straight down on the rope?
Neglect the pulley system’s mass.

35
 Tutorial Sheet 9
Circular motion

1. A soccer ball of diameter 35 cm rolls without slipping at a linear speed of 2 m/s. Through how
many revolutions has the soccer ball turned as it moves a linear distance of 20 cm?

2. A boy attaches a stone to the end of a rope of length r = 0.25 m, and rotates the stone at a
constant speed in a circular fashion. Find the stone’s radial acceleration when the period T is 2 s

3. A 70 kg man stands in contact against the wall of a cylindrical drum of radius 3m rotating
about its vertical axis. The coefficient of friction between the wall and his clothing is 0.15. What
is the minimum rotational speed of the cylinder to enable the man to remain stuck to the wall,
when the floor is suddenly removed?

4. A circular race track of radius 500 m is banked at an angle of 20 0. Calculate the maximum
permissible speed to avoid slipping if

(a) there is no friction between the tires and the road

(b) the coefficient of friction between the tires and the road is 0.15.

5. In an amusement-park ride, riders stand with their backs against the wall of a spinning vertical

cylinder. The floor falls away and the riders are held up by friction. If the radius of the cylinder
is 4 m, find the minimum number of revolutions per minute necessary to prevent the riders from
dropping when the coefficient of static friction between a rider and the wall is 0.4.

6. The string of a conical pendulum is 50 cm long and the mass of the bob is 0.25 kg. Find the
angle between the string and the horizontal when the tension in the string is six times the weight
of the bob. Under those conditions, what is the period of the pendulum?

7. A block of mass m1 is attached to a cord of length L1, which is fixed at one end. The block
moves in a horizontal circle on a frictionless table. A second block of mass m2 is attached to the
first by a cord of length L2 and also moves in a circle, as shown in the Figure below. If the period
of the motion is T, find the tension in each cord.

36
8. A small bead with a mass of 100 g slides along a semicircular wire with a radius of 10 cm that
rotates about a vertical axis at a rate of 2 revolutions per second, as in Figure 5-55. Find the
values of θ for which the bead will remain stationary relative to the rotating wire.

9. Suppose you ride a bicycle on a horizontal surface in a circle with a radius of 20 m. The
resultant force exerted by the road on the bicycle (normal force plus frictional force) makes an
angle of 15° with the vertical.

(a) What is y our speed?

(b) If the frictional force is half its maximum value, what is the coefficient of static friction?

Answer: (a) 7.25 m/s; (b) 0.536

10. A civil engineer is asked to design a curved section of roadway that meets the following
conditions: With ice on the road, when the coefficient of static friction between the road and
rubber is 0.08, a car at rest must not slide into the ditch and a car traveling less than 60 km/h

37
must not skid to the outside of the curve. What is the minimum radius of curvature of the curve
and at what angle should the road be banked?

11. The radius of curvature of a loop-the-loop roller coaster is 12.0 m. At the top of the loop, the
force that the seat exerts on a passenger of mass m is 0.4mg. Find the speed of the roller coaster
at the top of the loop.

12. A skier starts at rest at the top of a large hemispherical hill (see the Figure below). Neglecting
friction, show that the skier will leave the hill and become airborne at a distance h  R 3 below
the top of the hill.

13. A particle is to slide along the horizontal circular path on the inside of the funnel shown in
the Figure below. The surface of the funnel is frictionless. How fast must the particle be moving,
in terms of r and θ, if it is to execute this motion?

38
39
 Tutorial Sheet 10

Gravitation

1. The gravitational force that the sun exerts on the moon is perpendicular to the force that the
Earth exerts on the moon. The masses are: Mass of sun , mass of Earth ,
mass of moon . The distance between the sun and the moon is 1011 m, and the
distance between the moon and the Earth is m. Determine the magnitude of the net
gravitational force on the moon

2. A body weighs 63 N on the earth. What is the gravitational force on it at a height equal to half
the radius of the earth?

3. Calculate the height above the earth at which the geostationary satellite is orbiting the earth.

4. A satellite of mass 200 kg orbits the earth at a height of 400 km above the surface. How much
energy must be expended to rocket the satellite out of earth’s gravitational influence?

5. The escape velocity of a projectile on the earth’s surface is 11.2 km/s. A body is projected out
with twice its speed. What is the speed of the body far away from the earth (infinity)? Ignore the
presence of sun and other planets

6. An artificial satellite circles Earth in a circular orbit at a location where the acceleration due to
gravity is 9 m/s2. Determine the orbital period of the satellite.

7. A satellite moves in a circular orbit around the Earth at a speed of 5000 m/s. Determine

(a) the satellite’s altitude above the surface of the Earth and

(b) the period of the satellite’s orbit.

8. A 1 000-kg satellite orbits the Earth at a constant altitude of 100 km. (a) How much energy
must be added to the system to move the satellite into a circular orbit with altitude 200 km? What
are the changes in the system’s (b) kinetic energy and (c) potential energy?

40
9. Show that the speed of an Earth satellite in circular orbit is given by the expression

GM E
v
RE  h

where h is the height of the satellite above the Earth’s surface.

41
 Tutorial Sheet 11
Rotational motional

1. A wheel rotates with an angular acceleration α = 6at − 2b. At t = 0, the wheel has an angular
speed and angular position . Write down the equations for the angular speed and angular
position as a function of time t.

2. A flywheel of mass 500 kg and one meter diameter makes 500 r.p.m. Assuming the mass to be
concentrated at the rim, calculate the angular velocity, moment of inertia and energy of the
flywheel.

3. A boy stands at the centre of a turn table with his two arms stretched. The turn table is set
rotating with an angular speed of 40 r.p.m. How much is the angular speed of the boy if he folds
his hands back and thereby reduces his moment of inertia to 2/5 times the initial value? Assume
the turn table to rotate without friction.

4. A wheel rotates in such a way that its angular displacement as a function of time t is given
by:

Where is in radians and is in seconds.

At t = 2 seconds, find its angular velocity and angular acceleration

5. Consider a solid disc of radius r and mass m initially at rest on an inclined surface. Show that
if the disc rolls without slipping from a height , it reaches the bottom of the incline with speed

6. Explain why the speed of rotation of an ice skater increases when she assumes a position with
folded arms than a position with stretched arms.

42
7. A uniform solid sphere of radius r and mass m starts from rest at the top of an incline of height
h and rolls down. How fast is the moving when it reaches the bottom? Assume that it rolls
2 2
smoothly and that friction energy losses are negligible. Take I  mr for a uniform sphere.
5

8. A force of 7.0 N is applied to a string wound on the rim of a 20 cm diameter wheel. How
much work is done by this force as it turns the wheel through 30 o?

9. Three objects of uniform density — a solid sphere, a solid cylinder, and a hollow cylinder —
are placed at the top of an incline as shown in the Figure below. They are all released from rest at
the same elevation and roll without slipping. Which object reaches the bottom first? Which
reaches it last? Try this at home and note that the result is independent of the masses and the
radii of the objects.

43
 Tutorial Sheet 12

Tutorial Sheet 12 a
Electric Forces and Fields

1. The four point charges in the Figure below are q1 = +1µC, q2 = +2µC, q3 = +3µC and q4 = -4µ
C. Find the electrostatic force (magnitude and direction) q2 due to the other three charges. Take
a = 40 cm and b = 60 cm.

2. Two pith balls hang from a single support as shown in the Figure below. Each has a mass of
1.0 g and carries a charge q. The length of the string (nonconducting) is 40 cm, and the balls
come to equilibrium with θ = 30o. Find the charge q on each ball.

3. Two point charges q1 and q2 1.0 m apart exert a force of magnitude 0.090 N on each other.
The algebraic sum of the two charges is q1 + q2 = 7.0 µC. Find the magnitude q1 and q2. Is the
force attractive or repulsive?

44
4. An isolated hollow metal sphere of radius 40 cm carries a charge of minus 10.0 µC. What is
the magnitude of the electric field E (a) in the empty space inside the sphere and (b) 60 cm from
the centre of the sphere?

5. A proton traveling along the x axis is slowed by a uniform electric field E. At x = 0 cm, the
proton has a speed of 3.5×106 m/s, and at x = 70 cm it has completely stopped. Find the
magnitude and direction of the electric field E. Take the mass of the proton as mp = 1.67×10-27
kg.

6. The electrostatic force on a small sphere of charge 0.4 C due to another small sphere of
charge 0.8 C in air is 0.2N.

(a) What is the distance between the two spheres?

(b) What is the force on the second sphere due to the first?

7. Two point charges q1 = +3 μC and q2 = +5 μC are 10 cm apart. A point charge q3 = +2 μC is

placed midway between q1 and q2. Find the magnitude and the direction of the resultant force on
q3

9. Two spheres contain charges of 10 C and 20 C respectively. They are separated by a

distance of 100 cm. Where will the electric field intensity between the two spheres be zero?

Tutorial Sheet 12 b
Electric Potential

1. An electron is shot from one large metal plate towards a parallel plate. If the initial speed of
the electron is 6.0×106 m/s and its speed just before it hits the second plate is 4.0×106 m/s, what
is the potential difference between th e plates? Is the second plate at a higher or lower potential?

2. Two parallel plates have a potential difference of 80 V. (a) A proton is shot from the negative
plate towards the positive plate with an initial energy of 100 eV. What is the kinetic energy of

45
the proton just before it strikes the positive plate? (b) Repeat if the proton is shot from the
positive plate towards the negative plate.

3. A test charge q1 = 0.2 µC is positioned on the y axis +4.0 cm away from a fixed charge q2 =
20.0 µC located at the coordinate origin. The test charge is moved 8.0 cm along the y axis and
then 9.0 cm parallel to the x axis, both away from away from the fixed charge. What is the
change in the electrical potential energy of the test charge q1 ?

4. Two small charged bodies carrying charges of +8 µC and -12 µC are separated by distance of
8 cm. Find (a) The location of the point P along the line joining the two charges where the
electric field strength is zero, (b) The electric potential at the point P, and (c) The work done by
the electric field to bring a charge of -2×10-8C from infinity to the point P. Take k = 9×109
Nm2C-2.

Tutorial Sheet 12 c
Direct Current Circuits

1. Number 18 copper wire has a diameter of 1.024 mm. The maximum safe current through this
size of wire is 12 A (At higher currents the wire becomes too hot). (a) Find the resistance of 20
m length of a number 18 copper wire at 20oC. (b) How large a potential difference exists
between the ends of the wire in (a) when it carries 12 A?

2. The heating element of a room heater is made of 4.0 m length of tungsten wire. When
connected to a 240 V source, the filament attains a temperature of 450 oC and consumes 1500
watts of power. What is the cross sectional area of the wire?

3. Consider the circuit below. What is the resistance seen by the battery when the switch S is (a)
open and (b) closed? (c) What is the current through the 4 Ω resistor when the switch is closed?

46
4. In the circuit below calculate (a) the potential difference between points A and B, (b) the
points A and C, and (c) the power delivered to the 16 Ω resistor.

5. A house circuit operating at 240V has 30A circuit breaker. A 1500W iron, a 2000 W electric
grill, and a lamp are operated simultaneously. What is the maximum possible wattage of the
bulb, which can be used in the lamp without tripping the circuit breaker?

6. In the circuit below what would (a) the ammeter and (b) the voltmeter read if ε were 40 V and
R were 8 Ω?

47
7. Using Kirchhoff’s rules, find the current in each resistor in the figure below.

8. A metallic rod has a length 1.5m and a diameter 0.2 cm. The rod carries a current of 5A when
a p.d of 75V is applied between its ends. (a) Find the current density in the rod. (b) Calculate the
magnitude of the electric field applied to the rod. (c) Calculate the resistivity and conductivity of
the material of the rod.

9. At 20 , a silver wire has a diameter of 2 mm, a length of 50 cm, a resistivity of 1.6×10−8

Ω.m, a temperature coefficient of resistivity of 4×10−3/ and carries a current of 5A.

(a) What is the current density in the wire?

(b) Find the magnitude of the electric field applied to the wire.

(c) What is the potential difference between the ends of the wire?

(d)What is the resistance of the wire?

(e) Find the temperature of the wire when its resistance increases to 6.5×10−4 Ω.

10. A light bulb that has a resistance R = 4 is connected to a battery that has an emf =9V
and internal resistance r =0.02 . Find the current in the circuit and the terminal voltage of the
battery

48