EFFECTS OF FORCE
Effects of a force on the shape and size of an object
A force can or tends to change the shape and size of objects.
e.g.
1. Lump of bostik would change shape when pressed.
2. An inflated balloon changes size when more air is blown into it.
Some of the objects return to their original shapes and sizes when the external
force which was previously applied on them is removed. These objects are called
elastic materials, e.g. rubber band, steel spring, etc.
Other objects do not return to their original or sizes even when the force is removed.
They will remain permanently deformed. These are called plastic materials, e.g.
plasticine, bostik, clay, etc.
Stretching a spring
LO
L
e = L – Lo where e = extension of the spring
L = new length of stretched spring
L0 = original/normal length of the spring
When the load (weight) which was applied to the spring is removed, the spring
returns to its normal length. The spring is elastic but only to a certain limit.
Experiment: To investigate the relationship between the extension of a
spring and load (stretching force)
Procedure
• Suspend a steel spring from a retort stand as shown above
• Attach a pointer in a horizontal position to the end of the spring with some bostik.
• Place a metre rule vertically near the spring
• Suspend the mass hanger on the spring as shown above
• Adjust the height of the ruler such that the pointer is at a convenient reading, say
around 30 cm, record this as initial scale reading.
• Add 100 g (1.0 N) loads one at a time and note and record the new scale reading
after each load.
• Record the observations in a table up to 500 g (5.0 N) and calculate the
extension for each load.
TABLE OF RESULTS
e = New reading L – Initial scale reading LO
Mass/kg Load Scale Extension F/e
F/N reading/cm e/cm (N/cm)
0.0 0 54.0 - -
0.1 1 57.8 3.8 0.3
0.2 2 63.5 9.5 0.2
0.3 69.0 0.2
3 15.0
0.4 72.4 0.2
4 18.4
0.5 76.6 0.2
5 22.5
Graph of load F (force)/N against extension/cm
The straight line graph shows that the extension of the spring is directly proportional to the
load.
This shows that the extension increases in equal steps as the load increases.
Thus, when the load is doubled, the extension also doubles.
i.e. 𝐹 𝛼 𝑒.
Then 𝐹 = 𝑘𝑒, where,
𝐹 = force applied in newtons (N),
𝑒 = extension of the spring in cm, and
𝑘 = constant of proportionality/ force constant or spring constant.
i.e. F α e
then F = ke -------------> Hooke’s law
where F = force applied in newtons (N)
e = extension of the spring in metres (m)
k = constant of proportionality/ force constant or
spring constant in N/m
SPRING CONSTANT
It is the amount of force required to give a spring a unit extension.
It measures the stiffness or softness of the spring.
A stiff spring has a high value of spring constant(𝑘) than a soft one.
It is measured in N/cm, N/mm or N/m.
Dividing the 𝐹 by its corresponding 𝑒 always gives the same result.
HOOKE’S LAW
If you add more masses to mass hanger and take the corresponding extensions and
draw a graph as before, the graph will be a straight line and a curve towards the
end, showing that towards the end, load and extension were no longer proportional.
Hooke’s law states that:
“the extension of a spring is directly proportional to the load/force
applied, provided the elastic limit of the spring is not exceeded”.
The spring behaves elastically only to point P.
That is, the Hooke’s law is obeyed only from the origin to the point P.
The point P is the limit of proportionality of the spring.
After this point, load is not directly proportional to the extension of the
spring.
i.e. 𝐹 ≠ 𝑘𝑒.
The point E is the elastic limit of the spring.
Beyond the elastic limit, the spring loses its elasticity.
This is where it would fail to return to its original length even when the load
is removed from it.
