DELHI PUBLIC SCHOOL, RANIPUR

CLASS VIII
PHYSICS (NOTES)
CH12: FRICTION

 Friction is a force that opposes the relative motion between two

surfaces of objects in contact. The force of friction always acts in a
direction opposite to that of the applied force.

 Relative motion - When one object moves relative to another it is called a relative motion.

 Cause of friction:

Friction is caused by the interlocking of irregularities in the surfaces of

two objects which are in contact with each other. In order to move one
object over the other, we have to apply force to overcome interlocking.

 Factors affecting friction:

The friction between two surfaces depends on two factors:
1. The nature of the two surfaces (roughness of the two surfaces):
More the roughness of a surface, larger is the number of irregularities on its surface & hence greater
will be the friction.
2. The force with which two surfaces are pressed together:
Pressing together two surfaces of objects with a greater force will increase the interlocking in the two
surfaces & hence increase the friction.

 Spring balance:

 A force can be measured using a spring balance.

 The unit of force is Newton (N)
 The pointer of the spring balance will be at zero, when nothing is hung from the
hook of the spring balance.
 Calculating frictional force using a spring balance

 To determine the coefficient of friction between two surfaces, pull an object

placed on a surface using a spring balance that is used to measure weight/ force in
the unit Newton(N).
 Pull a spring balance connected to the object and slowly increase the force until the
object begins to slide on the surface.
Spring Balance
 Make sure the spring balance is parallel to the surface. The reading on the spring balance scale when
the load/ object begins to slide is a measure for the static friction, while the reading when the block
continues to slide is a measure of sliding friction.
 Friction is of three types:
a) Static friction: The Frictional force that comes into play until an
object starts moving is called static Friction. When a body is at rest,
the force of friction is called the static friction and is always equal and
opposite to the applied force. An object has to overcome the static
Friction force in order to start its movement.
b) Sliding friction: The frictional force present when one object slides
over the surface of another object is known as sliding friction. When
the object is in motion or sliding, the irregularities of the moving
object doesn’t get enough time to interlock with the irregularities of
the surface. So, sliding friction is always less than static friction.
c) Rolling friction: When an object rolls over the surface of another
object, then the frictional force that comes into picture is called rolling
friction. Rolling friction is less than sliding friction.

NOTE: Static friction > Sliding friction > Rolling friction

 Friction is a necessary evil because in some cases, friction is useful but in other cases friction is
harmful.

 Advantages of friction:
Frictional force is necessary for various purposes in our daily lives such as:

1. It is the friction between the sole of our shoes & ground that enable us to walk without slipping.
2. It is the friction between brake pad and rim that prevents the wheel from moving ahead. Due
to this, the running bicycle slows down & finally stops.
3. Friction enables us to write with a pen on a surface or a paper. It is due to the friction between
tip of the pencil & paper that rubs off black graphite particles from the tip of the pencil which
stick to the paper & leave black marks on paper. In case of smooth surface, friction is not sufficient
to rub off that black graphite.
4. It is the friction between the surface of wall & nail which holds the nail tightly in the wall.
5. Friction enables us to light a matchstick. When we rub the matchstick against a rough
surface, then friction between the tip of matchstick & rough surface produces heat, as a
result matchstick catches fire.
6. A moving object would never be able to come to the state of rest without the Frictional force.
7. It would not be possible to drive any automobiles on the road without the Friction force.
8. It would not be possible to construct any buildings without the Frictional force.

 Disadvantages of friction:

1. Friction wears away the soles of our shoes.

2. Due to friction between the surface of tyres & the surface of road, the tyres wear out
gradually.
3. Friction wears out the brake pads of vehicles gradually. As a result brake pads of cycles have to be
replaced quite often.
4. Friction wears out steps of staircases in foot over- bridges.
5. Friction produces unwanted heat which can damage & reduce the efficiency of
machines. In the case of machines, the production of heat leads to wastage of energy.
6. The Frictional force also leads to a decrease in the speed of a moving object or some time stops it.
7. It can lead to noise pollution in certain cases. For instance, aircrafts produce loud sound due to the
resistance of the air.
 How can we reduce or increase Friction?

 Methods of increasing friction:

Sometimes we need to increase Friction so as to avoid slipping of objects, for example:
1. The sole of the shoes is grooved so that the Friction between our feet and ground increases and we
can walk safely
2. The tyres are treaded so that they can have a better grip over the ground and allow the smooth
movement of the vehicles.
3. Brake pads are used in bikes to stop them suddenly from moving by increasing the amount of
Friction.
4. Kabaddi players rub their hands with soil which helps in increasing the Friction between the hands
and allows them to have an easy grip of the opponent.
5. Gymnasts also apply a coarse substance so that they can have a better grip due to increased Friction in
their hands.

 Methods of reducing friction:

Sometimes in order to have a smooth movement of an object we need to reduce Friction. For example,
1. The powder is sprinkled over the carrom board to decrease the Friction between the board’s surface
and the striker. In this way, the surface of the carrom board becomes smooth.
2. By making the surface smooth by polishing.
3. By applying lubricants (like oil or grease).
Applying oil or grease helps in avoiding interlocking between the two rubbing surfaces to a large
extent. As a result, friction is reduced. Grease is used in bicycles and other motors or different parts of
a machine to reduce Friction and increase their efficiency. Oil is applied on the hinges of the door so
that they can move easily.
4. By using wheels to move objects.
5. By using ball bearings between the moving parts of machines.

Lubricants Ball Bearings

NOTE: (i) In some machines, it may not be advisable to use oil as lubricant. In such machines, an air
cushion between the moving parts is used to reduce friction.
(ii) Friction can never be entirely eliminated.

 How wheels reduce Friction?

 We know that when an object rolls over a surface rolling Friction is produced which resists its motion
on the surface. However, its magnitude is lesser than the static and sliding Friction.
 The wheels allow an object to roll over a surface rather than allowing them to slide over the surface.
This results in less Friction and hence easy movement of the
object.
 Rolling Friction is also used in the parts of machines that are
moving continuously.
 In this way, the sliding Friction is removed with the help of
rolling Friction and therefore the adverse effects of Friction such
as the production of heat or wear and tear of the mechanical
parts are also reduced.
  For instance, ball bearings are being used in fans and bicycles to reduce Friction.
 Fluid friction :-
 Friction exerted by fluids i.e. gases or liquid is termed as fluid friction or drag.
 The magnitude of drag (fluid friction) depends on
1. Speed of the object with respect to the fluid.
2. Shape of the object
3. Nature of the fluid.

 When object moves through the fluids, they have to overcome friction acting on them. In this
process, they lose energy. Therefore, efforts are being made to minimize energy by giving special
shape to the objects called ‘streamlined shape’. That’s why cars, airplanes & rockets have
streamlined shape.
 For instance, ships and boats have a particular shape that allows them to resist fluid Friction.
 Birds and airplanes have a specific shape that allows them to fly in the air.
 Fishes also have a specific shape such as a tail and fins that allow them to swim continuously in
water and even prevent the loss of energy due to fluid Friction.
 Not only this, all the vehicles are designed in a way that they can resist the fluid Friction because air
is present everywhere.

Objects can resist fluid friction because of their special shape

Prepared by:-

Ankur Sharma

MW, DPSR