SPH3U Learning Activity 2.

6
Lab: Net Force, Mass and Acceleration

Lab: Net Force, Mass and Acceleration

Open the interactive. Use the interactive to investigate how force, mass, and acceleration are

related by completing the following lab activity.

https://tdsb.elearningontario.ca/content/enforced/25367756-EL_SCI_SPH3UE-1229985_998940_2

324/course_content/ilo/force_mass_and_acceleration/index.html?ou=25367756

Purpose
The purpose of this experiment is to

a) determine the relationship between acceleration and net force

b) determine the relationship between acceleration and mass.

Experimental Setup
The simulated apparatus consists of a wagon on a frictionless surface, attached to a hanging mass by
a string that rests on a frictionless pulley. The mass of the wagon and hanging block can be adjusted
using the sliders.

Experiments
With the mass of the wagon set at 100 g (0.10 kg) and the hanging mass of 1 g (0.001 kg), press the
“Start” button. Observe the movement of the wagon and the hanging mass. You can always replay
the trial by pressing the “Reset” button and then hit the “Start” button again. Note: the distance the
wagon moves is 1 metre.
a) What happened once the “Start” button was pressed?
Once the start button was pressed, the pulley started to decline until it hit the ground. This caused the wagon
to slide to the right until it hit the start of the pulley.

b) Compare the movement of the wagon to the movement of the hanging mass.
The wagon and mass both seem to accelerate towards the end, but the wagon in the direction towards the
right and the mass towards the bottom.

c) Since the wagon and the hanging mass are attached together, they experience the same movement.
They travel the same distance in the same amount of time. Both objects seem to be speeding up. If
you can find the object of one object, then you will know the acceleration of the other. You already
know the displacement travelled by the wagon and the time this took (see the screen), so you can use
the 1 equation 𝛥𝑑 = 𝑣1𝛥𝑡 + 1/2𝑎(𝛥𝑡)2 to find the acceleration. Both the wagon and the hanging mass
have 2 zero initial velocity, since the system was initially at rest. Rearrange the equation to solve for
2𝛥𝑑 acceleration, remembering to use 𝑣1 = 0. The equation then becomes 𝑎 = to calculate (𝛥𝑡)2
acceleration, as required during the experiment. You do not need to include the direction, as you are
interested in the magnitude of the acceleration. Remember that ∆𝑑 = 1 𝑚.
 Given:
V1 = 0
𝛥𝑑 = 1m

Required: a (acceleration)
Analysis:
𝛥𝑑 = 𝑣1𝛥𝑡 + 1/2𝑎(𝛥𝑡)^2
Solve:
𝛥𝑑 = 0 + 1/2𝑎(𝛥𝑡)^2
a = 2Δd / (Δt)^2
a = 2 / Δt^2

Plug in the time to find out the acceleration.

Part 1: The Relationship Between Acceleration and Net Force

You will change the mass of the hanging mass, but leave the mass of the wagon constant. Before doing the

activity, first predict what will happen to the motion of the system as the mass of the hanging mass increases.

Step 1: Using a 100 g (0.10 kg) wagon and a 1 g (0.001 kg) hanging mass, run the experiment and record the
data in a data table like the one that is shown below.

1
Copyright © 2021 The Ontario Educational Communications Authority. All rights reserved.
SPH3U Learning Activity 2.6
Lab: Net Force, Mass and Acceleration

Step 2: Repeat step 1 three (3) more times, but change the value of the hanging mass (suggested values are 2.0
g, 4.0 g, and 6.0 g). Be sure to record the mass values in kilograms on the table. Your data table should be
complete, except for the column labelled “Fhanging mass ”

Step 3: We are studying the relationship between force and acceleration in this part of the experiment and so
must calculate the magnitude of the force that is causing the motion. In this case, the weight of the hanging
mass causes the system to accelerate. Recall that the force due to gravity (weight) of an object, 𝐹𝑔 is
calculated by multiplying the mass by g (acceleration due to gravity), which is 9.8 N/kg near the surface of
the earth. Thus, 𝐹ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠= 𝑚ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 × 𝑔. Note: the net force on the system is equal to the
𝐹ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠.

Observations
 Trial m wagon mhanging mass Fhanging mass ∆𝑑 (s) a
(kg) (kg) (or net (m) (m/s2 )
force) (N)

1 0.10 0.001 0.0098 1 04.517s 0.098

2 0.10 0.002 0.0197 1 03.200s 0.197

3 0.10 0.004 0.0392 1 02.265s 0.394

4 0.10 0.006 0.0588 1 01.851s 0.583

Analysis
a) Print out a sheet of graph paper and graph acceleration versus net force. Acceleration
should be on the vertical axis.

b) Describe the relationship between acceleration and the net force

There is a positive correlation between acceleration and net force. As acceleration increases, so does the
net force.

c) Draw a straight line through your points (through the origin). What would be the units
of the slope of the line?
 G:
𝑎 = a is the acceleration,
𝐹 = F is the net force (units are Newtons)
𝑘 = k is the slope of the line.

R: k

A:
F=ma
a=k⋅F

S:
k = acceleration(m/s2)​/ force(N)
=2m/s^2 / kg⋅m/s
​=1 / kg

S:
Therefore, the units of the slope of the line are 1 / kg​. This slope indicates how much acceleration
is produced per unit of force applied to the system.

d) Determine the slope of the line. What do you think the slope represents?
G:
y2 = 0.197 m/s^2
y1 = 0.098 m/s^2
x2 = 0.0197 N
x1 = 0.0098 N

R: Slope

A: y2-y1 / x2-x1

S:
= 0.197-0.098 / 0.0197-0.0098
= 10m/s^2 per N
This indicates that for every 1 Newton of net force applied, the system experiences an acceleration of
10 m/s^2.

The slope represents the inverse of the mass of the system:

Slope = 1 / msystem

= 1 / 10 = 0.1kg

This means the total mass of the system (including the wagon and the hanging mass) is 0.1 kg. This matches
the experimental setup where the mass of the wagon is 0.1 kg.
 Part 2: The Relationship Between Acceleration and Mass

You will change the mass of the wagon, but keep the mass of the hanging mass constant.

Step 1: With the hanging mass set at 1 g and the wagon set at 100 g, run the experiment and record the data

table like the one that follows.

Step 2: Repeat step 1 three (3) more times, but change the mass of the wagon. Suggested values at 120 g, 140
g and 160 g.
Step 3: Create a data table as shown below with a column labelled “1/mass” or “1/m”.

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Copyright © 2021 The Ontario Educational Communications Authority. All rights reserved.
SPH3U Learning Activity 2.6
Lab: Net Force, Mass and Acceleration

Observations
Trial m wagon 1/m mhanging ∆𝑑 𝛥𝑡 a 1/m
(kg) wagon mass (m) (s) (m/s2 )
(1 kg) (kg)

1 0.100 0.001 0.98 1 04.517s 0.098 10kg

2 0.120 0.001 0.98 1 04.954s 0.081 8.33kg

3 0.140 0.001 0.98 1 05.349s 0.070 7.14kg

4 0.160 0.001 0.98 1 05.711s 0.061 6.25kg

Analysis

a) Print out a sheet of graph paper and graph acceleration versus mass of the wagon.
Acceleration should be on the vertical axis.
b) Describe the relationship between acceleration and the mass of the wagon.
The relation is an inverse relationship, meaning they have a negative correlation. As the mass of the
wagon increases, the acceleration decreases.

c) Print out a sheet of graph paper and graph acceleration versus 1/m wagon .
Acceleration should be on the vertical axis.
d) Describe the relationship between acceleration and 1/m wagon.
There is a positive correlation, as the 1/m wagon increases, so does acceleration.

e) Which graph shows a trend that could be modelled with a line?

The 1/m wagon vs acceleration graph has a more consistent slope and could be more likely to be
modeled by a line. This is consistent with the theoretical expectation from Newton's second law, which
predicts a linear relationship between acceleration and the inverse of mass when the force is constant.
f ) Draw a line through the points on the graph from the above question. What are the units
of the slope of the line?

The slope is acceleration units / inverse mass unit

= m/s^2​/ 1/kg
= m⋅kg/s2
=N
The units of the slope of the line will be in Newtons.

g) Determine the slope of the line. What do you think the slope represents?
G:
y2=0. 081
y1=0.098
(1/m)2=8. 33
 (1/m)1=10

R: Slope

A: Slope = y2-y1 / x2-x1

S:
= (0.081−0.098) / (8.33-10)
= 0.0102 m*kg/s^2
= 0.010N

S:
The slope of the line is 0.0102 m*kg/s^2, which is equivalent to around 0.010 Newtons.
The slope of the graph of acceleration versus the inverse of the mass of the wagon represents the net
force applied to the system.

Conclusion
Refer to the purpose and state the results of this experiment.

The purpose of this experiment was to determine the relationships between acceleration and net force, and
acceleration and mass. As the hanging mass increases, both the net force and acceleration also increase.
This aligns with Newton's Second Law (F=ma), which states that objects with greater mass require more
force to accelerate. Because of this, a larger net force applied to an object results in greater acceleration.
The results demonstrated this, that acceleration is directly proportional to the net force applied to the
system, as shown by a positive linear relationship in the graph of acceleration versus net force.

Conversely, acceleration was found to be inversely proportional to the mass of the wagon, shown by a
negative correlation in the graph of acceleration versus mass, and a positive linear relationship when
plotted against the inverse of the mass. When extra mass is added to the wagon while it is being pushed by
the net force (which remains constant),the acceleration reduces due to the increased mass.

The graph of acceleration vs. wagon mass is not a straight linear line, indicating that the acceleration is not
proportional. However, when we plot acceleration vs the inverse of mass, two values are proportional.

Some errors that may have occurred in this lab would be numerical precision, the precision of numerical
calculations within the simulation. This includes rounding errors in calculations or limitations in time and
distance measurements within the simulation environment. There was a lot of rounding required throughout
the calculations that may have led to man made errors. The accuracy of the simulation model can also
cause errors depending on how well the simulation model matches real-world physics. Any differences
between the simulated behavior and actual physical laws could lead to inaccuracies in the relationships
studied.