Determine the Effect of Mass on Acceleration with a Toy Car
How can we determine how the mass of the fan-car-object system affects the acceleration of the system?
Which of the following procedures could be used to find out how the mass of the fan-car-object system affects the acceleration of the system?
A) Measure the mass of the system using a balance, activate the fan, measure the distance traveled by the system at a known time by using a stopwatch, and repeat the experiment for several trials with different objects added to the carriage.
B) Measure the mass of the system using a balance, activate the fan, use a meterstick and stopwatch to measure the initial and final speeds of the system, and repeat the experiment for several trials with different objects added to the carriage.
C) Measure the mass of the system using a balance, connect a spring scale to the back of the car, measure the amount of force required to hold the system at rest, and repeat the experiment for several trials with different objects added to the carriage.
D) Measure the mass of the system using a balance, activate the fan, use a stopwatch to record the time it takes for the system to travel before the battery of the fan no longer works, and repeat the experiment for several trials with different objects added to the carriage.
Answer:
Measure the mass of the system using a balance, activate the fan, measure the distance traveled by the system at a known time by using a stopwatch, and repeat the experiment for several trials with different objects added to the carriage.
Explanation:
To determine how the mass of the fan-car-object system affects acceleration, the procedure mentioned above is the most appropriate. By measuring the distance traveled at a known time with different masses added to the carriage, we can observe the impact of mass on acceleration.
When wanting to study how mass affects acceleration in a system involving a toy car with a fan and attached objects, it is essential to consider Newton's Second Law of Motion. According to this law, the resultant force acting on an object is directly proportional to the acceleration produced and inversely proportional to the mass of the object.
The formula representing this relationship is written as: ∑F = m. a, where F represents force in Newtons, m is the mass in kilograms, and a is acceleration in meters per second squared.
Among the given procedures, choosing option C is the most suitable for this experiment. By measuring the force required to hold the system at rest using a spring scale and varying the mass of objects on the carriage, we can understand how mass affects acceleration.
As per the formula, it can be inferred that a greater mass leads to a smaller acceleration in the system. Conducting multiple trials with different masses will provide valuable data on the relationship between mass and acceleration.