Elastic collision in two dimensions

AI Thread Summary
The discussion revolves around solving a problem involving an elastic collision between two pucks on a frictionless surface. The first puck, weighing 0.35 kg and moving at 2.3 m/s, collides with a stationary 0.23 kg puck. After the collision, the first puck moves at 2.0 m/s at an angle of -32°. The key to solving the problem lies in using the conservation of momentum and kinetic energy equations to find the velocity of the second puck post-collision. The momentum of the first puck after the collision is calculated, and the remaining momentum needed for the second puck is then determined to ensure total momentum is conserved.
linnus
Messages
22
Reaction score
0

Homework Statement



On a frictionless surface, a 0.35 kg puck moves horizontally to the right (at an angle of 0°) and a speed of 2.3 m/s. It collides with a 0.23 kg puck that is stationary. After the collision, the puck that was initially moving has a speed of 2.0 m/s and is moving at an angle of −32°. What is the velocity of the other puck after the collision?

Homework Equations


Momentum before= momentum after
kinetic energy before= kinetic energy after
AB=AB cos (x)

The Attempt at a Solution



From Momentum before= momentum after, I got
M1=first mass
Vi1=initial velocity of the first mass
Vf1=final velocity of the first mass...and I think you get the rest
M1(Vi1-Vf1)=(M2)(Vf2)

From the kinetic energy before= kinetic energy after, i got
M1(Vi1^2-V1f^2)=(M2)(V2f^2)

Now I'm kinda lost on what to do...some advice?
 
Last edited:
Physics news on Phys.org
ok so you have one puck moving straight to the right initially. this has a certain momentum. this certain momentum is equal to the momentum of both of the pucks after the collision (which you already stated)

initial momentum = .35 x 2.3 = .805 to the right (0 degrees)

if you know that one will move at -32 degrees with a velocity of 2 so determine its momentum. all you have to do now is find the other momentum vector that, when added to this one, will equal .805 at 0 degrees.
 
Last edited:
i got it, thanks
 
I multiplied the values first without the error limit. Got 19.38. rounded it off to 2 significant figures since the given data has 2 significant figures. So = 19. For error I used the above formula. It comes out about 1.48. Now my question is. Should I write the answer as 19±1.5 (rounding 1.48 to 2 significant figures) OR should I write it as 19±1. So in short, should the error have same number of significant figures as the mean value or should it have the same number of decimal places as...
Thread 'A cylinder connected to a hanging mass'
Let's declare that for the cylinder, mass = M = 10 kg Radius = R = 4 m For the wall and the floor, Friction coeff = ##\mu## = 0.5 For the hanging mass, mass = m = 11 kg First, we divide the force according to their respective plane (x and y thing, correct me if I'm wrong) and according to which, cylinder or the hanging mass, they're working on. Force on the hanging mass $$mg - T = ma$$ Force(Cylinder) on y $$N_f + f_w - Mg = 0$$ Force(Cylinder) on x $$T + f_f - N_w = Ma$$ There's also...
Back
Top