Elastic or not? Billiard ball colliding with another

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on determining whether a collision between two billiard balls is elastic. The first ball, with a mass of 0.155 kg and an initial velocity of 12.5 m/s, strikes a stationary identical ball and moves off at a velocity of 9.56 m/s at an angle of 29.7° clockwise. To assess the elasticity of the collision, one must calculate the kinetic energy before and after the collision, confirming that kinetic energy is conserved across both dimensions (x and y) if the collision is indeed elastic.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of kinetic energy and its formula: KE = 0.5 * m * v²
  • Basic knowledge of vector components in two-dimensional motion
  • Familiarity with the principles of elastic and inelastic collisions
  • Ability to apply conservation laws in physics
NEXT STEPS
  • Calculate the final velocity of the second billiard ball using conservation of momentum.
  • Learn about the conservation of kinetic energy in elastic collisions.
  • Study vector decomposition to analyze motion in two dimensions.
  • Explore examples of elastic and inelastic collisions in real-world scenarios.
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Physics students, educators, and anyone interested in understanding the principles of collisions and energy conservation in mechanics.

aeromat
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Homework Statement


Billiard ball with mass 0.155kg moves with a velocity of 12.5m/s towards a stationary billiard ball. Assume they both have identical masses. The first billiard ball moves off at an angle of 29.7° clockwise after hitting the stationary one, with a velocity of 9.56m/s. Determine whether the collision was elastic?


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The Attempt at a Solution


Ok the main thing I need to ask is this: is the energy conserved independent for each dimension, in this case, x and y have diff. kinetic energy conservations?
 
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What you'd need to do is find the velocity of the second ball and then check to see if KE before is the same as KE after.
 
aeromat said:
Ok the main thing I need to ask is this: is the energy conserved independent for each dimension, in this case, x and y have diff. kinetic energy conservations?

Kinetic energy is conserved irrespective of dimension if it is an elastic collision
 

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