Find the total mechanical energy.

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around a problem related to simple harmonic motion (SHM) involving a piston in an engine. The original poster seeks to determine the total mechanical energy of the system without knowing the mass of the piston.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants question the necessity of the piston's mass to calculate the total mechanical energy, with some suggesting that energy is proportional to mass given fixed frequency and amplitude.

Discussion Status

There is an ongoing exploration of whether it is possible to find the total mechanical energy without the mass. Some participants have reiterated the formula for energy in SHM, indicating a lack of consensus on the feasibility of solving the problem as posed.

Contextual Notes

The original poster references an answer of 14 μJ, but the validity of this answer is under scrutiny due to the missing mass information.

YMasoud
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Good day,
I found this question on the Web.

A piston in an engine moves back and forth over a distance of 2mm in SHM with a frequency of 120Hz. Find the total mechanical energy.

Is there a way to find the energy without knowing the piston's mass?
The answer provided is [tex]14 \mu~J[/tex]

Many thanks,
YMasoud
 
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I don't see how--the energy would be proportional to the mass (given fixed frequency and amplitude). Perhaps the mass is given elsewhere.
 
YMasoud said:
Good day,
I found this question on the Web.

A piston in an engine moves back and forth over a distance of 2mm in SHM with a frequency of 120Hz. Find the total mechanical energy.

Is there a way to find the energy without knowing the piston's mass?
The answer provided is [tex]14 \mu~J[/tex]

Many thanks,
YMasoud
I don't see how. The total energy is [itex]{1 \over 2} m \omega^2 A^2[/itex].
 
I've been looking for a way to do it without the mass and I can't see it...
 

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