How Do I Find the Force of Friction for My Lab Report?

[Nabik33]

Homework Statement

Ok, I am doing attempting to do a lab report right now and I am unable to find the forces that I need.

This is what i am being asked to do:
"Plot the force (not mass) applied by the sand versus the force exerted on the track by the block and its load for both the kinetic and static cases with the felt-aluminum interface."

All I have are the masses of the two objects. One object(the block) is on a surface while the other(the sand) is hanging over the edge with a pulley.

What I think I need is the applied force by the sand and the friction force but not entirely sure how to do that.

Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[member 553083]

Homework Equations F=maThe Attempt at a SolutionTo calculate the applied force by the sand, use the equation F=ma. The mass of the sand is given, so you can calculate the force by multiplying the mass by the acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m/s2). To calculate the friction force, use the equation Ffriction = μN where μ is the coefficient of friction and N is the normal force. The normal force can be calculated by multiplying the mass of the block by the acceleration due to gravity.