Momentum is not conserved with elastic bouncing ball?

In summary, throwing an elastic bouncy ball at a non-closed door results in the ball bouncing off with greater velocity than it initially approached the door with, due to the conservation of momentum. This is in contrast to an inelastic ball, which would transfer all of its momentum to the door and fall to the ground. This concept is also applicable when the door is moving against the ball.
  • #1
vizakenjack
57
4
So if you throw an elastic bouncy ball at the non-closed door, it will bounce off with bigger velocity than it was approaching the door before hitting it, as well as the door will now have some gained momentum and will move.

P (momentum) = mv

In this case, it appears as if the ball gained additional momentum (after hitting the door) out of nowhere...

In fact, if you compare it to throwing an inelastic ball at the door, then the inelastic ball after hitting the door will give all of its momentum to the door and then simply fall down to the ground.

I also read this thread already.
 
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  • #2
Unless the door is moving against the ball, the ball won't bounce with more velocity.

Momentum is always conserved
 
  • #3
vizakenjack said:
So if you throw an elastic bouncy ball at the non-closed door, it will bounce off with bigger velocity than it was approaching the door before hitting it
Where have you seen that?
 

1. What is momentum and why is it important in physics?

Momentum is a physical property that describes the motion of an object. It is defined as the product of an object's mass and velocity. In physics, momentum is important because it helps us understand how objects interact with each other and how forces affect motion.

2. Why is momentum conserved in most situations?

In most situations, momentum is conserved because of the law of conservation of momentum. This law states that the total momentum of a closed system remains constant, meaning that momentum cannot be created or destroyed. This is true for most situations, except for those involving elastic collisions.

3. How does an elastic collision affect the momentum of objects?

In an elastic collision, the total momentum of the system is conserved. This means that the sum of the momentums of the objects before the collision is equal to the sum of the momentums of the objects after the collision. However, the momentums of the individual objects may change direction and speed during the collision.

4. Why is momentum not conserved in an elastic bouncing ball?

In an elastic collision, the objects involved bounce off of each other without any loss of kinetic energy. However, in the case of an elastic bouncing ball, some of the kinetic energy is converted into other forms of energy, such as heat and sound, during each bounce. This loss of energy results in a decrease in momentum over time.

5. Can momentum be conserved in an elastic bouncing ball?

No, momentum cannot be conserved in an elastic bouncing ball because of the conversion of kinetic energy into other forms of energy. However, if we consider the entire system including the ball, ground, and air, momentum can still be conserved as the momentum lost by the ball is gained by the ground and air molecules. This is known as conservation of momentum in an open system.

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