: Rollercoaster Experiment Work Equations Needed

[Kenster1025]

URGENT: Rollercoaster Experiment Work Equations Needed

Homework Statement

We have created a very large coaster for a physics experiment and we need to find the following. Two of which are really making us ponder.

- potential energy it has at the beginning of the track

- work done on the marble by the obstacle

- total energy of the roller coaster

- speed at a minimum of 4 different points on the track, including the
maximum speed. Identify the 4 points on your track.

The mass of the marble is 5.3 grams = 0.0053 kg.

Our obstacle we consider is the loop in our track, and we have no real idea on how to calculate the work done on the marble by the loop. Which force equation should we use so we can find the work, and how should we probably go about finding the distance in the loop.

For energy of the track do we need to use other equations such as kinetic energy.

Homework Equations

For obstacle:
W = F * (delta)d
Fg = mg

For Energy of track:
Eg = mgh
Ek = mv²/2

The Attempt at a Solution

None yet since we don't know which equations.

I might include more equations but I am still trying to refresh myself since the Energy unit was months ago.

This project needs to be finished on Friday, so answers need to come as soon as possible.

Thanks
Ken

 

[PhanthomJay]

You haven't shown much of an attempt, for example, in response to 'what is the PE at the beginning', what have you tried? And work done is not F*d, it's the dot product F.d, or Fdcos theta,; what's F and theta when it's in the loop??

 

[kerimek]

Dear Ken,

I am happy to assist you with your rollercoaster experiment. In order to find the potential energy at the beginning of the track, you can use the equation Eg = mgh, where m is the mass of the marble, g is the acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m/s^2), and h is the height of the starting point.

To calculate the work done on the marble by the loop, you can use the equation W = F * d, where F is the force exerted on the marble by the loop and d is the distance traveled by the marble in the loop. In this case, the force exerted on the marble is equal to the force of gravity, which can be calculated using Fg = mg, where m is the mass of the marble and g is the acceleration due to gravity. The distance traveled by the marble in the loop can be approximated by the circumference of the loop.

To find the total energy of the roller coaster, you can use the equation Et = Eg + Ek, where Eg is the potential energy and Ek is the kinetic energy. Kinetic energy can be calculated using the equation Ek = mv^2/2, where m is the mass of the marble and v is the velocity of the marble.

To find the speed at different points on the track, you can use the equation v = sqrt(2gh), where g is the acceleration due to gravity and h is the height of the point on the track. The four points on the track can be identified as the starting point, the top of the loop, the bottom of the loop, and the end of the track.

I hope this helps. Good luck with your experiment!

Best,