Solving Angle Pulling Force w/ Friction & Mass

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Homework Help Overview

The problem involves a box being pulled along a rough horizontal surface at a constant speed with a rope at an angle, incorporating friction and mass considerations. The scenario includes calculations related to forces acting on the box, specifically tension in the rope and frictional forces.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to derive the tension in the rope using force balance equations, questioning their result compared to a provided answer. Some participants discuss the implications of using different values for gravitational acceleration and express confusion about significant figures in the context of the problem.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants sharing their calculations and questioning the original poster's results. There is no explicit consensus on the correct tension value, and multiple interpretations of the problem are being explored.

Contextual Notes

Participants note the potential discrepancies in the calculated tension values and the significance of using different approximations for gravitational acceleration. The original poster also raises a question about formatting in LaTeX, indicating a focus on presentation as well as content.

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Homework Statement


A box of mass 30kg is being pulled along rough horizontal ground at a constant speed using a rope. The rope makes an angle of 20 degrees with the ground. The coefficient of friction between the box and the ground is 0.4. The box is modeled as a particle and the rope as a light, inextensible string. The tension in the rope is P Newtons.

Homework Equations



The Attempt at a Solution



The normal force is
[tex]30g-P\sin 20^\circ.[/tex]
The force of friction is
[tex](30g-P\sin 20^\circ)0.4,[/tex]
which should be equal to the pulling force,
[tex]P\cos 20^\circ.[/tex]
Hence
[tex](30g-P\sin 20^\circ)0.4=P\cos20^\circ.[/tex]
Taking g as 9.8 and solving the equation yields
[tex]P=109,[/tex]
corrected to 3 significant figures.

However, the answer says that it should be 125 instead of 109. What did I do wrong? Also, the book seems to prefer to have 3 significant figures but 9.8, the numerical value of g, only has 2, which seems weird to me. Any justifications for it?

(Sorry, I don't know how to type the degree sign in LaTeX. Can anyone teach me how to?

EDIT: added the degree signs
 
Last edited:
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I would say that you are correct. Even putting g = 10 N/kg would not get it to 125 N.
 
dalcde said:
...
(Sorry, I don't know how to type the degree sign in LaTeX. Can anyone teach me how to?
20^\circ

[tex](30g-P\sin 20^\circ)0.4=P\cos20^\circ[/tex]
 
rock.freak667 said:
I would say that you are correct. Even putting g = 10 N/kg would not get it to 125 N.

I am also getting 190 N.

You can also do degrees by making a lower case o into a superscript with the x2 button at the top of the message composing window: cos20o
 

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