2021/1/28 Addition of Vectors - Subtraction of Vectors - Solved Examples

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Addition And Subtraction Of Vectors

Vectors have both magnitude and direction, one cannot simply add two
vectors to obtain their sum. The addition of vectors is not as
straightforward as the addition of scalars. To better understand this, let us
consider an example of a car travelling 10 miles North and 10 miles South.
Here, the total distance travelled is 20 miles but the displacement is zero.
The North and South displacements are each vector quantities, and the
opposite directions cause the individual displacements to cancel each
other out. In this article, let us explore ways to carry out the addition and
subtraction of vectors.

Vector Addition: Triangle and Parallelogram Law of

Vectors
As already discussed, vectors cannot be simply added algebraically.
Following are a few points to remember while adding vectors:
Vectors are added geometrically and not algebraically.
Vectors whose resultant have to be calculated behave independently
of each other.
Vector Addition is nothing but nding the resultant of a number of
vectors acting on a body.
Vector Addition is commutative. This means that the resultant vector
is independent of the order of vectors.

Triangle Law of Vector Addition

The vector addition is done based on the Triangle law
(https://byjus.com/physics/triangle-law-of-vector-addition/). Let us see
what triangle law of vector addition is:
→ →
Suppose there are two vectors: a and b

→
Now, draw a line AB representing a with A as the tail and B as the
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head. Draw another line BC representing ( b ) with B as the tail and C as
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2021/1/28 Addition of Vectors - Subtraction of Vectors - Solved Examples

→ →
line AC represents the resultant sum of the vectors a and b

→ →
The line AC represents a + b

→ →
The magnitude of a + b is:
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
√a2   +  b2   +  2ab cos θ

Where,
→
a = magnitude of vector a

→
b = magnitude of vector b

→ →
θ = angle between a and b

→
Let the resultant make an angle of ϕ with a , then:

tanϕ = b sin θ

a + b cos θ

Let us understand this by the means of an example. Suppose there are

two vectors having equal magnitude A , and they make an angle θ with
each other. Now, to nd the magnitude and direction of the resultant, we
will use the formulas mentioned above.
Let the magnitude of the resultant vector be B
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
B = √A 2   +  A 2   +  2AA cos θ = 2 A cos  θ
2

Let’s say that the resultant vector makes an angle Ɵ with the rst vector

tan ϕ = A sin θ

A + A cos θ
= tan  θ2

Or,

Ɵ=
θ

Parallelogram Law of Vector Addition

The vector addition may also be understood by the law of parallelogram.
The law states that “If two vectors acting simultaneously at a point are
represented in magnitude and direction by the two sides of a
parallelogram drawn from a point, their resultant is given in magnitude and
direction by the diagonal of the parallelogram passing through that point.”
According to this law, if two vectors → and → are represented by two
P Q

adjacent sides of a parallelogram both pointing outwards as shown in the

gure below, then the diagonal drawn through the intersection of the two
vectors represent the resultant.

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2021/1/28 Addition of Vectors - Subtraction of Vectors - Solved Examples

In Parallelogram Law of Vector Addition, the magnitude of the resultant is

given by:

The direction of the resultant vector is determined as follows:

Vector Subtraction:
→
Subtraction of two vectors is similar to addition. Suppose a is to be
→
subtracted from b .
→ →
→ →
a – b can be said as the addition of the vectors a and (- b ). Thus, the
formula for addition can be applied as:
→ −−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
→
a – b = √a2   +  b2   −  2ab cos θ
→ →
(- b ) is nothing but b reversed in direction.
Stay tuned with BYJU’S to learn more about vectors, vector notation
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Related articles:

Scalar And Vectors (https://byjus.com/physics/scalars-and-vectors/)

Vectors and Their General Properties
(https://byjus.com/physics/properties-of-vector/)
Visualizing Unit Vectors (https://byjus.com/physics/unit-vectors/)

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