University Physics with Modern Physics

Fifteenth Edition, Global Edition, in SI Units

Chapter 6
Work and Kinetic
Energy

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Learning Outcomes
In this chapter, you’ll learn…
• what it means for a force to do work on an object, and how
to calculate the amount of work done.
• The definition of the kinetic energy (energy of motion) of an
object, and how the total work done on an object changes
the object’s kinetic energy.
• How to use the relationship between total work and change
in kinetic energy when the forces are not constant, the
object follows a curved path, or both.
• how to solve problems involving power (the rate of doing
work).
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Introduction
• A baseball pitcher does
work with his throwing arm
to give the ball a property
called kinetic energy.
• In this chapter, the
introduction of the new
concepts of work, energy,
and the conservation of
energy will allow us to deal
with problems in which
Newton’s laws alone aren’t
enough.
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Work
• A force on an object does work if the object
undergoes a displacement.

These people are doing work

as they push on the car
because they exert a force on
the car as it moves.
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Units of Work
• The SI unit of work is the joule (named in honor of the
19th-century English physicist James Prescott Joule).
• Since W = Fs, the unit of work is the unit of force
multiplied by the unit of distance.
• In SI units:
1 joule = (1 newton) (1 meter) or 1 J = 1 N ∙ m
• If you lift an object with a weight of 1 N a distance of 1
m at a constant speed, you do 1 J of work on it.

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Work Done by a Constant Force (1 of 2)
• The work done by a constant force acting at an angle
to the displacement is:

• This can be written more compactly as:

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Positive Work
• When the force has a component in the direction of
the displacement, work is positive.

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Negative Work
• When the force has a component opposite to the
direction of the displacement, work is negative.

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Zero Work (1 of 2)
• When the force is perpendicular to the direction of the
displacement, the force does no work on the object.

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Zero Work (2 of 2)
• A weightlifter does no work on a barbell as long as he
holds it stationary.

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Lowering the Barbell to the Floor:
Slide 1

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Lowering the Barbell to the Floor:
Slide 2

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Lowering the Barbell to the Floor:
Slide 3

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Total Work
• The work done by the net force on a particle as it moves is
called the total work Wtot.
• The particle speeds up if Wtot > 0, slows down if Wtot < 0,
and maintains the same speed if Wtot = 0.
• Video Tutor Solution: Example 6.2

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Kinetic Energy (1 of 4)
• The energy of motion of a particle is called kinetic energy:

• Like work, the kinetic energy of a particle is a scalar

quantity; it depends on only the particle’s mass and
speed, not its direction of motion.
• Kinetic energy can never be negative, and it is zero
only when the particle is at rest.
• The SI unit of kinetic energy is the joule.
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Kinetic Energy (2 of 4)
• Kinetic energy does not depend on the direction of
motion.

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Kinetic Energy (3 of 4)
• Kinetic energy increases linearly with the mass of the
object.

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Kinetic Energy (4 of 4)
• Kinetic energy increases with the square of the speed
of the object.

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The Work-Energy Theorem
• The work-energy theorem: The work done by the net
force on a particle equals the change in the particle’s
kinetic energy.

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Work and Kinetic Energy in
Composite Systems
• The work done by the external
forces acting on the skater is
zero.
• But the skater’s kinetic energy
changes nonetheless!
• The explanation is that it’s not
adequate to represent the boy
as a single point mass.
• Video Tutor Solution:
Example 6.5

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Work and Energy with Varying
Forces (1 of 3)
• Many forces are not constant.
• Suppose a particle moves along the x-axis from x1 to x2.

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Work and Energy with Varying
Forces (2 of 3)
• We calculate the approximate work done by the force
over many segments of the path.
• We do this for each segment and then add the results
for all the segments.

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Work and Energy with Varying
Forces (3 of 3)
• The work done by the force in the total displacement
from x1 to x2 is the integral of Fx from x1 to x2:

• On a graph of force as a function of position, the total

work done by the force is represented by the area
under the curve between the initial and final positions.

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Work Done by a Constant Force (2 of 2)

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Stretching a Spring
• The force required to stretch a spring a distance x is
proportional to x: Fx = kx.
• The area under the graph represents the work done on the
spring to stretch it a distance X : W = 1/ 2 kX 2 .

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Work–Energy Theorem for Motion
Along a Curve
• A particle moves along a curved
path from point P1 to P2, acted
on by a force that varies in
magnitude and direction.
• The work can be found using a
line integral:

• Video Tutor Solution: Example 6.8

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Power (1 of 2)
• Power is the rate at which work is done.
• Average power is:

• Instantaneous power is:

• The SI unit of power is the watt (1 W = 1 J/s).

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Power: Lifting a Box Slowly

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Power: Lifting a Box Quickly

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Power (2 of 2)
• In mechanics we can also express power in terms of
force and velocity:

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