MODULE VI

Lesson 1: Momentum and Impulse

Lesson 2: Center of Mass
Lesson 3: Collision

Module 6
 MODULE 6

Momentum and Impulse

INTRODUCTION

In this module we will be discussing about the momentum of an object. We will

discuss the relationship of mass and velocity and how they affect the energy of an
object.

OBJECTIVES

After studying the module, you should be able to:

1. Discuss the concepts of Momentum and Impulse

2. Discuss the principle of Impulse-Momentum Theorem
3. Discuss the principle of Conservation of Momentum
4. Discuss, solve and analyze the concepts/problems for Center of Mass
5. Discuss, solve and analyze the concepts/problems for Collisions

DIRECTIONS/ MODULE ORGANIZER

There are three lessons in the module. Read each lesson thoughtfully then
answer the learning activities and a summative test at the end of the module to find
out how much you have benefited from it. Work on these activities carefully. Date of
submission and how will be submitted will be posted in the google classroom or group
chat.

In case you encounter difficulty, contact or message your instructor/professor through

messenger.

Good luck and happy reading!!!

Module 6
 Lesson 1

Momentum and Impulse

We introduce the concept of momentum, which is useful for describing objects in motion and
as an alternate and more general means of applying Newton’s laws. For example, a very massive
football player is often said to have a great deal of momentum as he runs down the field. A much less
massive player, such as a halfback, can have equal or greater momentum if his speed is greater than
that of the more massive player. This follows from the fact that momentum is defined as the product
of mass and velocity. The concept of momentum leads us to a second conservation law, that of
conservation of momentum. This law is especially useful for treating problems that involve collisions
between objects and for analyzing rocket propulsion. The concept of the center of mass of a system of
particles also is introduced, and we shall see that the motion of a system of particles can be described
by the motion of one representative particle located at the center of mass.

Linear Momentum and its Conservation

The linear momentum,p of a particle of mass m moving with a velocity v is defined to be the product
of the mass and velocity:
𝒑 = 𝒎𝒗 (6.1)

Linear momentum is a vector quantity. If a particle is moving in an arbitrary direction, p must have
three components, and Equation 6.1 is equivalent to the component equations

𝒑𝒙 = 𝒎𝒗𝒙 𝒑𝒚 = 𝒎𝒗𝒚 𝒑𝒛 = 𝒎𝒗𝒛

Conservation

Consider two particles 1 and 2 that can interact with each other but are isolated from their
surroundings (see figure). That is, the particles may exert a force on each other, but no external
forces are present. It is important to note the impact of Newton’s third law on this analysis. If an
internal force from particle 1 (for example, a gravitational force) acts on particle 2, then there must
be a second internal force—equal in magnitude but opposite in direction—that particle 2 exerts on
particle 1.

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The total momentum of the system must remain constant:
𝒑𝒕𝒐𝒕 = ∑ 𝒑 = 𝒑𝟏 + 𝒑𝟐 = 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕
𝒔𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒎
Whenever two or more particles in an isolated system interact, the total momentum of the system
remains constant. This law tells us that the total momentum of an isolated system at all times
equals its initial momentum.

Impulse and Momentum

As we have seen, the momentum of a particle changes if a net force acts on the particle. Knowing the
change in momentum caused by a force is useful in solving some types of problems. To begin building
a better understanding of this important concept, let us assume that a single force F acts on a particle
𝑑𝑝
and that this force may vary with time. According to Newton’s second law, 𝐹 = , 𝑜𝑟
𝑑𝑡
𝑑𝑝 = 𝐹𝑑𝑡
We can integrate this expression to find the change in the momentum of a particle when the force
acts over some time interval. If the momentum of the particle changes from 𝑝𝑖 at time 𝑡𝑖 to 𝑝𝑓 at time
𝑡𝑓 .
𝑡𝑓
∆𝑝 = 𝑝𝑓 − 𝑝𝑖 = ∫ 𝐹𝑑𝑡
𝑡𝑖

To evaluate the integral, we need to know how the force varies with time. The quantity on the right
side of this equation is called the impulse of the force F acting on a particle over the time interval
∆𝑡 = 𝑡𝑓 − 𝑡𝑖 . Impulse is a vector defined by
𝑡
𝐼 = ∫𝑡 𝑓 𝐹𝑑𝑡 = ∆𝑝
𝑖
𝐼 = 𝐹 ∆𝑡

Thus the Impulse-momentum theorem dictates that the impulse of the force F acting on a particle
equals the change in the momentum of the particle caused by that force. Note that impulse is not a
property of a particle; rather, it is a measure of the degree to which an external force changes the
momentum of the particle. Therefore, when we say that an impulse is given to a particle, we mean
that momentum is transferred from an external agent to that particle.

In many physical situations, we shall use what is called the impulse approximation, in which we
assume that one of the forces exerted on a particle acts for a short time but is much greater than
any other force present. This approximation is especially useful in treating collisions in which the
duration of the collision is very short. When this approximation is made, we refer to the force as an
impulsive force. For example, when a baseball is struck with a bat, the time of the collision is about
0.01 s and the average force that the bat exerts on the ball in this time is typically several thousand
newtons.

Module 6
Solved Examples:

1.A golf ball of mass 50 g is struck with a club (Fig. 9.5). Theforce exerted on the ball by the club
varies from zero, at the in stant before contact, up to some maximum value (at which the ball is
deformed) and then back to zero when the ball leaves the club. Thus, the force–time curve is
qualitatively described by Figure 9.4. Assuming that the ball travels 200 m, estimate the magnitude of
the impulse caused by the collision.

Solution:
Let us use A to denote the moment when the club first contacts the ball, B to denote the moment
when the club loses contact with the ball as the ball starts on its trajectory, and C to denote its
landing. Neglecting air resistance, we can use Equation for the range of a projectile:

𝑣𝐵2
𝑅 = 𝑋𝐶 = sin 2𝜃𝐵
𝑔

Let us assume that the launch angle B is 45°, the angle that provides the maximum range for any
given launch velocity. This assumption gives sin 2𝜃𝐵 = 1 , and the launch velocity ofthe ball is

𝑚
𝑣𝐵 = √𝑥𝐶 𝑔 = √(200 𝑚)(9.80 ) = 44 𝑚/𝑠
𝑠2

Considering the time interval for the collision, 𝑣𝑖 = 𝑣𝐴 = 0 and 𝑣𝑓 = 𝑣𝐵 for the ball. Hence, the
magnitude of the impulse imparted to the ball is

𝑚
𝐼 = ∆𝑝 = 𝑚𝑣𝐵 − 𝑚𝑣𝐴 = (50𝑥10−3 𝑘𝑔) (44 ) − 0
𝑠
𝑚
= 2.2 𝑘𝑔 ∙
𝑠

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2. In a particular crash test, an automobile of mass 1 500 kg collides with a wall, as shown in Figure
9.6. The initial and final velocities of the automobile are -15 m/s and 2.60 m/s, respectively. If the
collision lasts for 0.150 s, find the impulse caused by the collision and the average force exerted on
the automobile.

Solution:

Let us assume that the force exerted on the car by the wall is large compared with other forces on the
car so that we can apply the impulse approximation. Furthermore, we note that the force of gravity
and the normal force exerted by the road on the car are perpendicular to the motion and therefore do
not affect the horizontal momentum.

The initial and final momenta of the automobile are

𝑚 𝑚
𝑝𝑖 = 𝑚𝑣𝑖 = (1500 𝑘𝑔) (−15 ) = −2.25𝑥104 𝑘𝑔 ∙
𝑠 𝑠
𝑚 4
𝑚
𝑝𝑓 = 𝑚𝑣𝑓 = (1500 𝑘𝑔) (2.60 ) = 0.39 𝑥 10 𝑘𝑔 ∙
𝑠 𝑠

Hence, the impulse is

𝑚 𝑚
𝐼 = ∆𝑝 = 𝑝𝑓 − 𝑝𝑖 = 0.39 𝑥 104 𝑘𝑔 ∙ − (−2.25 𝑥 104 𝑘𝑔 ∙ )
𝑠 𝑠
4
𝑚
𝐼 = 2.64 𝑥 10 𝑘𝑔 ∙
𝑠

The average force exerted on the automobile is

4 𝑚
∆𝑝 2.64 𝑥 10 𝑘𝑔 ∙ 𝑠
𝐹= = = 1.76𝑥105 𝑁
∆𝑡 0.150 𝑠

Note that the magnitude of this force is large compared with the weight of the car ( N), which
justifies our initial assumption.

Module 6
3. You throw a ball with a mass of 0.40 kg against a brick wall. It is moving horizontally to the left at
30 m/s when it hits the wall; it rebounds horizontally to the right at 20 m/s. (a) Find the impulse of
the net force on the ball during its collision with the wall. (b) If the ball is in contact with the wall for
0.010 s, find the average horizontal force that the wall exerts on the ball during the impact.

Solution:

(a) With our choice of x-axis, the initial and final x-components of momentum of the ball are
𝑚 𝑚
𝑝1𝑥 = 𝑚𝑣1𝑥 = (0.40 𝑘𝑔) (−30 ) = −12 𝑘𝑔 ∙
𝑠 𝑠
𝑚 𝑚
𝑝2𝑥 = 𝑚𝑣2𝑥 = (0.40 𝑘𝑔) (20 ) = 8 𝑘𝑔 ∙
𝑠 𝑠

𝐼 = 𝑝2𝑥 − 𝑝1𝑥
𝑚 𝑚 𝑚
= 8 𝑘𝑔 ∙ − (−12 𝑘𝑔 ∙ ) = 20 𝑘𝑔 ∙ = 20 𝑁 ∙ 𝑠
𝑠 𝑠 𝑠

(b) The collision time is 𝑡2 − 𝑡1 = ∆𝑡 = 0.010 𝑠.

𝐼 20 𝑁 ∙ 𝑠
𝐹= = = 2000 𝑁
∆𝑡 0.010 𝑠

Video Tutorials:

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hODlmGK7pl8

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WIECGg71WY

3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fp7D5D8Bqjc

Module 6
Module 6
References:

1. University Physics with Modern Physics by Hugh D. Young, Roger A. Freedman

2. Fundamentals of Physics by David Halliday, Robert Resnick, Jearl Walker
3. Schaum’s Outline of College Physics, Twelfth Edition by Eugene H

Module 6