AP Physics 1 : Spring Force

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP Physics 1

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Example Questions

Example Question #41 : Spring Force

A spring of rest length  is used to hold up a  rocket from the bottom as it is prepared for the launch pad. The spring compresses to .

Later, the same spring is used to support a rocket of mass . Determine the compression.

Possible Answers:

None of these

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The spring force is going to add to the gravitational force to equal zero.

Plugging in values:

Solving for

Once again, using

Solving for

Example Question #171 : Specific Forces

Two springs with unknown constants are attached in a linear fashion and hung from a ceiling. However, we do know that the constant of one spring is twice that of the other. A mass of  is attached to the bottom spring and the system drops . If you manually pull down the mass so the system stretches another , what is the maximum velocity of the block?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Since we are never asked about anything pertaining to an individual spring, their individual constants and arrangement are irrelevant. We can simply use an equivalent resistance to solve this problem. Beginning with Hooke's Law:

Rearranging for the spring constant:

Plugging in our values, we get:

Now we have a value for our equivalent resistance. At this point, the system has set into a new equilibrium. This is very important to remember when performing further calculations.

Let's move on to the next relevant information: we manually pull down the mass an additional distance. We are ultimately looking for the maximum velocity of the spring. This occurs when the mass passes through our new equilibrium. Furthermore, we have enough information to calculate the potential energy of the spring when it is at it's maximum stretched length. Therefore, we can use the expression for conservation of energy:

Where the initial condition is when the spring is full stretched, and the final condition is when the mass passes through equilibrium. Therefore, we can eliminate initial kinetic and final potential energy to get:

Plugging in expressions for each of these, we get:

Rearranging for velocity, we get:

We have all of these values, so time to solve the problem:

Example Question #43 : Spring Force

A mass of  is attached to a spring with constant  that is hanging from a rope that is attached to a ceiling. If the mass has an amplitude of , what is the maximum tension in the rope? Ignore the mass of the rope and spring and assume simple harmonic motion.

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

When in equilibrium, the tension in the rope is simply the weight of the mass:

The maximum tension will occur at the maximum extension of the spring, when 

We can then use Hooke's law to calculate the addition tension in the rope:

Adding the two together, we get:

Example Question #41 : Spring Force

A spring is attached to a rope that is hanging from the ceiling. A block of mass  is attached to the end of the spring which has a constant of . If the maximum tension felt in the rope is , what is the amplitude of the spring?

Ignore the mass of the rope and spring and assume simple harmonic motion.

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The tension in the rope is a result of the weight of the mass and the force of the spring:

Substituting expressions in for the two forces:

Rearranging for displacement, we get:

Plugging in our values, we get:

Example Question #181 : Specific Forces

A spring is attached to a rope that is hanging from a ceiling. A block of mass  is attached to the end of the spring which has a constant of . If the mass is in simple harmonic motion, what amplitude will result in the spring reaching it's original equilibrium (prior to the mass being attached)?

Ignore the mass of the rope and spring.

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

This question is essentially a reworded form of how much the spring is stretched when the mass is attached. When the mass is attached, it reaches a new equilibrium, and we are asked to find the distance between this new equilibrium and the original equilibrium prior to the mass being attached.

This distance can be calculated by setting Hooke's Law equal to the weight of the mass (this is the point where the force of the spring is equal and opposite to the weight of the mass:

Rearranging for displacement, we get:

Plugging in our values, we get:

Example Question #182 : Specific Forces

Two springs are attached in a linear fashion and hung from a ceiling. If one spring has a constant of  and the other has a constant , how far does the system stretch if a mass of  is attached to the bottom spring?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Since the springs are attached in a linear fashion, the weight of the mass is applied equally to both springs. Therefore, we can determine how far each spring will stretch and then add the two together. For a spring in general:

Rearranging:

Applying this expression to each spring, we get:

Plugging in our values, we get:

Example Question #181 : Forces

Two springs with unknown constants are attached in a linear fashion and hung from a ceiling. However, we do know that the constant of one spring is  times that of the other. If a mass of  is attached to the lower spring and the system stretches a total distance of , what is the constant of the weaker spring?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Much like resistors in a circuit, spring constants attached in parallel and linear fashion can be combined to a single constant. Since the springs are attached in a linear fashion, we will use the following expression:

Which becomes:

From the problem statement, we know that:

So let's substitute that into the problem:

Now we that we have a "total" spring constant, we can use Hooke's Law:

Plugging in our values, we get:

Example Question #41 : Spring Force

Two springs with unknown constants are attached in a linear fashion and hung from a ceiling. However, we do know that the constant of one spring is twice that of the other. A mass of  is attached to the bottom spring and the system drops . If you manually pull down the mass so the system stretches another , what will be the instantaneous acceleration of the spring when you let go?

Neglect the masses of the springs.

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Since we are never asked about anything pertaining to an individual spring, their individual constants and arrangement are irrelevant. We can simply use an equivalent resistance to solve this problem. Beginning with Hooke's Law:

Rearranging for the spring constant:

Plugging in our values, we get:

Now we have a value for our equivalent resistance. Let's move on to the next relevant information: we manually pull down the mass an additional distance. Once again we can use Hooke's Law, but this time we will be calculating the force required to do this:

It's necessary to clarify what this force is. This force is the additional force on top of gravity that requires to get the mass to this point. When the mass is attached and the springs stretch, the force of gravity and the force of the spring cancel each other out. Furthermore, since spring forces are linear, we only need this additional force to calculate the instantaneous acceleration of the mass when released:

Example Question #185 : Specific Forces

Two springs with unknown constants are hanging independently from a ceiling. However, we do know that one spring has a constant three times that of the other. A block of mass  is attached to both springs so that the springs remain vertical. If this causes the springs to stretch  each, what is the constant of the weaker spring?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Much like resistors in a circuit, spring constants can be added together to get one equivalent constant. Since these springs are added in parallel, we can simply add their constants together:

Furthermore, we know that:

Substituting this in, we get:

Now we can use Hooke's Law to determine what this equivalent resistance is:

Rearranging for the equivalent constant:

Example Question #42 : Spring Force

Two springs are attached independently from a ceiling with the constant of one being  and the second constant being . A third spring with a constant  is then attached to the bottom of both of the other springs. What is the total equivalent spring constant of this system?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Much like resistors in a circuit, spring constants can be combined to obtain a single equivalent constant. When springs are in parallel, we simply add their constants, and when they are added linearly, we add their inverses. Just like a circuit, let's begin with the two springs in parallel:

Now we can combine this equivalent constant with the third spring:

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