Work and Energy Notes Force is the agent of change, Energy is the measure of change and Work is the

way of transferring energy form one system to another.

F dx (the area underneath a force versus position graph from xo to xf) x0 Where f is force and x is position
Work = However, if the force is constant, then you only need to do: W= F x or F x cos But if the force isnt constant, you need to do the integral or find the area under the curve. When you do the integral form, assume that the angle between the force and the distance is zero unless stated otherwise. If the distance traveled and the force are perpendicular, than the work is zero. Ex: There is no work done by the centripetal force of a ball being swung on a string. There is also no work being done by the normal force of a box sliding down or up an inclined plane. Kinetic Energy is the energy an object possesses by virtue of its motion. K= m v2 (for linear motion) The Work-Kinetic Energy Theorem states that if only conservative forces act, then Wnet=K Power is the rate of doing Work dW P= (instantaneous power) dt P=

xf

W (average power) t

P = F v = Fv cos

Mechanical Potential Energy is the stored energy of an object due to its position. U = mgh You can do work on an object and give it potential energy. A conservative force is one where the total work it does on an object is zero when the particle moves around any closed path returning to its initial position (independent of the path taken). Examples: force of a spring (elastic force), gravitational force A non-conservative force is one where the total work it does on a object is not zero when the particle moves around any closed path returning to its initial position (the path taken does alter the amount of work!). Examples: friction, a person pushing Hookes Law When a spring is stretched or pushed, it exerts a force opposite to the direction of the stretched determined by the properties of the spring and the distance the spring stretches. Fspring = kx x is the distance the spring is stretched from equilibrium. k is the spring constant and is measured in N/m. There is a negative sign in the equation to let you know that the force is in the opposite direction of the displacement (the force isnt necessarily negative!). When you use this equation in your Fnet= ma set-up, please look at the direction of the forces to determine if Fs should be positive or negative.

For a conservative force W= -U =

F dx x0 dU Which also means Fx = dx The force function is the negative first derivative of the potential energy function.
From these equations we can derive Ug = mgh (gravitational PE) Us= kx2 (elastic PE) Conservation of Mechanical Energy Assuming no non-conservative forces act, the mechanical energy is conserved. Total mechanical energy E= Uo + Ko Uo + Ko = Uf + Kf Remember that the potential energy can also have an elastic component as well as a gravitational component. Also, the kinetic energy can have a rotational as well as linear component. Make sure you include all the types and keep your reference point consistent. When there are non-conservative forces acting, energy can be added or lost to the system through work by something like friction or you pushing an object. In this case Uo + Ko + Wnon-conservative forces = Uf + Kf Work can be positive or negative. If the work is adding energy to the system then its positive (e.g. you push the object in the direction it moves). If its taking energy away from the system then its negative (e.g. friction slows an object down as it moves across a surface). If you think of a system of objects, the work done by a non-conservative force can increase the internal energy of the system. For instance, friction can heat up your surfaces. In this situation, the above equation can be described as: U + K + Uint = 0

xf