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Overview Physics Force REU RET PACES Soudan Mine Tour Van Vleck Lectures
Physics Force
About Demonstrations Schedule In the News Meet the Force Merchandise Contact Us Index Waves and Sound Air Pressure Bernoulli Effects Projectile Motion Collisions Mass and Inertia
Bernoulli Effects
Vocabularyair pressure : Pressure exerted by the weight of air on an object in that air. There will be discussion about this when we describe the reason for the plunger being held onto a piece of clear plexiglass, when the rubber playground softball base is used to lift a chair using air pressure, when we use the Magdeburg disks being held together by air pressure and when we crush a 55-gallon drum using air pressure. atmospheric pressure: This is also the pressure caused by air, but usually thought of as the normal value or standard value of 14.7 pounds per square inch. The atmospheric pressure at the place where we are on the face of the earth is usually less than this because we are above sea level, and hence have less "weight" pushing down on us. Again, used with the same activities as air pressure. high pressure: A space where the pressure is more pounds per square inch than a neighboring space. We will be discussing the idea that the pressure is higher outside the 55-gallon drum than inside the drum.
low pressure: A space where the pressure is fewer pounds per square inch than a neighboring space. We will use this term along with the term high pressure in order to describe the resulting force that will tend to push something one way or the other. molecular motion: The name given to the intrinsic property of all matter that is at normal temperature where the molecules of that matter are in a constant state of motion. We will be using this concept to help describe what causes air pressure. The molecules of air are forced downward by gravity, and also are in a constant state of movement, thus causing an enormous number of collisions in one second with the outsides of the plunger and plexiglass, the Magdeburg disks, the chair and the rubber base and the 55-gallon drum. When taken all together, these collisions cause the pressure against these objects. pressure: In the context of our show, it will be the number of pounds per square inch exerted by gaseous molecules. When the number of pounds per square inch are multiplied by the number of square inches on an object, it is possible to determine the total force, the push on the object.
This is a simple demonstration dealing with Bernoullis Principle. The demonstrator will hold a piece of paper close to his lips, and blow across the top of the paper as it hangs down from his hands in front of his lips. The paper will respond by moving up, toward the stream of moving air. It would seem the paper would move away from the stream of air, but it does not. It moves toward the stream of air. This is shown in the diagrams below:
HOW IT HAPPENS Bernoullis principle states that fluids in an area moving faster than the the surrounding area possess less pressure. Faster-moving fluid, lower pressure. (In general, fluids include liquids and gasses. Air is a gas and as such is classified as a fluid.) When the demonstrator holds the paper in front of his mouth and blows across the top, he is creating an area of faster-moving air. The slower-moving air under the paper now has higher pressure, thus pushing the paper up, towards the area of lower pressure. Perhaps you have noticed, for example, that an empty mayonnaise jar in your sink with water in it will move in, directly under the water faucet as you turn on the water. This is the same thing as we observe here. The water that is moving possesses less pressure, and the jar is pushed toward that area by the water that is not moving which has greater pressure.
Floating Objects
(Bernoulli) To explain this demonstration a good understanding of the Bernoulli effect along with terminal velocity is required. The ball is held up by the wind blast putting the ball at its terminal velocity. The ball moves up if the wind is faster than terminal or moves down towards faster air if the air speed is less than terminal velocity. The ball will always settle in at the right point where terminal velocity air is moving up and flowing around the ball. The bigger question is why the ball stays centered in the stream of air? The air in the center of the air stream will be moving a little faster than the air towards the edge. This is due to the fact that the air at the sides rubs on the stationary air in the room and is slowed a little. If the ball begins to drift off center the faster air passing the ball will be on the side back towards the center. In Bernoulli faster air produces less pressure and the larger pressure (slower air) on the outside will cause the ball to be recentered. If you watch the ball you can see it being recentered almost all the time.
This demonstration relies on the Bernoulli Principle, which states that when fluid moves its ability to produce pressure is lowered and the faster the movement the lower the pressure. Fluids include liquids and gases and air is a mixture of gases, and is therefore a fluid. The ping pong ball sags until the top of the ball is in the fast air, being shot through the barrel, and the bottom is in the quiet air of the room. The quiet air has more pressure pushing up and keeping the ball from falling.
Materials A ballpoint pen barrel or soda straw, a small piece of thread, a ping pong ball and some glue to attach the string to the pen barrel and the ping-pong ball.
Instructions
Attach the thread (about 3 to 4 inches in length) to the pen barrel and to the pingpong ball. Hold the pen barrel horizontally and blow vigorously through it while holding the ping-pong ball in line with the tube to get it in the path of the rapidly moving air. Then let go of the ping-pong ball, and it will stay in the moving air, since that is where the pressure is lowest. See diagram below.
FOSS Connection: Air & Weather - Activity 2: Air Explorations Grade 4 Weather Unit Science Specialists Connection: Flight
Bernoulli Tubes
(Bernoulli)
Bernoulli's (ber-nool'-ee) principle, states that as the velocity of fluid flow increases the pressure produced by the fluid decreases. This can be shown by pulling and rotating a cardboard tube rapidly through the air. The air next to the tube changes its velocity relative to the tube wall due to the spin. In baseball the pitcher imparts different spins on the ball to produce the curve on the trajectory of the ball as it comes to the batter. They have names such as slider, curve down and in, curve down and out, etc. In golf, hitting a drive that actually climbs as it leaves the club gives a greater distance and is a good analogy to this demonstration. Golfers also draw and fade the ball with all the clubs in order to play a shot to a certain landing point.
Materials Cardboard tube about 18 inches long (wrapping paper tube will work) cloth or plastic tape about a meter long (a measuring tape such as used in sewing works well) and a meter stick.
Instructions
Find the center of mass of the tube and wrap the tape measure around that point. Make a small loop in the other end of the tape and fasten it with a piece of sticky tape. Put one end of the meter stick through the loop, place the tube on a table and swing the meter stick forward rapidly. The tube will spin and move forward, moving upward in looping motion, see diagram.
Materials A thread spool, straight pin, and a small piece of light cardboard.
Instructions Push the pin through the center of the light cardboard square and insert the free end of the pin into the empty hole in the spool. The function of the pin is just to keep the
cardboard square centered on the end of the spool. Try to push the cardboard off the by blowing air through the hole in the spool. The harder you try the stronger the Bernoulli force created that holds it in place. With practice you can actually prevent the cardboard from falling out, in an upside down orientation, until you stop creating a Bernoulli effect with your breath.
FOSS Connection: Air & Weather - Activity 1: Air Explorations Air and Weather
Materials One Styrofoam ball about 2.5 inches in diameter, plastic funnel with a top larger than 2.5 inches, some flexible tubing to fit the small end of the funnel
Instructions Place the Styrofoam ball on a flat surface and cover it with the large end of the funnel. While blowing into the tube attached to the small end of the funnel, lift the funnel off the flat surface. The Styrofoam ball will be lifted along with the funnel as long as you continue blowing into the tube.
FOSS Connection: Air and Weather - Activity 3: Using Air Grade 4 Weather Unit
Floating Objects
(Bernoulli) To explain this demonstration a good understanding of the Bernoulli effect along with terminal velocity is required. The ball is held up by the wind blast putting the ball at its terminal velocity. The ball moves up if the wind is faster than terminal or moves down towards faster air if the air speed is less than terminal velocity. The ball will always settle in at the right point where terminal velocity air is moving up and flowing around the ball. The bigger question is why the ball stays centered in the stream of air? The air in the center of the air stream will be moving a little faster than the air towards the edge. This is due to the fact that the air at the sides rubs on the stationary air in the room and is slowed a little. If the ball begins to drift off center the faster air passing the ball will be on the side back towards the center. In Bernoulli faster air produces less pressure and the larger pressure (slower air) on the outside will cause the ball to be recentered. If you watch the ball you can see it being recentered almost all the time. This effect is used by vacuum cleaner sales people. A vacuum is set up to produce a blast of air in which a ball is floated. This impossible looking situation attracts
attention and it can even be done at an angle. The ball will be located a little below the center of the air blast in this circumstance. In this case some Bernoulli effect works with the angled air blast to keep the ball up against the pull of gravity.
Materials Some device to produce a jet of air. Vacuum cleaner, leaf blower, or maybe a school principal. Several light balls of different size and weight.
Instructions Direct the air blast in an upward direction and place a ball in the air stream. You can tip the air blast to the side and the ball should continue to float and stay approximately centered. There is a limit to how far the system can be tipped to the side.
Railroad Bottles
(Bernoulli) This is another demonstration of Bernoullis Principle where an area of higher speed fluid is used to lower the pressure and the visible movement of two plastic pop bottles is used to show the results. Because empty 2-liter pop bottles are very light, they require very little force to move them if you can reduce the friction between them and the table. When you blow between the two bottles, it would seem that they would move apart, away from the blast of air. However, because of Bernoullis Principle, the pressure between the two bottles will be lower than the pressure on the outsides, causing a net force to be exerted on
each bottle toward the other. Because you have reduced the friction between the bottles and the table top, they can move toward each other easily, demonstrating the force on each bottle towards the other. If the bottles dont move on the first few tries direct the blast of air a little off the center line between the two bottles and sooner or later they will move easily together. You have probably heard that standing too close to a railroad train as it passes can be dangerous. This is true because a moving train drags the air close to the cars along with it. This rapidly moving air, by Bernoullis principle will have a lower pressure than the still air a few feet away. The still air, having higher pressure, and being behind you if you are standing close will tend to push you toward the train. The effect is enough to actually move a person if you are not careful!
Materials Two empty 2-liter plastic pop bottles, several soda straws, and two pieces of flat cardboard about 4 inches square.
Instructions Place the cardboard squares about four inches apart on several straws set parallel to each other so that they can roll along on the straws. Place the two bottles on the two squares of cardboard. Direct a blast of air between the two bottles, and they will move toward one another, actually hitting into each other. See diagram.
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