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Understanding Momentum and Impulse

Momentum is defined as the product of mass and velocity, and it can be positive or negative depending on the direction of travel. An object's momentum changes with acceleration, deceleration, direction change, or mass change. Impulse, which is the product of force and time, equals the change in momentum, and force can be defined as the rate of change of momentum.

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19 views2 pages

Understanding Momentum and Impulse

Momentum is defined as the product of mass and velocity, and it can be positive or negative depending on the direction of travel. An object's momentum changes with acceleration, deceleration, direction change, or mass change. Impulse, which is the product of force and time, equals the change in momentum, and force can be defined as the rate of change of momentum.

Uploaded by

zayanmumtaz19
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Momentum

EXTENDED

 An object with mass that is in motion has momentum which is defined by the equation:

momentum = mass × velocity

p = mv

 Where:
o p = momentum in kilogram metre per second (kg m/s)
o m = mass in kilograms (kg)
o v = velocity in metres per second (m/s)

 This means that an object at rest (i.e v = 0) has no momentum


 Momentum keeps an object moving in the same direction, making it difficult to change the direction of
an object with a large momentum

 Since velocity is a vector this means that the momentum of an object also depends on its direction of
travel
 This means that momentum can be either positive or negative
o If an object travelling to the right has positive momentum, an object travelling in the opposite
direction (to the left) will have negative momentum
 Therefore, the momentum of an object will change if:
o The object accelerates (speeds up) or decelerates (slows down)
o Changes direction
o Its mass changes

 Both the tennis ball and the brick have the same momentum
 Even though the brick is much heavier than the ball, the ball is travelling much faster than the brick
 This means that on impact, they would both exert a similar force (depending on the time it takes for
each to come to rest)

Impulse
EXTENDED

 When a resultant (unbalanced) force acts on a mass, the momentum of that mass will change
 The impulse of a force is equal to that force multiplied by the time for which it acts:

impulse = force × change in time

impulse = FΔt

 The change in momentum of a mass is equal to the impulse provided by the force:
impulse = change in momentum

impulse = FΔt = Δp

 Change in momentum can also be described as:

Δp = Δ(mv)

Δp = mv − mu

 Where:
o m = mass in kg
o v = final velocity in m/s
o u = initial velocity in m/s

 Therefore:

impulse = FΔt = Δp = mv − mu

Force & Momentum


EXTENDED

 Force can also be defined as the rate of change of momentum on a body


 The change in momentum is defined as the final momentum minus the initial momentum
 These can be expressed as follows:

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