RMIT UNIVERSITY VIETNAM

SCHOOL OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

OENG1209 - Engineering Science

LAB 1 REPORT

TEACHERS

MR CUONG NGUYEN TAN

MR KHOA TRAN MINH

STUDENT NAME

PHAN NGOC QUANG ANH s3810148

TUTOTRIAL GROUP

3 (FRIDAY 14:30-16:30)

SUBMISSION DUE DATE

23:59 DECEMBER 4, 2020

 AIM OF THE LABORATORY ACTIVITY
The main purpose of Laboratory Activity 1 is to investigate the relationship between position, velocity,
and acceleration for linear motion objects.

The purpose of Lab Activity 2 and 3 is to determine what happens to an object’s acceleration when the
net force applied to the object stays constant, but the mass of the system is changed and the net force
applied to the object increases but the mass of the system is constant.

LAB ACTIVITY 1
I. INTRODUCTION
The gravitational force towards the Earth center acts on every object that is placed on or near the
surface of the planet resulting in a constant acceleration regardless of their masses. This also applied to
an object moving down an inclined slope given that friction is negligible. Theoretically, the component of
the gravitational acceleration that is parallel to the surface causes the object to roll down and its
magnitude is proportional to the inclined angle. The magnitude can be calculated by the following
equation providing that the surface is frictionless:

a=g∗sin(θ)

Whereas a is the acceleration of the object which is also the projection of gravitational acceleration g
on the surface; θ is the angle of inclination from the horizontal plane (0 o <θ < 90o). g is considered to be
9.8 m/s2 throughout the experiment.

This lab experiment is conducted to test whether this is true as well as examine other impacts of an
inclined angle on the position, velocity, and acceleration of the object.

II. DATA ANALYSIS

1. DATA TABLE AND DATA CALCULATIONS

Slope (Degrees) Theoretical Acceleration from Average Difference (%)

acceleration Velocity Graph Acceleration
(m/s2) (m/s2) (m/s2)
10 1.702 1.8 0.787 5.76%
15 2.536 2.2 1.072 13.25%
20 3.352 3.2 1.266 4.53%
2. GRAPHS

Figure 1.1: Position vs. time graph

Figure 1.2: Velocity vs. time graph

 Figure 1.3: Acceleration vs. time graph

III. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Describe the position vs. time graph. Explain the shape of the graph

The shape of the graph is almost parabolic. The maximum value of the graph is also the initial distance
between the cart and the sensor. The minimum value is achieved when the cart reaches the highest
point of each run.

The shape of the graph can be explained by dividing the experiment into 2 main stages

Stage 1: At first the cart is standing still at one end of the track so the sensor records the value of its
position which is equal to the distance between the cart and the sensor. When the cart is pushed
towards the sensor, the distance is diminished until it reaches the highest point. During the time the cart
moves upward the track, the slope of the graph is negative and the position value decreases because the
object is getting closer to the sensor.

Stage 2: After that, the position value begins to rise back to its peak when the cart rolls down the track
back to its initial place. The slope of the graph is positive.

Describe the velocity vs. time graph. Explain the shape of the graph

The graph is a curve pointing downward followed by a straight upward line. The shape of the graph
corresponds to 2 main stages below:
Stage 1: The velocity of the cart is 0 in the beginning. When it is pushed the slope of the graph is
negative and velocity has negative values. This is due to the fact that the sensor records motion towards
it as negative.

Stage 2: Once the graph stands at its lowest point, it moves upward in a straight line. This is when the
cart slows down as it reaches the highest point on the track and proceeds to roll back down. During this
time, the slope is a constant positive value and it is the horizontal component of gravitational
acceleration. The change of direction while the cart is moving down explains the change from negative
values to positive ones of the velocity.

Describe the acceleration versus time plot of the Graph display. Theoretically, what does the
acceleration vs. time graph should look like? Is the actual acceleration vs. time graph match with the
theoretical shape? Explain the source of the difference if there is any.

In theory, the shape of the graph consists of two parts: the first part is a downward curve and then the
followed by a straight line. The graph can be separated in to 3 stages:

Stage 1: The value of acceleration starts at 0 and then drops below 0 when the cart is pushed towards
the sensor. Because the total acceleration vector of the cart points at the sensor so acceleration has
negative values. The slope of the graph is also negative.

Stage 2: After that the values starts to increase since the horizontal component of gravitational
acceleration gradually surpasses the acceleration resulted from the push. The total acceleration vector
points away from the sensor when acceleration is above 0 and the slope is positive.

Stage 3: Finally the graph becomes a straight line since the acceleration is constant. This is because the
horizontal component of gravitational acceleration accounts for total acceleration and it is a constant
value which is calculated bya=g∗sin(θ). The direction of the acceleration vector points away from the
sensor so it has positive values.

The actual graph has similar patterns to the theoretical graph but he values are slightly different

How is the acceleration determined in the plot of velocity compared to the average value of
acceleration from the plot of acceleration? How can you identify the difference? Which way is more
accurate? Why?

The acceleration values in the plot of velocity are larger than the average value from the plot of
acceleration.

The reasons for the difference is that the acceleration calculated from the velocity plot is the slope of
the velocity vs. time which is a constant value while the latter is the average of accelerations created by
both gravitational force and the force of the push.

The acceleration determined in the plot of velocity is more accurate because we are considering the
gravitational acceleration so the acceleration of the push should be excluded.
 LAB ACTIVITY 2
I. INTRODUCTION
The three Newton’s Laws of Motion are the fundamental laws of physics. This experiment is also
conducted on grounds of these laws as we examine the changes in acceleration of a system with
constant altering masses being acted on by a constant force.

II. DATA ANALYSIS

1. DATA TABLE AND DATA CALCULATIONS

The theoretical acceleration is calculated by the following equation:

mhanging∗g
a theoretical=
mhanging + m cart

Where a theoretical is the theoretical value of acceleration; m hanging is the mass of the hanging weight and
m cart is the mass of the cart, g is the gravitational acceleration and is equal 9.8 m/s 2

The differences between theoretical and experimental values are calculated as follow:

theoretical−experimental
%difference= | experimental | ∗100

Data table 1:

Item Mass (kg)

Run #1: Total mass of the hanging mass (mhanging) 0.02
Run #1: Total mass of cart (mcart) 0.252
Run #2: Total mass of cart plus 0.250 kg 0.502
Run #3: Total mass of cart plus 0.500 kg 0.752
Run #4: Total mass of cart plus 0.700 kg 0.952

Net force is the weight of the hanging mass (hanging mass x 9.8 N/kg): 0.196N

Data table 2: Experimental acceleration

Run Acceleration (m/s2)

#1 0.71
#2 0.38
#3 0.25
#4 0.18
Data table 3:

Run Mass, cart (kg) Total mass (kg) Acc., theory Acc., exp. % Difference
(m/s2) (m/s2)
#1 0.252 0.272 0.721 0.71 1.53%
#2 0.502 0.522 0.375 0.38 1.33%
#3 0.752 0.772 0.254 0.25 1.57%
#4 0.952 0.972 0.202 0.18 10.89%

2. GRAPHS

Figure 2.1: Position vs. Time (Run #1)

For run #1: The shape of the position vs. time graph is a part of a parabola because the acceleration of
the cart is constant. Rectilinear motion is anticipated.
 Figure 2.2: Velocity vs. Time

It is observed from figure 2.2 that the slope is a straight line and decrease as the mass increase.

III. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

What happens to an object’s acceleration if the net force applied to the object is kept constant but the
object’s mass increases? If it changes, why will it happen and how can we predict the changes? Hint: It
is easier to show this difference on the graph and discuss the reasons behind it.

When being exerted upon a constant force, the acceleration of an object drops as its mass rises. More
specifically, in all 4 runs of this experiment, the values of acceleration decrease from 0.71 to 0.18 as total
mass increases from 0.272 to 0.972 while net force is kept unchanged at 0.196 N. It can be inferred from
Newton’s Second Law of Motion that acceleration has an inverse relationship with the mass of an
object. This explained why acceleration is decreasing when mass is increasing.

These changes follow the equation:

mhanging∗g
a theoretical=
mhanging + m cart
According to this equation, the total mass, which is the sum of both the mass of the cart and the hanging
weight, is inversely proportional to the acceleration of the cart. As a result, if the total mass gains more,
it is expected that the cart’s acceleration will decline.

LAB ACTIVITY 3
I. INTRODUCTION
This activity resembles Lab Activity 2 because it also studies the acceleration of an object. Nevertheless,
in this experiment, the total mass of the system remains constant while the net force exerted on it is
changed.

II. DATA ANALYSIS

1. DATA TABLE AND DATA CALCULATIONS

The theoretical acceleration is calculated by the following equation [1]:

m hanging∗g
a theoretical=
m hanging + m cart

Where a theoretical is the theoretical value of acceleration; m hanging is the mass of the hanging weight and
mcart is the mass of the cart, g is the gravitational acceleration and is equal 9.8 m/s 2

The differences between theoretical and experimental values are calculated as follow:

theoretical−experimental
%difference= | experimental |
∗100

Data table 4:

Run Mass of cart + Carrying Total hanging mass Acceleration (m/s2)

load (mcart) (kg) (mhanging) (kg)
#1 0.832 0.02 0.23
#2 0.812 0.04 0.46
#3 0.792 0.06 0.69
#4 0.772 0.08 0.92
#5 0.752 0.1 1.15

Data table 5:

Fnet (Net force) = hanging mas x 9.8 N/kg

Run Hanging mass Fnet (N) Acc., theory Acc., exp. %Difference
(kg) (m/s2) (m/s2)
 #1 0.02 0.196 0.23 0.217 5.65%
#2 0.04 0.392 0.46 0.426 7.39%
#3 0.06 0.588 0.69 0.644 6.67%
#4 0.08 0.784 0.92 0.864 6.09%
#5 0.1 0.980 1.15 1.082 5.91%

2. GRAPHS

Figure 3.1: Position vs. Time (Run #1)

 Figure 3.2: Velocity vs. Time

III. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

5. How was the slope for the Velocity curve change for each run? Explain this change using Newton’s 3
laws of motion.

From run #1 to run #5, the slopes of the Velocity curve increases since acceleration also increases. The
slope of the velocity vs. time graph is the value of the cart’s acceleration. Since acceleration is
proportional to the net force exerted on the cart due to Newton’s Second Law of Motion, the art’s
acceleration will rise when net force increases due to the addition weights put on the hanging mass.
Thus, slope of the velocity vs. time graph experiences a rise.

6. What happens to an object’s acceleration if the net force applied to the object increases but the
total mass of the system remains constant? Provide a mathematical justification for your answer.

Given that the total mass of the system remain the same, its acceleration will go up if the net force
acted on the system becomes larger. As Newton’s Second Law of Motion has stated the relationship
between force, mass and acceleration: ⃗F =m ⃗a. The calculation of acceleration is derived from this
F
⃗
equation as follow a⃗ = . When mass is a constant, it can be seen that acceleration is directly
m
proportional to the net force. Therefore, when net force applied on the system increases, acceleration
will also increase.
 CONCLUSION
It can be concluded from Lab Activity one that the acceleration of an object moving down an
inclined plane will increase if the angle of inclination is raised. Moreover, the value of acceleration is
almost constant and is equal to the horizontal component of the gravitational acceleration (
a=g∗sin(θ)). Finally, the graphical acceleration more accurate than the average value of
acceleration derived from the plot of acceleration vs. time because the average value doesn’t
exclude the acceleration resulted from the push.

For Lab Activity 2 and 3, it is proven that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the
net force and inversely proportional to its mass which is exactly what Newton’s Second Law of
Motion suggests. Consequently, on condition that the net force is constant while the mass increases,
acceleration will decrease (Figure 2.2). On the other hand, if total mass remain the same but the net
force becomes larger, acceleration will go up (Figure 3.2).

RISK ASSESSMENT