A heavy plow is being pulled across a level field by a pair of oxen. The plow ha

Question

A heavy plow is being pulled across a level field by a pair of oxen. The plow has a mass of 300 kg, and the force from the oxen is exerted horizontally, parallel to the ground. Between the plow and the ground, the coefficient of static friction is mu_s = 0.4, and coefficient of kinetic friction mu_k = 0.3. The plow is initially at rest, and the oxen begin to pull with a force of 1100 N. Is that force sufficient to get the plow to start moving? Explain your answer. Once they get the plow moving, with what force must the oxen pull to keep the plow moving with a constant velocity of 1.5 m/s?

Explanation / Answer

(a) minimum force required to start the motion of plow=  µsmg

= 0.4 x 300 x 9.8 N

= 1176 N

hence 1100N is not sufficient force to start motion of plow.

(b) force required to keep the plow moving =  µkmg

= 0.3 x 300 x 9.8 N

= 882 N .............ans

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