Academic Integrity: tutoring, explanations, and feedback — we don’t complete graded work or submit on a student’s behalf.

I am doing a lab about static and kinetic friction. We had a block on a surface

ID: 2138459 • Letter: I

Question

I am doing a lab about static and kinetic friction. We had a block on a surface connected to a string of which we changed the weight. At the end of the string was a cup of sand hanging off the table that we continuously added sand to until the block began to accelerate. I was asked to plot the force applied by the sand versus the force exerted on the track by the block and its load for both the kinetic and static cases. I assumed that for each of these forces I would just times the mass of each by gravity. I plotted those forces and got the graph below. Now I am being asked to find the coefficients of friction for the block in all of the cases. I need help figuring out the coefficient of friction and please write out how you do it. I have listed my data below. Also, let me know if I have created the wrong graph!


static case

mass of block

165.5 g

265.5

365.5

465.5

665.5

mass of sand

65.6 g

98.2

145

171.5

231


kinetic case

block masses are same as before

sand mass:

59 g

91.1

125.6

162.8

224.3


I am doing a lab about static and kinetic friction. We had a block on a surface connected to a string of which we changed the weight. At the end of the string was a cup of sand hanging off the table that we continuously added sand to until the block began to accelerate. I was asked to plot the force applied by the sand versus the force exerted on the track by the block and its load for both the kinetic and static cases. I assumed that for each of these forces I would just times the mass of each by gravity. I plotted those forces and got the graph below. Now I am being asked to find the coefficients of friction for the block in all of the cases. I need help figuring out the coefficient of friction and please write out how you do it. I have listed my data below. Also, let me know if I have created the wrong graph!

Explanation / Answer

F= u*N

N=Mb *g

F=Ms*g

u= Ms/Mb


divide the mass of sand by mass of block to obtain the coefficient of friction:

static:

0.396 (65.6/165.5), 0.369 (98.2/265.5)...etc and finally avergae all thse 5 values to find the static friction factor.


kinematic:

0.356 (59/165.5), 0.343 (91.1/265.5) etc and finally avergae all thse 5 values to find the static friction factor.


Your graph is right. Kinetic friction factor should be less than static.