Chapter 6

Work and Kinetic Energy

Conceptual In Class Assignment

Problems (To Problems Problems
be Discussed
6.1 Work in Class)
6.2 Kinetic Energy and the Work–
Energy Theorem TYU-6.1 Example- Exercise
6.3 Work and Energy with Varying TYU-6.2 6.2, 6.2,
Forces 6.3,
6.20,
6.10
6.4 Power
6.47

Dr. Rajanikanta Parida

Associate Professor
Department of Physics, ITER,
Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University
rajanikantaparida@soa.ac.in
Lecture Note by: Dr. Rajanikanta Parida Work and Kinetic Energy Chapter 6

Work

The work done by a constant force acting at an angle  to the

displacement is
W = F s cos . = F . s

The area under the force ~ displacement graph represents the work
done.

Area under F~ x graph = W =F s

Positive work 00 < < 900 • Gravity does +ve work during free fall of a body.
(Force (F) has a component • Work done on a spring during stretching.
in direction of displacement)
Negative work 900 < < 1800 • Work done by the hands of a person on a ball on his
(Force (F) has a component hand.
opposite to the direction of
displacement)
• Work done by the gravitational force on a body moving
vertically upward direction.
• Work done by the frictional force.
Zero work  = 900 • Person walking with constant velocity on a level floor
(Force (F) has a component while carrying a book on his head.
perpendicular to the direction
of displacement)
• a body rotating along a circular path.

Work done by a constant force:

A constant force (F) is applied on a body so that the so that its gets displaced from x1 to x2 and the
respective velocities are v1 and v2 from x1 to x2 .
The work done is give by
 v22 - v12 
W = F s cos . => W = m a s cos 0. => W = m  s
 2s 
1 1
=> W= m v 22 − m v 22 => W = K 2 − K1 = K
2 2
Thus work done is the change in kinetic energy of the body.

Work done by a variable force

Let ‘dw’ be the work done for the very small displacement dx, then,
dW = Fx dx where, Fx = force applied
x2 x2

 W = F
x1
x dx = Fx  dx
x1
= Fx ( x 2 - x1 )

Work done in stretching a spring

Force of a stretched spring, are not constant. The force needed to
stretch an ideal spring is proportional to the spring’s elongation.
It is given by
Fx = kx.
Where, k = spring constant

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Lecture Note by: Dr. Rajanikanta Parida Work and Kinetic Energy Chapter 6

Units of k = Newton/meter
k = Large, for tight spring and k = Small, for Loose spring
The work done by this force when the elongation goes from x1 to x2 is
x2 x2

W=  F dx
x1
x  W=  k x dx
x1

x2 1 1
 W = k  x 2   W= k x 22 - k x12
x1 2 2
When an external force is applied on the spring then the work done on the spring is positive  W = + 1 k x 2 
 2 
But work done by the spring is negative. In this case the work is done by the restoring force ( Fx = - kx ).
1
So, work done by the spring is W = − k x2
2
If x1 = 0 and x2 = x, then
1 1 1
k x 2 - k (0)
2
W=  W= k x2
2 2 2
The area under the graph represents the work done on the spring as the spring is stretched from x = 0 to a
maximum value ‘x’ is

Work–Energy Theorem for straight line motion

Let us a body applied with a varying force Fx. Then work done on the body is given by
x2

W = F
x1
x dx where, x1 and x2 are the initial and final displacement respectively.

x2 x2 v2
dv x
 W =
x1
ma x dx = m 
x1
dt
dx = m  v x dv x
v1
v2
 v2  1 1
 W = m   W = m v 22 − m v12
 2  v1 2 2
 W = K 2 − K1 = K
Thus work on a body moving in a straight line is the change in kinetic energy. This is wok-kinetic energy
theorem.
Power (P)
▪ Power is the time rate at which work is done.
▪ Average power is Pav = ΔW
Δt
▪ Instantaneous power is P = dW
dt
▪ P = F.v
▪ SI unit of power is watt (1 Watt = 1 J/s)
▪ Bigger unit of power is horsepower (1 hp = 746 W)
▪ The kilowatt-hour (kwh) is the usual commercial unit of electrical energy.
▪ 1 kW h = (103 J/s)(3600 s) = 3.6 x 106 J = 3.6 MJ

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Lecture Note by: Dr. Rajanikanta Parida Work and Kinetic Energy Chapter 6

Test your Understanding (TYU)

Test Your Understanding of Section 6.1:
An electron moves in a straight line toward the east with a constant speed of 8 x 107 m/s. It has electric,
magnetic, and gravitational forces acting on it. During a 1-m displacement, the total work done on the
electron is
(i) positive; (ii) negative;
(iii) zero; (iv) not enough information given to decide.
Answer: (iii)
The electron has constant velocity, so its acceleration is zero.
The net force Fnet on the electron is also zero. (by Newton’s second law)
Therefore the total work done by all the forces = Fnet . x = 0 . x = 0
The individual forces may do nonzero work.

Test Your Understanding of Section 6.2:

Rank the following bodies in order of their kinetic energy, from least to greatest.
(i) a 2.0-kg body moving at 5.0 m/s;
(ii) a 1.0-kg body that initially was at rest and then had 30 J of work done on it;
(iii) a 1.0-kg body that initially was moving at 4.0 m/s and then had 20 J of work done on it;
(iv) a 2.0-kg body that initially was moving at 10 m/s and then did 80 J of work on another body.
Answer: (iv), (i), (iii), (ii)
1 1
m v 2 = ( 2kg )( 5 m / s ) = 25 J
2
(i) m = 2 kg, v = 5 m/s. Kinetic energy, K =
2 2
(ii) m = 1 kg, v0x= 0, W = 30 J. K2 = W + K1 = 30J + 0 = 30J
(iii) m = 1 kg, v0x= 4m/s, W = 30 J. K2 = W + K1 = 20J + (½)mv20x = 20J + 8J = 28 J
(iii) m = 2 kg, v0x= 10m/s, K1 = (½)mv20x = 100 J
When the body did 80 J of work on another body, the other body did (- 80 J) of work on 1st body.
So, K1 = 80 J. K2 = K1 + W = 100J + (- 80 J) = 20J

In-class problem (Example Problems): 6.2, 6.3, 6.10

Examle-6.2: Work done by several forces
A farmer hitches her tractor to a sled loaded with firewood and pulls it a
distance of 20 m along level ground (shown in the figure). The total weight
of sled and load is 14,700 N. The tractor exerts a constant 5000-N force at
an angle 36.90 of above the horizontal. A 3500-N friction force opposes the
sled’s motion. Find the work done by each force acting on the sled and the
total work done by all the forces
Solution:
Forces acting on the sled along with the load are shown in the free body diagram.
• Force exerted by the tractor (FT) at an angle 36.90 of above the horizontal
• Friction force (Ff) acting on the sled
• Weight (w) of sled and load
• Normal reaction (n) on the sled.
The works done by each force acting on the sled are:
Work WT done by FT is
WT = FT s cos = (5000 N) x (120 m) x (0.80) = 80,000 N . m = 80 kJ
Work WS done by FS is
WS = FS s cos = (3500 N) x (120 m) x (-1) = - 70,000 N . m = - 70 kJ
Work Ww done by weight (w) is

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Lecture Note by: Dr. Rajanikanta Parida Work and Kinetic Energy Chapter 6

Ww = w s cos900 = w s x (0) = 0
Work Wn done by normal reaction (n) is
Ww = w s cos900 = w s x (0) = 0
The total work Wtot done on the sled by all forces is the algebraic sum of the work done by the individual
forces:
Wtot = WT + WS + 0 + 0 = 80 kJ + (- 70 kJ) = 10 kJ
Alternative method:
Net force exerted by the tractor is
F = (5000N) cos(36.90) – (3500N) = 500N
Work done WT by the force exerted by the tractor is
WT = F s = (500N)(20m) = 10000J

Examle-6.3:
A farmer hitches her tractor to a sled loaded with firewood and pulls it a
distance of 20 m along level ground. The total weight of sled and load is
14,700 N. The tractor exerts a constant 5000-N force at an angle of 36.9
degrees above the horizontal. A 3500-N friction force opposes the sled’s
motion. Suppose sled moves at 2 m/s; what is speed after 20 m?

Solution:
Mass of sled and load is given by
w 147000 N
m= = = 1500 kg
g 9.8 m/s 2
The initial kinetic energy K1 is
1 1
m v12 = (1500 kg )( 2.0 m/s ) = 3000 J
2
K1 =
2 2
The final kinetic energy K1 is
1 1
K 2 = m v 22 = (1500 kg ) v 22 = 750 v 22 J
2 2
Net force exerted by the tractor is
F = (5000N) cos(36.90) – (3500N) = 500N
Work done WT by the force exerted by the tractor is
WT = F s = (500N)(20m) = 10000J
The work–energy theorem is
Wtot = K2 − K1 = ( 750 kg ) v22 − 3000 J
=> 10000 J = ( 750 kg ) v22 − 3000 J  ( 750 kg ) v22 = 7000 J v2 = 4.2 m/s
Example:6.10
A 50.0-kg marathon runner runs up the stairs to the top of Chicago’s 443-m-tall Willis Tower, the tallest
building in the United States. To lift herself to the top in 15.0 minutes, what must be her average power
output? Express your answer in watts, in kilowatts, and in horsepower.
Solution:
Work done in lifting a mass ‘m’ against gravity to a height ‘h’ is
W = m g h = (50.0 kg)(9.80 m/s2)(443 m) = 2.17 x 105 J
Average power in a time 15.0 min = 900 s, is
W 2.17 x 105 J
P= = = 241W = 0.241 kW = 0.323 hp
t 900 s

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