Question

In a supermarket, you place a 22.3-N (around 5 lb) bag of oranges on a scale, and the scale starts to oscillate at 2.7 Hz. What is the force constant (spring constant) of the spring of the scale?

Answer 1

Answer:

Force constant, k = 653.3 N/m

Explanation:

It is given that,

Weight of the bag of oranges on a scale, W = 22.3 N

Let m is the mass of the bag of oranges,

$m=\dfrac{W}{g}$

$m=\dfrac{22.3}{9.8}$

m = 2.27 kg

Frequency of the oscillation of the scale, f = 2.7 Hz

We need to find the force constant (spring constant) of the spring of the scale. We know that the formula of the frequency of oscillation of the spring is given by :

$f=\dfrac{1}{2\pi}\sqrt{\dfrac{k}{m}}$

$k=4\pi^2 f^2m$

$k=4\pi^2 \times (2.7)^2\times 2.27$

k = 653.3 N/m

So, the force constant of the spring of the scale is 653.3 N/m. Hence, this is the required solution.