Question

The spring has a stiffness k=200 N/m and is unstretched when the 25 kg block is at A. Determine the acceleration of the block when s=0.4 m. The contact surface between the block and the plane is smooth (no friction).
(solve using F=ma for acceleration and U=Δ T+Δ V for velocity)

Answer 1

Acceleration of the block = 3.2 m/s

Explanation:

Given data:

k = 200 N/m

m = 25 kg

s  = 0.4 m

Now, in order to calculate the force that is applied to a spring, we use the formula:

F = ks

where k is the spring constant and s is the extension.

We also know that,

F = ma

where m is the mass and a is the acceleration.

Since both are the formulas for force, we can write as:

ma = ks

   a = ks/m

Now substituting the values in the above equation,

   a = 200 × 0.4

            25

   a   = 3.2 m/s