A tricycle releases 60 J of gravitational potential energy while rolling 0.59 m directly downhill along a ramp. What is the downhill force (if constant) acting on the tricycle?
To determine the downhill force acting on the tricycle, we can use the formula for gravitational potential energy:
Gravitational Potential Energy = mgh
Where:
m = mass of the object (tricycle)
g = acceleration due to gravity (approximately 9.8 m/s^2)
h = height
Given that the tricycle releases 60 J of gravitational potential energy, we can equate this to the formula:
60 J = m * 9.8 m/s^2 * h
The height (h) is not given in the problem, but we are told that the tricycle rolls 0.59 m directly downhill along a ramp. So we can assume that the height is 0.59 m.
Now we can rearrange the formula to solve for the downhill force (F):
F = Gravitational Potential Energy / distance (d)
Since the distance is given as 0.59 m, we can substitute the known values into the formula:
F = 60 J / 0.59 m
F ≈ 101.69 N
Therefore, the constant downhill force acting on the tricycle is approximately 101.69 N.