John pushes on a 400 kg refrigerator with a force of 800 N. While sliding a friction force of 300 N acts on the refrigerator. What is the acceleration of this refrigerator?
F = 800 - 300 = 500 N
a = F/m = 500/400 = 1.25 m/s^2
To find the acceleration of the refrigerator, we can apply Newton's second law of motion, which states that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass.
Step 1: Determine the net force acting on the refrigerator.
The net force is the vector sum of all the forces acting on an object. In this case, we need to subtract the friction force from the force applied by John:
Net force = Force applied - Friction force
= 800 N - 300 N
= 500 N
Step 2: Calculate the acceleration of the refrigerator.
We can now use Newton's second law, which is defined by the formula:
Net force = mass × acceleration
Rearranging the formula to solve for acceleration, we have:
Acceleration = Net force / Mass
Acceleration = 500 N / 400 kg
Acceleration ≈ 1.25 m/s²
Therefore, the acceleration of the refrigerator is approximately 1.25 m/s².