A pendulum of a given mass is pulled back through a given vertical height and released to swing back down to a 'wall' where it impacts.

Can i use mg delta h to get E kin; and then use E= half mv^2 to get the collision impact velocity?

Would someone check my thinking please? Thanks.

Yes, you can use the equation E = mgh to calculate the potential energy of the pendulum at the highest point of its swing, where h is the vertical height the pendulum is pulled back from, m is the mass of the pendulum, and g is the acceleration due to gravity.

To calculate the kinetic energy at the lowest point of its swing (just before it impacts the wall), you can use the equation E = 1/2mv^2, where v is the velocity of the pendulum. However, it's important to note that this equation only gives the kinetic energy of the pendulum and not the actual velocity.

To find the impact velocity, you need additional information or equations. When the pendulum collides with the wall, some of the kinetic energy will be converted into other forms (such as sound or heat), so the impact velocity may not be equal to the velocity at the lowest point of the swing.

To determine the impact velocity, you may need to consider other factors, such as the elastic or inelastic nature of the collision, the distance over which the collision occurs, and any external forces acting on the pendulum. It may require using equations related to Newton's laws of motion or conservation of energy and momentum, depending on the specifics of the situation.

In summary, while you can use the equation E = mgh to calculate the potential energy and E = 1/2mv^2 to calculate the kinetic energy of the pendulum, finding the impact velocity generally requires additional information and equations specific to the collision with the wall.