A wheel and axle on a bicycle are designed with an axle radius of 0.125 meters and a wheel radius of 0.5 meters. If a force of 800 newtons is applied to the axle, what is the maximum output force of the bike wheel?
A 800 n
B 200 n
C 100 n
D 3,200 n
The mechanical advantage of a wheel and axle system is given by the ratio of the radius of the wheel to the radius of the axle. In this case, it is 0.5 m / 0.125 m = 4.
The output force of the wheel is therefore 4 times the applied force on the axle.
So, the maximum output force of the bike wheel is 4 * 800 N = 3,200 N.
Therefore, the correct answer is D) 3,200 N.