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Work,Energy,andPowerLesson1BasicTerminologyandConcepts

MechanicalEnergy
DefinitionandMathematicsofWork
CalculatingtheAmountofWorkDonebyForces
PotentialEnergy
KineticEnergy
MechanicalEnergy
Power

InapreviouspartofLesson1,itwassaidthatworkisdoneuponanobjectwheneveraforceactsupon
ittocauseittobedisplaced.Workinvolvesaforceactinguponanobjecttocauseadisplacement.Inall
instancesinwhichworkisdone,thereisanobjectthatsuppliestheforceinordertodothework.Ifa
WorldCivilizationbookisliftedtothetopshelfofastudentlocker,thenthestudentsuppliestheforce
todotheworkonthebook.Ifaplowisdisplacedacrossafield,thensomeformoffarmequipment
(usuallyatractororahorse)suppliestheforcetodotheworkontheplow.Ifapitcherwindsupand
acceleratesabaseballtowardshomeplate,thenthepitchersuppliestheforcetodotheworkonthe
baseball.Ifarollercoastercarisdisplacedfromgroundleveltothetopofthefirstdropofaroller
coasterride,thenachaindrivenbyamotorsuppliestheforcetodotheworkonthecar.Ifabarbellis
displacedfromgroundleveltoaheightaboveaweightlifter'shead,thentheweightlifterissupplyinga
forcetodoworkonthebarbell.Inallinstances,anobjectthatpossessessomeformofenergysupplies
theforcetodothework.Intheinstancesdescribedhere,theobjectsdoingthework(astudent,a
tractor,apitcher,amotor/chain)possess chemicalpotentialenergy
storedinfoodorfuelthatis
transformedintowork.Intheprocessofdoingwork,theobjectthatisdoingtheworkexchanges
energywiththeobjectuponwhichtheworkisdone.Whentheworkisdoneupontheobject,that
objectgainsenergy.Theenergyacquiredbytheobjectsuponwhichworkisdoneisknown
asmechanicalenergy.
Mechanicalenergyistheenergythatispossessedbyanobjectduetoits
motionorduetoitsposition.Mechanicalenergycanbeeitherkinetic
energy(energyofmotion)orpotentialenergy(storedenergyofposition).
Objectshavemechanicalenergyiftheyareinmotionand/oriftheyareat
somepositionrelativetoa zeropotentialenergyposition
(forexample,a
brickheldataverticalpositionabovethegroundorzeroheightposition).A
movingcarpossessesmechanicalenergyduetoitsmotion(kineticenergy).
Amovingbaseballpossessesmechanicalenergyduetobothitshighspeed
(kineticenergy)anditsverticalpositionabovetheground
(gravitationalpotentialenergy).AWorldCivilizationbookatrestonthetop
shelfofalockerpossessesmechanicalenergyduetoitsverticalpositionabovetheground
(gravitationalpotentialenergy).Abarbellliftedhighaboveaweightlifter'sheadpossessesmechanical
energyduetoitsverticalpositionabovetheground(gravitationalpotentialenergy).Adrawnbow
possessesmechanicalenergyduetoitsstretchedposition(elasticpotentialenergy).

MechanicalEnergyastheAbilitytoDoWork
Anobjectthatpossessesmechanicalenergyisabletodowork.Infact,
mechanicalenergyisoftendefinedastheabilitytodowork.Anyobject
thatpossessesmechanicalenergywhetheritisintheformofpotential
energyorkineticenergyisabletodowork.Thatis,itsmechanical
energyenablesthatobjecttoapplyaforcetoanotherobjectinordertocauseittobedisplaced.
Numerousexamplescanbegivenofhowanobjectwithmechanicalenergycanharnessthatenergyin
ordertoapplyaforcetocauseanotherobjecttobedisplaced.Aclassicexampleinvolvesthemassive
wreckingballofademolitionmachine.Thewreckingballisamassiveobjectthatisswungbackwardsto
ahighpositionandallowedtoswingforwardintobuildingstructureorotherobjectinordertodemolish
it.Uponhittingthestructure,thewreckingballappliesaforcetoitinordertocausethewallofthe
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structuretobedisplaced.Thediagrambelowdepictstheprocessbywhichthemechanicalenergyofa
wreckingballcanbeusedtodowork.

Ahammerisatoolthatutilizesmechanicalenergytodowork.Themechanical
energyofahammergivesthehammeritsabilitytoapplyaforcetoanailin
ordertocauseittobedisplaced.Becausethehammerhasmechanicalenergy
(intheformofkineticenergy),itisabletodoworkonthenail.Mechanical
energyistheabilitytodowork.

Anotherexamplethatillustrateshowmechanicalenergyis
theabilityofanobjecttodoworkcanbeseenanyevening
atyourlocalbowlingalley.Themechanicalenergyofa
bowlingballgivestheballtheabilitytoapplyaforcetoabowlingpininorderto
causeittobedisplaced.Becausethemassiveballhasmechanicalenergy(intheform
ofkineticenergy),itisabletodoworkonthepin.Mechanicalenergyistheabilityto
dowork.

Adartgunisstillanotherexampleofhowmechanicalenergyofan
objectcandoworkonanotherobject.Whenadartgunisloadedand
thespringsarecompressed,itpossessesmechanicalenergy.The
mechanicalenergyofthecompressedspringsgivesthespringsthe
abilitytoapplyaforcetothedartinordertocauseittobedisplaced.
Becauseofthespringshavemechanicalenergy(intheformof
elasticpotentialenergy),itisabletodoworkonthedart.Mechanicalenergyistheabilitytodowork.
Acommonsceneinsomepartsofthecountrysideisa"windfarm."
Highspeedwindsareusedtodoworkonthebladesofaturbineat
thesocalledwindfarm.Themechanicalenergyofthemovingair
givestheairparticlestheabilitytoapplyaforceandcausea
displacementoftheblades.Asthebladesspin,theirenergyis
subsequentlyconvertedintoelectricalenergy(anonmechanicalform
ofenergy)andsuppliedtohomesandindustriesinordertorun
electricalappliances.Becausethemovingwindhasmechanicalenergy
(intheformofkineticenergy),itisabletodoworkontheblades.
Oncemore,mechanicalenergyistheabilitytodowork.


TheTotalMechanicalEnergy
Asalreadymentioned,themechanicalenergyofanobjectcanbetheresultofitsmotion(i.e.,kinetic
energy)and/ortheresultofitsstoredenergyofposition(i.e.,potentialenergy).Thetotalamountof
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mechanicalenergyismerelythesumofthepotentialenergyandthekineticenergy.Thissumissimply
referredtoasthetotalmechanicalenergy(abbreviatedTME).
TME=PE+KE
Asdiscussedearlier,therearetwoformsofpotentialenergydiscussedinourcoursegravitational
potentialenergyandelasticpotentialenergy.Giventhisfact,theaboveequationcanberewritten:
TME=PEgrav+PEspring+KE
ThediagrambelowdepictsthemotionofLiPingPhar(esteemedChineseskijumper)assheglides
downthehillandmakesoneofherrecordsettingjumps.

ThetotalmechanicalenergyofLiPingPharisthesumofthepotentialandkineticenergies.Thetwo
formsofenergysumupto50000Joules.NoticealsothatthetotalmechanicalenergyofLiPingPharis
aconstantvaluethroughouthermotion.Thereareconditionsunderwhichthetotalmechanicalenergy
willbeaconstantvalueandconditionsunderwhichitwillbeachangingvalue.Thisisthesubject
ofLesson2theworkenergyrelationship.Fornow,merelyrememberthattotalmechanicalenergyis
theenergypossessedbyanobjectduetoeitheritsmotionoritsstoredenergyofposition.Thetotal
amountofmechanicalenergyismerelythesumofthesetwoformsofenergy.Andfinally,anobject
withmechanicalenergyisabletodoworkonanotherobject.

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