Energy Loss on a Curved Ramp
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1. Today you will drop a small ball from the top of a curved ramp allow it to roll off the end of the ramp with a horizontal velocity vx.
2. Mark the point at which it lands on the floor, and find the horizontal velocity at which it left the ramp. Try at least 3 trials, and take an average of the horizontal distance from the end of the ramp to the point at which the ball hits the floor. Here are some equations to help you remember projectile motion:
Horizontal:
Vertical:
3. Once you've found the horizontal velocity at the end of the ramp, drop the ball again, but this time from half the height to the top of the ramp. Find the horizontal velocity at the end of the ramp as a result of dropping the ball from this new height.
Generic Data Table
Lab Questions
1. In each case, find the potential energy of the ball at the height from which it was dropped, and the kinetic energy of the ball at the end of the ramp.
2. Assuming that your ramp is a quarter of a circle,
(a) What is the radius of the circle in centimeters?
(b) What is the length of the ramp in centimeters?
3. (a) How many Joules of energy was lost on your ramp?____________________
(b) Knowing the length of the ramp, how many Joules per centimeter (J/cm) of energy was lost on the ramp?
4. (a) What is the energy of the marble at the end of the ramp? ___________________
(b) If the ramp were extended at the bottom by adding a long flat track, how long (L) in cm would the flat track have to be before the marble lost all of its energy and came to rest?
5. Knowing the velocity of the marble as it comes off the end of the ramp, and the length of the added flat track, what is the average acceleration (deceleration) of the marble as it comes to rest on the flat track?
