Question

Hi! I have my physics lab practical tomorrow and for it we are supposed to design an experiment meeting these conditions

"Your goal is to design and to carry out an experiment demonstrating that the total energy — the sum of the kinetic energy plus the sum of the potential energy — remains constant while the mass and spring oscillate up and down."

The equipment I'm going to have to perform this experiment is listed below

Computer

Logger Pro

MS Excel

LABQUEST

Motion Detector on the floor, protected by a wire basket Spring (spring constant k will be given by your instructor) Hanging weight holder

300 g mass (0.300 kg)

Mounting hardware adjusted so 300 g mass hangs motionless ~70 cm from floor Loop of string* (optional, ~1 cm long) to suspend the spring from the support bar Logger Pro setup file SHM Energy.mbl

Written on blackboard: spring constant

Anything will work I assume as long as it shows the total energy stays constant, I only have 30 mins to do it so I don't imagine it being too complex. Let me know what you think!

Answer 1

m = 0.3 kg
The basic goal is to establish Energy conervation !!
So Let's say you have the mass attached the string which is hanging !!

If yoy pull the mass down by some distance (x), spring elongate and gains, Spring Potential Energy while as the block is lowered down , Geavitational Potential energy will reduce !!
Now if you relase the mass, it will go back and perform SHM,
As it goes up,
Velocity increases, Height increases while Spring Elongation decreases
Therefore
Kinetic Energy increases, Potential Energy increases , and Spring Potential Energy decreases !!

Then it reaches equilibrium , and starts moving upwards, unless it starts compressing string !!
This process will keep on repeating, and the energy get's transferred from one type to another !!
In the End,
Kinetic Energy + Potential Energy + Spring Potential Energy = Constant !!