Plot the gravitational potential energy of a 2 kg ball as a function of height above the floor, presuming the potential energy is zero at the floor. If the ball has an initial velocity (at height h=0) of 12 m/s, plot both the total energy and the kinetic energy of the ball as a function of h. What is the maximum height attained by the ball?
At maximum height, the total energy is the potential energy.
When the ball touches the floor, the total energy is kinetic energy
Equating the 2 equations, one obtains the maximum height attained by the ball
The total energy is
The plot of potential energy vs h is shown below
The plot of kinetic energy vs h and total energy E is shown below
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