Final Momentum

Using the data obtained through the Labquest2 computer system, my group and I calculated exactly the initial momentum and kinetic energy, final momentum and kinetic energy, and percent of momentum and kinetic energy that was lost through these collisions. To calculate momentum we used the equation p_i=p_f which expands to m_1 v_1i+m_2 v_2i=m_1 v_1f+m_2 v_2f. We can say that our first hypothesis was accepted since in collisions 1 and 2 the total initial and final momentum was similar values. Subsequently, we used the equations 〖KE〗_i=1/2 m_1 v and 〖KE〗_f=1/2 m_2 v to find the KEi, KEf, and the percent lost. The second hypothesis was proven after the calculations of kinetic energy. For example, in table 3, the 5th and 6th run showed a decrease in total initial and final kinetic energy values due to the collision being inelastic. After the total initial and …show more content…
However, approximations of initial and final velocities, increased gravitation acceleration due to angled surfaces, transfer of energy to sound or heat, or additional friction may result in the gain or loss of momentum within the system.
Our numbers obtained through the experiment and equations, allowed us to conclude that kinetic energy is conserved in elastic equations, but not in total inelastic equations supporting our second hypothesis. However, we noticed that there were still minor amounts of kinetic energy lost during the elastic collisions. This is most likely due to friction, because the track provided does not completely remove the friction force. There could also have been some calculation and averaging errors when using the Labquest2 computer system, which would lead to that inaccurate