Air Table Collisions - Equal Mass, 1N40.20

Topic and Concept:

• [:Linear_Momentum#Collisions2D: 1N40. Collisions in Two Dimensions]

Location:

• Floor Item: ME, South Wall

attachment:AirTableSetup01-400.jpg

Abstract:

Collide two pucks of equal mass on an air table, one moving and one stationary, while varying the angle of impact between them.

Important Setup Notes:

• This demonstration requires a supply of compressed air!

Setup and Procedure:

1. Connect the compressed air supply to the nozzle on the air table.

2. Turn on the air when ready. See [:RedWhiteGasCart:air & gas cart page] for operating instructions.

3. Place the target puck about one third of the total table length away from the end. This will remain stationary.
4. When ready, use your hand to accelerate the other puck from the far end of the table toward the target puck.
5. Repeat this collision using different incident angles.

Cautions, Warnings, or Safety Concerns:

• Make sure you are using compressed air and NOT methane gas!

Discussion:

In conservative systems, linear momentum is always conserved (the full vector quantity - magnitude & direction). The larger the angle of incidence, the larger the angle between the final momenta will be. With equal masses colliding, the only effective variable in this demonstration is the incident angle. To see the effect that mass has (notably two different masses in the collision), see [:AirTableUnequalMass: 1N40.21 Air Table Collisions - Unequal Masses].

attachment:CollisionsIn2D-Wikipedia.gif

Videos:

• [https://www.youtube.com/user/LectureDemostrations/videos?view=1 Lecture Demonstration's Youtube Channel]

References:

• [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Momentum#Multiple_dimensions Collisions in Multiple Dimensions - Wikipedia]

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