An 1200 kg purple pickup truck tows a small 300 kg trailer using a relatively lightweight tow rope as shown in the animation. The position of the trailer is given in 18.4m and time is in 16s.
Assuming that the force is constant, first of all you have to
find the total displacement of the truck
S = x(final) - x(initial)
The displacement is connected to the acceleration of the system (a)
and the time (t)
S = 1/2*a*t^2
a = 2S/(t^2) = 2*18.4/16^2 = 23/160 = 0.14375
m/s^2
The total force is
F = m(total)*a = (1200+300)a = 1500a = 1500*0.14375 =
215.625 N
Both the trailer and the truck move with the same
acceleration.
The net force on the trailer is
F on trailer = m(trailer)*a = 300a =
43.125 N
and on the truck
F on truck = m(truck)*a = 1200a = 172.5
N
An 1200 kg purple pickup truck tows a small 300 kg trailer using a relatively lightweight...