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Our Assignmnet
Our assignment was to create a vehicle that ran off of an alternative energy source that could go exactly 5 meters. We used our knowlendge of friction and spring energy that we learned in our Physics and Engeneering class to make the most efficent vehicle possible. We started this project by making blueprints about what our car would look like and how it would work. We then began building the car. Once we got our vehicle to a point where it could move, we adjusted the car to go exactly 5 meters. After our car was able to go 5 meters we had to create a slideshow about why our vehicle would be helpful in real life. We created graphs of this, and showed why our car was effective in the way it used energy. We then used this to create a sales pitch of our vehicle to a large car company.
Spring Potential Energy - energy stored in the stretch or compression of an object
The spring potential energy is the highest before the vehicle is released, at about 2.8 J. This energy decreased quickly, and was almost gone by the second meter. This is because the rubber bands unravel, which means they have less stretch and less potential energy.
Kinetic Energy - energy due to motion
The kinetic energy is somewhat similar when the vehicle is moving. It goes up slightly, and then eventually goes back down. The highest kinetic energy was at the third meter, at about .6 J.
Total Energy - sum of all forms of energy
Since energy is not destroyed, the total energy stays the same as the potential energy before the vehicle is released. The total energy was about 2.8 J.
Thermal Energy - energy that is lost to heat
Thermal energy is found by subtracting potential energy and kinetic energy from the total energy. This is the energy that was lost to heat. The thermal energy increases at a steady rate until the stop, reaching a peak of about 2.6 J at the fifth meter.
Gravitational Potential Energy - energy due to height
In order to have gravitational potential energy, the vehicle would have to be lifted of the ground. Since the vehicle was powered by a spring and not a ramp, it is not lifted off the ground and has no gravitational potential energy.
Distance
The distance covered in each meter is similar for every meter. This tells us that the vehicle's speed remains the same throughout its trip.
Velocity - rate of change in distance
In this graph, the velocity is seen as an arch. This means that the velocity kept increasing until about meter 2.5, where the vehicle began to slow sown until its stop. The top velocity is at meter 2.5 and it is about 1.3 m/s.
Acceleration - rate of change in velocity
The car accelerates most in the first meter because the car goes from full stop to a significant speed. This is a big increase, and the top acceleration then is about .1 m/s^2. After the first meter the velocity rapidly decreases until eventually the car decelerates. The top deceleration is about .3 J.
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