Kelso High Friction Lab

Friction Lab
Use hand sanitizer or wash your hands and collect the following materials.
Materials: 
Friction board
Spring scale
mass
small container

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Define force.

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Define friction.

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How does friction affect motion?

How to read a spring scale:

Bar spring scale
Circle Spring Scale

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What is the reading on the spring scale below?

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What is the reading on the spring scale below? DON'TFORGET YOUR UNITS.

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What is the reading on the spring scale below? DON'TFORGET YOUR UNITS.

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Examine and describe the four different surfaces. How they look, how they feel, what the surface is like.

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

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Which surface do you think has the least amount of friction?

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

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Which surface do you think has the most amount of friction?

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

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Place the board in front of you with the four strips arranged left to right. Place the supplied container on one strip and the 200 g mass in the container. THE MASS IS WRITTEN ON THE WEIGHTS.
Now attach the spring scale to the 200 g mass so you can read the scale.

Watch the scale as you pull the 200 g mass and container up the board.
Record the Newtons required to start the mass moving across the first strip.

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Now repeat with strip 2. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

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Now repeat with strip 3. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

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Now repeat with strip 4. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

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With your 200 g weight, pull the weight across the different surfaces at a slower speed. What happened to the force?

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With your 200 g weight, pull the weight across the different surfaces at a faster speed. What happened to the force?

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Add another 100 g (you should have 300 g on your string), pull the weight across the different surfaces at a consistent speed. What happened to the force compared to your 200 g trials?

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Remove your 200 g weight (you should have 100 g on your string), pull the weight across the different surfaces at a consistent speed. What happened to the force compared to your 200 g trials?

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What two variables influence force?

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Which material required the most force?

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Which material required the least force?

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What type of friction is preventing the mass from moving at the beginning?

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What type of friction is opposing the motion after the mass begins to move?

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Using your data. As mass increased the force __________

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Using your data. As speed increased the force __________

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Draw a free body diagram of the mass/weight. Include the applied force and the frictional force. Make sure the length of the arrows indicate the magnitude of the force.

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Reflecting on your description of the materials, why do you think you obtained the results shown above?

Return your materials to the table you got them. Then use hand sanitizer or wash your hands.

Kelso High Friction Lab

Define force.

Define friction.

How does friction affect motion?

What is the reading on the spring scale below?

What is the reading on the spring scale below? DON'TFORGET YOUR UNITS.

What is the reading on the spring scale below? DON'TFORGET YOUR UNITS.

Examine and describe the four different surfaces. How they look, how they feel, what the surface is like.From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Which surface do you think has the least amount of friction?From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Which surface do you think has the most amount of friction?From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Now repeat with strip 2. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

Now repeat with strip 3. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

Now repeat with strip 4. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

With your 200 g weight, pull the weight across the different surfaces at a slower speed. What happened to the force?

With your 200 g weight, pull the weight across the different surfaces at a faster speed. What happened to the force?

Add another 100 g (you should have 300 g on your string), pull the weight across the different surfaces at a consistent speed. What happened to the force compared to your 200 g trials?

Remove your 200 g weight (you should have 100 g on your string), pull the weight across the different surfaces at a consistent speed. What happened to the force compared to your 200 g trials?

What two variables influence force?

Which material required the most force?

Which material required the least force?

What type of friction is preventing the mass from moving at the beginning?

What type of friction is opposing the motion after the mass begins to move?

Draw a free body diagram of the mass/weight. Include the applied force and the frictional force. Make sure the length of the arrows indicate the magnitude of the force.

Reflecting on your description of the materials, why do you think you obtained the results shown above?

Define force.

Define friction.

How does friction affect motion?

What is the reading on the spring scale below?

What is the reading on the spring scale below? DON'TFORGET YOUR UNITS.

What is the reading on the spring scale below? DON'TFORGET YOUR UNITS.

Examine and describe the four different surfaces. How they look, how they feel, what the surface is like.From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Which surface do you think has the least amount of friction?From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Which surface do you think has the most amount of friction?From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Now repeat with strip 2. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

Now repeat with strip 3. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

Now repeat with strip 4. Record the Newtons required to start the 200 g mass moving.

With your 200 g weight, pull the weight across the different surfaces at a slower speed. What happened to the force?

With your 200 g weight, pull the weight across the different surfaces at a faster speed. What happened to the force?

Add another 100 g (you should have 300 g on your string), pull the weight across the different surfaces at a consistent speed. What happened to the force compared to your 200 g trials?

Remove your 200 g weight (you should have 100 g on your string), pull the weight across the different surfaces at a consistent speed. What happened to the force compared to your 200 g trials?

What two variables influence force?

Which material required the most force?

Which material required the least force?

What type of friction is preventing the mass from moving at the beginning?

What type of friction is opposing the motion after the mass begins to move?

Draw a free body diagram of the mass/weight. Include the applied force and the frictional force. Make sure the length of the arrows indicate the magnitude of the force.

Reflecting on your description of the materials, why do you think you obtained the results shown above?

Examine and describe the four different surfaces. How they look, how they feel, what the surface is like.

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Which surface do you think has the least amount of friction?

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Which surface do you think has the most amount of friction?

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Examine and describe the four different surfaces. How they look, how they feel, what the surface is like.

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Which surface do you think has the least amount of friction?

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard

Which surface do you think has the most amount of friction?

From left to right: sandpaper, foam, cork, cardboard