Mass

●​ Mass is a measure of the quantity of matter in an object at rest relative to the

observer
○​ Mass is a scalar quantity
○​ The SI unit for mass is the kilogram (kg)
●​ Consequently, mass is the property of an object that resists change in motion
○​ The greater the mass of an object, the more difficult it is to speed it up,
slow it down, or change its direction
●​ A mass may sometimes be given in grams (g)
○​ 1000 g = 1 kg
○​ 1 g = 0.001 kg

Worked example
An object has a mass of 2.7 kg.

State the number of grams in 2.7 kg.

1. State the conversion between g and kg

○​ 1 kg = 1000 g

2. Convert 2.7 kg into g

○​ 2.7 kg = 2.7 × 1000 = 2700 g

Weight
●​ Weight is a gravitational force on an object with mass
○​ Weight is a force, so it is a vector quantity
○​ The SI units for force are newtons (N)

EXTENDED

●​ Weight is the effect of a gravitational field on a mass

●​ Weight is defined as:

The force acting on an object due to gravitational attraction

●​ Planets have strong gravitational fields

○​ Hence, they attract nearby masses with a strong gravitational force
●​ Because of weight:
○​ Objects stay firmly on the ground
○​ Objects will always fall to the ground
 ○​ Satellites are kept in orbit

Some of the phenomena associated with gravitational attraction and the weight force

●​ The weight of a body is equal to the product of its mass (m) and the acceleration
of free fall (g)

●​ You can rearrange this equation with the help of the formula triangle:
 Use the formula triangle to help you rearrange the equation

Gravitational Field Strength

●​ Gravitational field strength is defined as:

The force per unit mass acting on an object in a gravitational field

●​ On Earth, this is equal to 9.8 N/kg

●​ Gravitational field strength is also known as acceleration of free fall, or
acceleration due to gravity
○​ In this context the units are m/s2
●​ The value of g (gravitational field strength) varies from planet to planet depending
on their mass and radius
●​ A few examples of varying gravitational field strength are shown below:

Gravitational field strength of the planets in our solar system

 Mass v Weight
●​ An object’s mass always remains the same, however, its weight will differ
depending on the strength of the gravitational field on different planets
●​ For example, the gravitational field strength on the Moon is 1.63 N/kg, meaning
an object’s weight will be about 6 times less than on Earth

On the moon, your mass will stay the same but your weight will be much lower

Exam Tip
You won't be expected the learn the exact value of g (9.81 N/kg), but you will be
expected to remember that g = 9.8 N/kg and use it in calculations
Using a Balance
●​ The weight of two objects can be compared using a balance
○​ Because the gravitational field strength is constant everywhere on Earth,
this also allows us to measure the mass of an object
 A balance can be used to compare two different weights

Density
●​ Density is defined as:

The mass per unit volume of a material

●​ Objects made from low density materials typically have a low mass
●​ Similarly sized objects made from high density materials have a high mass
○​ For example, a bag full of feathers is far lighter compared to a similar bag
full of metal
○​ Or another example, a balloon is less dense than a small bar of lead
despite occupying a larger volume
●​ Density is related to mass and volume by the following equation:
●​ Gases, for examples, are less dense than solids because the molecules are
more spread out (same mass, over a larger volume)

Gases are less dense than solids

●​ This equation can be rearranged with the help of the formula triangle:
 Density, mass, volume formula triangle

●​ The units of density depend on what units are used for mass and volume:
○​ If the mass is measured in g and volume in cm3, then the density will be in
g/cm3
○​ If the mass is measured in kg and volume in m3, then the density will be in
kg/m3
●​ This table gives some examples of densities on common materials
○​ If a material is more dense than water (1000 kg/m3), then it will sink

Approximate Densities of Materials Table

●​ The volume of an object may not always be given directly, but can be calculated
with the appropriate equation depending on the object’s shape
 Volumes of common 3D shapes

Worked example
A paving slab has a mass of 73 kg and dimensions 0.04 m × 0.5 m × 0.85 m.

Calculate the density, in kg/m3, of the material from which the paving slab is made.
Step 1: List the known quantities

○​ Mass of slab, m = 73 kg
○​ Volume of slab, V = 0.04 m × 0.5 m × 0.85 m = 0.017 m3
​

Step 2: Write out the equation for density

Step 3: Substitute in values

ρ = 73 ÷ 0.017 = 4294 kg/m3

Step 4: Round the answer to two significant figures

ρ = 4300 kg/m3

Exam Tip
Make sure you are comfortable converting between units such as metres (m) and
centimetres (cm) or grams (g) and kilograms (kg).

●​ When converting a larger unit to a smaller one, you multiply (×)

○​ E.g. 125 m = 125 × 100 = 12 500 cm
●​ When you convert a smaller unit to a larger one, you divide (÷)
○​ E.g. 5 g = 5 ÷ 1000 = 0.005 or 5 × 10-3 kg
 Measuring Density
Equipment List

●​ Resolution of measuring equipment:

○​ 30 cm ruler = 1 mm
○​ Vernier calipers = 0.01 mm
○​ Micrometer = 0.001 mm
○​ Digital balance = 0.01 g

Experiment 1: Measuring the Density of Regularly Shaped Objects

●​ The aim of this experiment is to determine the densities of regular objects by
using measurements of their dimensions

Variables:
●​ Independent variable = Type of shape / volume
●​ Dependent variable = Mass of the object

Method
1.​ Place the object on a digital balance and note down its mass
2.​ Use either the ruler, Vernier calipers or micrometer to measure the object’s
dimensions (width, height, length, radius) – the apparatus will depend on the size
of the object
3.​ Repeat these measurements and take an average of these readings before
calculating the density
●​ An example of a results table might look like this:
Analysis of Results
●​ Calculate the volume of the object depending on whether it is a cube, sphere,
cylinder (or other regular shape)

Calculating the volume of an object depends on its shape

●​ Remember to convert from centimetres (cm) to metres (m) by dividing by 100

1 cm = 0.01 m

50 cm = 0.5 m

●​ Using the mass and volume, the density of each can be calculated using the
equation:

●​ Where:
○​ ρ = density in kilogram per metres cubed (kg/m3)
○​ m = mass in kilograms (kg)
○​ V = volume in metres cubed (m3)
 Experiment 2: Measuring the Density of Irregularly Shaped Objects
●​ The aim of this experiment is to determine the densities of irregular objects using
a displacement technique

Variables:
●​ Independent variable = Different irregular shapes / mass
●​ Dependent variable = Volume of displaced water

Method
Apparatus for measuring the density of irregular objects

1.​ Place the object on a digital balance and note down its mass
2.​ Fill the eureka can with water up to a point just below the spout
3.​ Place an empty measuring cylinder below its spout
4.​ Carefully lower the object into the eureka can
5.​ Measure the volume of the displaced water in the measuring cylinder
6.​ Repeat these measurements and take an average before calculating the density

●​ Alternatively, the object can be placed in a measuring cylinder containing a

known volume of liquid, and the change in volume then measured
When an irregular solid is placed in a measuring cylinder, the level of the liquid will rise
by an amount equal to the volume of the solid

●​ Once the mass and volume of the shape is known, its density can be calculated
●​ An example of a results table might look like this:
Analysis of Results
●​ The volume of the water displaced is equal to the volume of the object
●​ Once the mass and volume of the shape are known, the density can be
calculated using:

Experiment 3: Measuring Density of Liquids

●​ The aim of this experiment is to determine the density of a liquid by finding a
difference in its mass

Variables:
●​ Independent variable = Volume of water added
●​ Dependent variable = Mass of cylinder

Method
 Apparatus for determining the density of a liquid

1.​ Place an empty measuring cylinder on a digital balance and note down the mass
2.​ Fill the cylinder with the liquid and note down the volume
3.​ Note down the new reading on the digital balance
4.​ Repeat these measurements and take an average before calculating the density
●​ An example of a results table might look like this:

Analysis of Results
●​ Find the mass of the liquid by subtracting the final reading from the original
reading
 Mass of liquid = Mass of cylinder with water – mass of cylinder

●​ Remember to convert between grams (g) and kilograms (kg) by dividing by 1000

1 g = 0.001 kg

78 g = 0.078 kg

●​ Once the mass and volume of the liquid are known, the density can be calculated
using the equation:

Evaluating the Experiments

Systematic Errors:

●​ Ensure the digital balance is set to zero before taking measurements of mass
○​ This includes when measuring the density of the liquid – remove the
measuring cylinder and zero the balance before adding the liquid

Random Errors:

●​ A main cause of error in this experiment is in the measurements of length

○​ Ensure to take repeat readings and calculate an average to keep this error
to a minimum
●​ Place the irregular object in the displacement can carefully, as dropping it from a
height might cause water to splash which will lead to an incorrect volume reading

Safety Considerations
●​ There is a lot of glassware in this experiment, ensure this is handled carefully
●​ Water should not be poured into the measuring cylinder when it is on the electric
balance
○​ This could lead to electric shock
●​ Make sure to stand up during the whole experiment, to react quickly to any spills

Exam Tip
There is a lot of information to take in here! When writing about experiments, a good
sequence is as follows:
 ●​ If you need to use an equation to calculate something, start off by giving it as this
will give you some hints about what you need to mention later
●​ List the apparatus that you need
●​ State what measurements you need to make (your equation will give you some
hints) and how you will measure them
●​ Finally, state that you will repeat each measurement several times and take
averages

Terms:

​ Kinematics​
Kinematics is concerned with describing the way in which objects move.
​ Displacement​
An objects total change in position. If a man runs around an oval 400 meter track,
stopping at the precise location he began, though he ran a distance of 400
meters, his total displacement was 0.
​ Dynamics​
Dynamics focuses on understanding why objects move the way they do.
​ Reference frame​
The coordinate system with respect to which motion is being described.
​ Speed​
A measure of how fast an object is moving.
​ Average velocity​
The time-average of the velocity function over a specified time-interval. (See
formula below.)
​ Instantaneous velocity​
The value of the velocity function at a particular instant in time. (See formula
below.)
​ Gravitational acceleration​
The gravitational acceleration of objects near the earth's surface is the same for
all objects regardless of mass and is given by the number g = 9.8m/s2.
​ Scalar-valued function​
A function that outputs scalars (regular numbers). Most common functions that
you are probably familiar with are scalar-valued functions.
​ Vector-valued function​
A function that outputs vectors. This means that while the domain of the function
may consist of scalars, the values in the range are all vectors.
​ Position function​
A position function can be either scalar-valued (for motion in one dimension) or
vector-valued (for motion in two or three dimensions). At each point in time its
value represents the position of an object at that time.
 ​ Velocity function​
This function is the time-derivative of the position function, and gives the velocity
of an object at each point in time.
​ Acceleration function​
This function is the time-derivative of the velocity function, and the second
time-derivative of the position function. It gives the value of the acceleration of an
object at each point in time.
​ Time-derivative​
The time-derivative of a function is a new function whose value at each point
represents the rate of change of the original function with respect to time.
​ Simple harmonic motion​
Periodic motion that can be described by special types of position functions.
Examples of simple harmonic motion include an object moving in a circle and a
ball bouncing up and down on a spring.
​Formulae​

The Average Velocity For An

Object With Position
Function X(T) Over The vavg =
Time Interval (T0, T1).
​

The Instantaneous Velocity At

Time T For An Object With v(t) =
Position Function X(T).