Work, Energy and Power

Question

The sign of work done by a force on a body is important to understand. State carefully if the following quantities are positive or negative:


(d) work done by an applied force on a body moving on a rough horizontal plane with uniform velocity

Answer

Positive quantity.
In this case, the body is moving on a rough horizontal plane. Frictional force opposes the motion of the body. Therefore, in order to maintain a uniform velocity, a uniform force must be applied to the body. Since the applied force acts in the direction of motion of the body, the work done is positive.

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