Question
Which would require a greater force—accelerating a 2 kg mass at 5 ms –2 or a 4 kg mass at 2 ms–2.
Solution
Here,
Mass of first body, m1 = 2 kg
Body is accelerating at a rate of, a1 = 5ms-2
Mass of second body, m2 = 4kg
Rate of acceleration, a2 = 2ms-2
Force acting on the first body,
F1 = m1a1 = 2 x 5 = 10 N
Force acting on the second body,
F2 = m2a2 = 4 x 2 = 8 N
Clearly, F1 > F2
Thus, the body which is accelerating at a rate of 5 ms-2 would require a greater force.
