PHY 122 Chapter Notes -Observational Error, Inelastic Collision, Elastic Collision
Document Summary
The objective of this experiment was to determine if momentum and energy would be conserved in an elastic and inelastic collision in two dimensions. Two pucks were placed on a table and one puck was given an initial velocity to collide with the other stationary puck. In the first trial the pucks were free to move after the collision and for the second trial the pucks stuck together with velcro. Logger pro was used to analyze video recorded of the two collisions and to collect data of the two pucks before and after the collisions. For the elastic collision the total amount of kinetic energy lost was less than 20% so the total kinetic energy was determined to be conserved. There was an increase in the total momentum of the system which was not expected. Although there was no loss in momentum further trials of this experiment should be conducted to verify that the momentum was conserved.
