Dot Product or
Scalar Product
Work
June 15, 2025
Definition of Work W
The work, W, done by a constant force on an
object is defined as the product of the
component of the force along the direction of
displacement and the magnitude of the
displacement
W ( F co s ) x
F is the magnitude of the force
Δ x is the magnitude of the
object’s displacement
F an d x
is the angle between
Work Unit
This gives no information about
the time it took for the displacement to occur
the velocity or acceleration of the object
Work is a scalar quantity
1 2 1 2
SI Unit mv mv0 ( F cos )x
2 2
Newton • meter = Joule
N•m=J
J = kg • m2 / s2 = ( kg • m / s2 ) • m
W ( F co s ) x
Work: + or -?
Work can be positive, negative, or zero. The
sign of the work depends on the direction of
the force relative to the displacement
W ( F co s ) x
Positive Work : W > 0, if 90°> = 0°
Negative Work : W < 0, if 180°> > 90°
Zero Work : W = 0 if = 90°
Work maximum if = 0°
Work minimum if = 180°
Example: When Work is
Zero
A man carries a bucket of
water horizontally at constant
velocity.
The force does no work on the
bucket
Displacement is horizontal
Force is vertical
cos 90° = 0
W ( F co s ) x
June 15, 2025
Example: Work Can Be
Positive or Negative
Work is positive when lifting
the box
Work would be negative if
lowering the box
The force would still be
upward, but the displacement
would be downward
June 15, 2025
Work Done by a Constant
Force
The work W done on a system
by an agent exerting a F
constant force on the system F r
is the product of the
magnitude F of the force, the r
magnitude Δr of the I II
displacement of the point of
application of the force, and WI 0 WII Fr
cosθ, where θ is the angle
between the force and
vectors:
displacement F
W F r Fr cos F
r r
III IV
WIII Fr WIV Fr cos
June 15, 2025
Work and Force
An Eskimo pulls a sled as shown. The total
mass of the sled is 50.0 kg, and he exerts a
force of 1.20 × 102 N on the sled by pulling
on the rope. How much work does he do on
the sled if θ = 30°and he pulls the sled 5.0
m?
W ( F cos )x
(1.20 10 2 N )(cos 30 )(5.0m)
5.2 10 2 J
June 15, 2025
Work Done by Multiple
Forces
If more than one force acts on an object,
then the total work is equal to the
algebraic sum of the work done by the
individual forces
Wnet Wby individual forces
Remember work is a scalar, so
this is the algebraic sum
Wnet Wg WN WF ( F cos )r
June 15, 2025
Power
is the rate of doing work or of transferring
energy. The average power P is the average
rate at which work W is done, and is
obtained by dividing W by the time required
to perform the work.
The SI unit for work is watt.
1 w = 1 J/s = 1kg.m2/s2
1hp = 746w
Kinetic Energy
energyinvolved in motion of a
body and is given as
KE=1/2mv2
The SI unit for KE is joule.
1 J = 1kg.m2/s2
Work-Energy Theorem
saysthat the work done on a particle
is equal to the increase in the kinetic
energy of the particle. The work-
energy theorem is valid even if the
force is varying.
Conservative Forces
A force is conservative when the work
it does on a moving object is
independent of the path between the
object’s initial and final positions. A
force is also conservative when it does
no work on an object moving around a
closed path, starting and finishing at
the same point.
The examples of conservative forces
are gravitational force, elastic spring
force, and electric force.
Non-conservative Forces
If the work done by a force depends
not only on initial and final positions,
but also on the path between them,
the force is called a non-conservative
force.
Examples are friction force, tension,
normal force, and force applied by a
person
Gravitational Potential
Energy
The gravitational potential energy PE is
the energy that an object of mass m
has by virtue of its position relative to
the surface of the earth. That position is
measured by the height h of the object
relative to an arbitrary zero level:
UPE=mgh
Elastic Potential Energy
Elastic potential energy is potential
energy stored as a result of
deformation of an elastic object, such
as the stretching of a spring. It is equal
to the work done to stretch the spring,
which depends upon the spring
constant k as well as the distance
stretched.
Ux=1/2kx2
Conservation of Energy
Energy can neither be created nor
destroyed— it is always conserved.
Thus, if the total amount of energy in
a system changes, it can only be due
to the fact that energy has crossed
the boundary of the system by
different transfer mechanisms.
Conservation of Mechanical
Energy
The total mechanical energy (E = KE
+ U) of an object remains constant as
the total object moves, provided that
the net work done by the external
nonconservative forces is zero, where
U is all the potential energies:
Sample Problem: Conservation of Mechanical
Energy
Work-Kinetic Energy
Theorem
When work is done by a net force on an
object and the only change in the object
is its speed, the work done is equal to the
change in the object’s kinetic energy
Speed will increase if work is positive
Speed will decrease if work is negative
W n e t K E fi K E K E
1 2 1 2
Wnet mv mv0
2 2
June 15, 2025
