MathematicsCode 9709
Forces and equilibrium
What this topic asks you to be able to do
- identify every force at work in a stated situation
- appreciate that force is a vector quantity, and work out and apply components and resultants
- apply the principle that a particle in equilibrium has forces acting on it whose vector sum is zero, or equivalently that, in any direction, the components of those forces add up to zero
- understand that the contact force where two surfaces touch can be treated as two components, one normal and one frictional
- apply the ‘smooth’ contact model, and understand its limitations
- appreciate what is meant by limiting friction and limiting equilibrium, state how the coefficient of friction is defined, and apply the relationship FR = n or FR G n as the situation requires
- use Newton’s third law