Pressure, Cambridge O L
Pressure, Cambridge O L
Pressure, Cambridge O L
Assessment: Pressure
1) Stiletto heels can exert great pressure mainly due to
a. the large force acting on it
b. the small force acting on it
c. its large surface area
d. its small surface area
3) Wind blows
a. from areas of high atmospheric pressure to low pressure areas
b. from areas of low atmospheric pressure to high pressure areas
c. only at areas above normal atmospheric pressure
d. only at areas below normal atmospheric pressure
6) A block of wood measuring 6m by 3m by 0.5m is placed on a table. If the mass of the block
of wood is 4500kg, what is the pressure on the table due to the block? take gravitational
force acting on a mass of 1kg to be 10N
a. 2500Pa
b. 5000Pa
c. 9000Pa
d. 22500Pa
7) A man stands on snow wearing a pair of skis. The total mass of the man is 60kg and each of
the skis has an area of 0.2m2 in contact with the snow. A 1kg mass has a gravitational force
of 10N acting on it. What pressure does the man exert on the snow?
a. 15N/m2
b. 30N/m2
c. 1500N/m2
d. 3000N/m2
K. Suresh Senanayake 1
B.Sc. (Hon’s) Physics (Sp), MIP (SL)
Name: ………………………………………………… Cambridge Ordinary Level - Physics
8) Which of the following does not cause the height of the mercury column of a simple
mercury barometer to vary?
a. changes in atmospheric pressure
b. changes in temperature of the mercury
c. changes in the value of g
d. evaporation of mercury from the barometer reservoir
e. leakage of air into the tube
10) A tank 3 m long, 1 m wide, and 0.5 m deep is filled with oil which weighs 12 000 N. What is
the pressure on the base of the tank due to the oil?
a. 4000 Pa
b. 6000 Pa
c. 8000 Pa
d. 18 000 Pa
e. 24 000 Pa
11) Water of depth 10m exerts a pressure equal to atmospheric pressure. An air bubble rises to
the surface of a lake which is 20m deep. When the bubble reaches the surface, its volume is
6cm3. What was the volume of the air bubble at the bottom of the lake?
a. 2cm3
b. 3cm3
c. 12cm3
d. 18cm3
12) A rigid tank containing air at atmospheric pressure has a capacity of 5000 cm3. A bicycle
hand pump with a capacity of 500cm3 is used to pump more air into the rigid container.
Given that the hand pump is pumped twice to push two tubes of air into the tank, what is
the final air pressure in the tank? (take atmospheric pressure as 100 000 Pa)
a. 100 000 Pa
b. 120 000 Pa
c. 500 000 Pa
d. 1 000 000 Pa
13) Oxygen can be supplied to a fish tank by bubbling air into the water. What happens to the
pressure and the volume of air bubbles while they are rising?
pressure volume
a. decreases decreases
b. decreases increases
c. increases decreases
d. increases increases
K. Suresh Senanayake 2
B.Sc. (Hon’s) Physics (Sp), MIP (SL)
Name: ………………………………………………… Cambridge Ordinary Level - Physics
14) The rudder of a large ship is operated hydraulically. Oil at high pressure exerts a force F on
a piston that in turn moves a lever arm.
The oil is at a pressure of 500kPa and the surface area of the piston is 0.20m2. What is the
size of F?
a. 100N
b. 2500N
c. 100 000N
d. 250 000N
1. The figure shows a mercury barometer on a day when the atmospheric pressure is 750mmHg.
What is the pressure at point B, at the bottom of the mercury reservoir?
K. Suresh Senanayake 3
B.Sc. (Hon’s) Physics (Sp), MIP (SL)
Name: ………………………………………………… Cambridge Ordinary Level - Physics
3. When a block of metal of mass 1.2 kg stands on a horizontal surface, the area of contact between
the block and the surface is 8.0 cm2. Assuming that the force of gravity acting on a mass of 1 kg
is 10 N, calculate the pressure exerted by the block on the surface.
6. The tyres of a car are in contact with the ground over a total area 3.0 x 10-2 m2. The total weight
of the car is 6300 N. Calculate the pressure exerted by the tyres on the ground. Why would you
expect the temperature of the tyres to have risen after the car has been in motion for some time?
K. Suresh Senanayake 4
B.Sc. (Hon’s) Physics (Sp), MIP (SL)
Name: ………………………………………………… Cambridge Ordinary Level - Physics
1. The Figure below shows part of the route of a roller-coaster in which the passenger car pulled up to
point A and released.
2. During one run, a car and passengers of total mass 800 kg are released from rest at point A, a height of
30 m above the terminal platform. The car travels a distance of 120 m along the track to reach the
highest point B of the vertical loop which is 20 m above the terminal platform. A constant frictional
force of 250N acts between the car and the track as the car moves from A to B.
a. In moving from A to B, calculate.
i. the loss in potential energy of the car,
ii. the work done against friction by the car,
iii. the gain in kinetic energy of the car,
iv. the speed of the car at B.
b. In the design of the roller coaster, do you think the summit C can be higher than point B? Explain
briefly.
K. Suresh Senanayake 5
B.Sc. (Hon’s) Physics (Sp), MIP (SL)