QUARTER

4 SCIENCE 9
Momentum Conservation
WEEK 4

I
Momentum Conservation
You have learned before that an external force is required to make an object accelerate. Similarly, if we want to change the
momentum of an object, an external force is required. There will be no change in momentum if there is no external force.
Let us take this situation as an example. Two children on skateboards are initially at rest. They push each other so that
eventually the boy moves to the right while the girl moves in the opposite direction away from each other. Newton’s Third Law tells us
that the force that the girl exerts on the boy and the force that makes the girl move in the other direction are of equal magnitude but
opposite direction.
The boy and the girl make up a system – a collection of objects that affect one another (Figure 1). No net/unbalanced external
force acts on the boy-girl system, thus, the total momentum of the system does not change (Figure 2). Remember that momentum, like
velocity and force, is a vector quantity. The momentum gained by the girl is of equal magnitude but opposite direction to the momentum
gained by the boy. In this system, no momentum is gained or lost. We say that momentum is conserved.

Figure 1. A system is a group of objects that interact

and affect each other. Examples are (a) Bowling ball
and pin and (b) two football players.

Source: Grade 9 Science LM

Figure 2. In this example, the total momentum
of the boy- girl system before pushing is zero. After
pushing, the total momentum of the boy-girl system is still
zero because the momentum of the girl is of equal
magnitude but opposite direction to the momentum of the
boy. Note that the momentum of the boy alone is not the
same before and after pushing; and the momentum of the
girl alone is not the same before and after pushing.

D Source: Grade 9 Science LM

Learning Task 1: Balloon Rocket

Objective: Describe how a balloon rocket works and how
conservation of momentum explains rocket motion.

Materials: balloon (long shape, if available) drinking straw, string

(nylon, if available), and adhesive tape

Procedure:
1. Stretch the string over two posts. You can use chairs or iron
stands as posts. Make sure that the string is taut.
2. Inflate the balloon. Twist the open end and temporarily secure it
with a paper clip.
3. Tape the straw to the balloon such that it is aligned with the
balloon’s opening (see Figure 3).
4. Draw a diagram showing the momentum vectors of your balloon
Figure 3. Balloon rocket set up. rocket and the air.

Questions:
1. How do these momenta compare?
2. How does the velocity of the air that is pushed out of the rocket compared to the velocity of the balloon rocket?

In this activity, the system at the start, which consists of the balloon and the air inside it are stationary, so the total momentum of the system is
zero. When we let the air inside the balloon out, we notice that the balloon moves. The force that causes the balloon to move comes from the air that is
pushed out of it. There is no external force involved. Thus, the total momentum of the system is conserved and must remain zero. If the balloon has
momentum in one direction, the air must have an equal and opposite momentum for the total momentum to remain zero.
Change in momentum = 0
Total Initial Momentum = Total Final Momentum
0 = pballoon+ pair
- pballoon= pair
- (mv)balloon = - (mv)air
Since the mass of the balloon is greater than the mass of air, the the velocity of the balloon and must be opposite in direction.
velocity of the air must be greater in magnitude than Sample Problem: Two ice skaters stand together. They “push off” and
travel directly away from each other, the boy with a velocity of 1.50 off.
m/s. If the boy weighs 735 N and the girl, 490 N, what is the girl’s Total Initial Momentum = Total Final Momentum
velocity after they push off? (Consider the ice 0 = pboy+ pgirl
to be frictionless.)
- pboy = pgirl
Given: vboy = 1.50 m/s; wboy = 735 N; wgirl = 490 N
- (mv)boy = (mv)girl
Find: vgirl
- (75 kg x 1.50 m/s)boy = (50 kg x v)girl
Solution:
- 37.5 kg m/s = 50 kg (vgirl)
Remember that w = mg, thus, m = w/g.
- 37.5 kg m/s = 50 kg (vgirl)
mboy = wboy/g = 735 N/9.8 m/s2 = 75 kg
50 kg 50 kg
mgirl = wgirl/g = 490 N/9.8 m/s2 = 50 kg
The ice where they stand on is frictionless, thus, no external force is - 0.75 m/s = vgirl
present. The momentum of the boy-girl system is conserved. There is The girl moves with a velocity of 0.75 m/s opposite to the direction of
no change in the momentum of the system before and after the push the boy.

Learning Task 2: Answer the problem below.

A 0.30 kg cart moves on an air track at 1.2 m/s. It collides with and sticks to another cart of mass 500 g, which was stationary before
collision. What is the velocity of the combined carts after collision?

E
Elastic and Inelastic Collisions
A collision is an encounter between two objects resulting in exchange of impulse and momentum. Because the time of impact is usually
small, the impulse provided by external forces like friction during this time is negligible. If we take the colliding bodies as one system,
the momentum of the system is therefore approximately conserved. The total momentum of the system before the collision is equal to the
total momentum of the system after the collision.
total momentum before collision = total momentum after collision

Collisions are categorized according to whether the total kinetic energy of the system changes. Kinetic energy may be lost during
collisions when (1) it is converted to heat or other forms like binding energy, sound, light (if there is spark), etc. and (2) it is spent in
producing deformation or damage, such as when two cars collide. The two types of collision are:
1. Elastic collision – one in which the total kinetic energy of the system does not change, and colliding objects bounce off after collision.
Before Collision Collision After Collision

Figure 4. Elastic Collisions. (top) moving object

collides with a stationary object (middle) two moving
objects collide head- on (bottom) two objects moving in
the same direction collide

2. Inelastic collision – one in which the total kinetic energy of the system changes (i.e., converted to some other form of energy). Objects
that stick together after collision is said to be perfectly inelastic.

Before Collision Collision After Collision

Figure 5. Inelastic Collision. Two objects collide, stick
together, and move as one.

Learning Task 3: Look around you. List down at least five (5) collisions that you have observed and identify if it is an elastic or
inelastic collision. You may also draw them if you like.

References: LeaP PIVOT 4-A, Learners Module in Grade 9