ENERGY OF A SPRING LAB
Purpose:
- To analyze spring displacement and develop a mathematical model describing the relationship between spring force and the distance stretched.
- Calculate the force constant of the spring
- Apply the mathematical model to determine an expression for the potential energy of the spring.
Materials:
- Spring
- Masses
- Triple beam balance
- Meter stick
- Ring stand and mounting clamp for spring
Procedure:
Step 1: Set up the ring stand and mounting clamp with the meter stick and spring attatched as shown below.
Step 2: Add an initial amount of weight to the spring and measure the initial displacement. (We started with 0.5 kg.)
Step 3: Continue to add weight to the spring, measuring the displacement each time.
Step 4: Record all data points into an Excel spreadsheet.
Step 5: Use Excel to create a scatter plot of the data points, and then fit a best fit line to the graph.
Step 6: Using the force equation that you get from the best fit line, you can find the potential energy equation by integrating the force equation.
Step 7: Using the potential energy equation, you can solve for the variable k, which represents the stiffness of the spring.
Step 2: Add an initial amount of weight to the spring and measure the initial displacement. (We started with 0.5 kg.)
Step 3: Continue to add weight to the spring, measuring the displacement each time.
Step 4: Record all data points into an Excel spreadsheet.
Step 5: Use Excel to create a scatter plot of the data points, and then fit a best fit line to the graph.
Step 6: Using the force equation that you get from the best fit line, you can find the potential energy equation by integrating the force equation.
Step 7: Using the potential energy equation, you can solve for the variable k, which represents the stiffness of the spring.
Data:
Excel spreadsheet
Graph:
Data Analysis:
Conclusion:
We found that the spring is very linear. The y-intercept in the equation that Excel found is negligable because of error caused by the weight of the spring expanding itself and causing displacement. Therefore we discarded it when finding the potential energy equation. After solving for the variable k, we found that the spring is about an average stiffness.