Elastic Potential Energy

Elastic Potential Energy Video

Elastic Potential Energy is the energy stored in elastic materials as the result of their stretching or compressing

Elastic Potential energy Elastic potential energy can be stored in rubber bands, bungee chords, trampolines, springs, an arrow drawn into a bow, etc.

Elastic Potential Energy The amount of elastic potential energy stored in such a device is related to the amount of stretch or compression of the device - the more stretch/compression, the more stored energy.

Lets Look at the Equation PEelastic = 0.5 • k • x^2 K= spring constant= this value is given and changes for different objects. Basically it is how hard or easy it is to compress or stretch. X= the distance the spring is compressed or stretched.

Equilibrium Position If a spring is not stretched or compressed, then there is no elastic potential energy stored in it. The spring is said to be at its equilibrium position. The equilibrium position is the position that the spring naturally assumes when there is no force applied to it. In terms of potential energy, the equilibrium position could be called the zero- potential energy position.

What types of questions can you expect? Just like gravitational Potential energy I will not have you do specific calculations, but you should be able to make generalizations using the equation.

Example A car traveling down the road hits two different bumps. The first bump compressed the cars suspension springs 9 inches and the other bump compressed them 7 inches. At the point the springs were compressed which bump had the higher potential energy?

Answer The first bump would have a greater elastic potential energy. The value of x was 9 inches in the first bump and 7 inches in the second bump. Elastic PE = 0.5* k* X^2