Question

A pitcher throws a 0.15-kg baseball so that it crosses home plate horizontally with a speed of 20 m/s. It is hit straight back at the pitcher with a final speed of 22 m/s.(a) What is the impulse delivered to the ball?(b) Find the average force exerted by the bat on the ball if the two are in contact for 2.0 x 10–3 s.

Answer 1

(a)

The impulse can be calculated as follows:

$\begin{gathered} I=\Delta P \\ I=m\cdot vf-m\cdot vi \\ where: \\ m=0.15 \\ vi=20m/s \\ vf=22m/s \\ so: \\ I=0.15(22-20) \\ I=0.3N\cdot s \end{gathered}$

(b) We can find the average force as follows:

$\begin{gathered} F=\frac{\Delta P}{\Delta t} \\ so: \\ F=\frac{0.3}{0.002} \\ F=150N \end{gathered}$