Question

A man moves a 200 N desk across the floor to the left with a 50 N force. The force of friction is 12 N.
a) Draw a free body diagram representing the forces, and label it correctly.
b) Determine the net force on the table. Show your work.
c) Calculate the acceleration of the table. Show your work.

Answer 1

Explanation:

a) Draw a free body diagram. There are 4 forces on the desk:

Weight force mg pulling down,

Normal force N pushing up,

Friction force f pushing right (against the motion),

and applied force P pushing to the left.

b) The net force is:

∑F = 50 N − 12 N

∑F = 38 N left

c) Using Newton's second law:

∑F = ma

38 N = (200 N / 9.8 m/s²) a

a = 1.9 m/s²