Beth Menhusen

Physics 1
Studying Static and Kinetic Friction
Introduction
Static friction force is sometimes called starting friction. When an individual attempts to move
a stationary object, the force acting against theirs before the object begins moving is the static
friction force. When their force becomes greater than the static friction force, then the object
will move.
The kinetic friction force is sometimes call sliding friction. If an individual is moving an object at
a constant velocity, the force they exert on the object must remain equal and opposite to the
kinetic friction force, or the object will either stop moving or increase in velocity.

The normal force is the perpendicular force that opposes the force of gravity.

In this experiment, the objectives were to compare the forces of kinetic and static friction, to
observe how changing the normal force affected the average static and kinetic friction, and to
calculate k for the block and countertop.
Set-up and Procedure
To begin the experiment, first the materials of a LabQuest, motion detector, force sensor,
string, block of wood, mass hanger, meter stick, and mass set were gathered. The block of
wood had a string run through its middle and using it, the block was hung from the mass hanger
to measure its mass. This value was recorded in Figure Three-Initial Mass of Block. A long string
was cut and one end was attached to the block and the other to the force sensor. The range
switch on the force sensor was set to 50N and the recording interval on the Lab Quest was set
to record 80 samples in a period of 4 seconds. The set-up is shown in Figure One- Set up for
Parts I & II.
Figure One- Set up for Parts I & II






For Part I of this experiment, the force sensor was pulled without moving the block for
approximately 1 second; once the static friction force was overcome, the block was pulled at a
constant velocity for the remainder of the interval. Next, the force sensor was set to zero while
the force sensor was held with no tension in the string. The previous steps were repeated, and
the force vs. time graph was printed from the Lab Quest as seen in Figure Five- Identifying and
Comparing Static and Kinetic Friction.
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Physics 2

For Part II of this experiment, the block was pulled as before, first with no mass on the block.
The max feature on the Lab Quest was used to find the peak static friction and this value was
recorded in Figure Six- Peak Static Friction. On the Lab Quests graph of force vs. time, the area
which showed constant velocity was selected and the mean kinetic friction force was found and
recorded in Figure Seven- Kinetic Friction. This procedure was repeated two more times with
no mass on the block. The average of these three peak static friction values was found, using
the equation found in Figure Four-Equations Used, and recorded in Figure Six-Peak Static
Friction; the normal force acting on the block was also found using the equation shown in
Figure Four-Equations Used, and this value was recorded in Figure Six-Peak Static Friction and in
Figure Seven-Kinetic Friction. This procedure was repeated with 250 g, 500 g, 750 g, and 1000 g
masses on the block. The initial mass of the block as well as the total mass after each successive
addition of a mass were recorded in Figure Six-Peak Static Friction and Figure Seven-Kinetic
Friction. The values found for the normal force, average peak static friction, and average kinetic
friction were typed into Microsoft Excel. The relationship between normal force, static, and
kinetic friction was shown by placing the normal force value on the x axis, and the average
static and kinetic friction values as separate data series on the y axis. This graph is shown in
Figure Eight-How Change in Normal Force Relates to Static and Kinetic Friction.

For Part III of this experiment the motion force sensor was removed and the motion detector
was connected and set to track cart motion. The meter stick was used to measure a distance of
1.4 m between the block and the motion detector. This set up is shown in Figure Two-Set Up for
Part III.
Figure Two- Set Up for Part III


A 500 g mass was placed on the block and the Lab Quest was set to record 85 samples in 1
second. The Lab Quest was set to record and the block was pushed approximately 1 m toward
the motion detector. On the graph created by the Lab Quest, the area that showed a decrease
in velocity was selected and the slope of that line was found and recorded as the acceleration
value in Figure Nine- Calculating k. This process was repeated four times, and for each trial the
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Physics 3
kinetic friction force, normal force, and coefficient of kinetic friction were calculated using the
equations shown in Figure Four-Equations Used.
Data & Analysis
Figure Three- Initial Mass of Block
Mass of Block .12 kg

This table shows the recorded mass of the wooden block alone, used throughout the
procedure.

Figure Four- Equations Used
Process Equation Sample Calculation
Find average values Sum of trial values Number of trials = Average From Figure Five-Peak Static Friction
(1.47+1.44+1.51)/3= 1.473 N
Find normal force (FN)
-1(mass -9.8 m/s) = Normal Force (FN)
From Figure Six-Kinetic Friction
-1(.12 kg x -9.8 m/s) = 1.176 N
Find kinetic friction
force (Ffk)
Mass x Acceleration= Kinetic Friction Force (Ffk) From Figure Nine-Calculating k
.62 kg x 2.7682 m/s = 1.7163 N
Find coefficient of
kinetic friction (k)
Ffk= k x FN From Figure Nine-Calculating k
1.7163 N = k x 6.076 N
k=.2825

Figure Five- Identifying and Comparing Static and Kinetic Friction













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Physics 4



Figure Five-Identifying and Comparing Static and Kinetic Friction shows the first seconds of
pulling on the force sensor without actually moving the block; at this point the static friction
force had not been overcome. Finally static friction was overcome and the block began to
move; that motion is represented by the largest peak in the graph. As the block was pulled at a
constant velocity, the pulling force necessary to equal kinetic remained constant and less than
the force required to overcome the initial static friction.

Figure Six-Peak Static Friction
Total Mass
(kg)
Normal Force
(N)
Peak Static
Friction
Trial 1 (N)
Peak Static
Friction
Trial 2 (N)
Peak Static
Friction
Trial 3 (N)
Average Peak
Static Friction
(N)
0.12 1.176 1.47 1.44 1.51 1.473
0.37 3.626 2.15 2.12 2.15 2.14
0.62 6.076 2.86 2.66 2.66 2.727
0.87 8.526 3.21 3.53 3.14 3.293
1.12 10.976 3.56 4.08 3.76 3.800

Figure Six- Peak Static Friction was used to numerically relate changes in normal force to
change in peak static friction. It shows that as normal force increases, so does peak static
friction.
Figure Seven- Kinetic Friction
Total Mass
(kg)
Normal Force
(N)
Kinetic
Friction
Trial 1 (N)
Kinetic
Friction
Trial 2 (N)
Kinetic
Friction
Trial 3 (N)
Average
Kinetic
Friction(N)
0.12 1.176 1.38 1.38 1.38 1.38
0.37 3.626 1.88 1.96 1.94 1.927
0.62 6.076 2.45 2.39 2.39 2.41
0.87 8.526 2.95 2.99 2.80 2.883
1.12 10.976 3.34 3.40 3.29 3.343
Figure Seven-Kinetic Friction was used to numerically display how change in normal force
relates to change in kinetic friction force. It shows that increase in normal force causes increase
in kinetic friction force.

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Physics 5
y = 0.237x + 1.2465
R = 0.9975
y = 0.1993x + 1.1779
R = 0.9989
0
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2
2.5
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3.5
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4.5
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Normal Force Value
Static Friction
Kinetic Friction



Figure Eight- How Change in Normal Force Relates to Static and Kinetic Friction














Figure Eight- How Change in Normal Force Relates to Static and Kinetic Friction graphically
summarizes the results of the two previous figures. In Excel, a trend line was created for the
static and kinetic friction value series, and the R value was found to show precision. The R
values for this graph were greater than .99; therefore, the data was precise. In the trend line
equations for both the static and kinetic friction lines, x equals the normal force value. For the
trend line relating to kinetic friction, y= Ffk. In the equation for static friction, y= Fs. The
coefficient of x in these equations is k. The larger coefficient in the static friction equation
shows that k is greater for static friction than for kinetic.

Figure Nine- Calculating k
Trial Acceleration
(m/s)
Kinetic Friction Force
(N)
k
1 2.7682 1.7163 .2825
2 4.0535 2.5134 .4137
3 8.7695 5.4371 .8948
4 2.5476 1.5795 .2600
5 2.8954 1.7641 .2903
Average Coefficient of kinetic friction: .42826
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Physics 6

Figure Nine-Calculating k shows that when the kinetic friction forces were similar, so were the
values for k. This figure, with values found using Figure Four-Equations Used, shows that
kinetic friction force is dependent on acceleration and it follows that k is as well.

Conclusion
The objectives for this experiment were met. It was shown that static friction force is greater
than kinetic friction force, that as normal force increases so do static and kinetic and friction,
and k was successfully calculated and found to be .42826. The results of this experiment were
reasonably valid. One possible source of error that may have affected validity was that constant
velocity was not maintained when attempting to measure kinetic friction force. Also, from trial
to trial, the forces applied did not remain constant. Error is clearly shown by comparing Figure
Eight to Figure Nine; the values discovered for k should have been the same. Finding the
average of the forces and values found was an attempt to overcome these sources of error.