(Team 2) The Aliens of Inertia

Edit 0 27 …

Team Members: Fred Cobb, Zach Weed, Zoheb Anjum


Team Name: The Aliens of Inertia

Natland Note (4/15/13):
  • do another experiment? Today?
  • data analysis into excel, what graph are you creating and how is it giving you the data you need?
  • determine the rotational interia of your assembly and H(com)...where do you want to start the hammer?
  • hypothesis (state here): With a varying radius, and consequently, entrance velocity, the impulse of a hammer breaking through a pane of glass should remain constant.
    • independent & dependent variables (clearly indicate):
      • Independent: Radius
      • Dependent: Entrance Velocity, Impulse

Google Doc:
YesWeAreAliens

1) List the 3-5 ideas you had (as bullet points) for the slow

-motion camera, and what frame rate you in mind for eacm (e.g. 100fps):

  • Lighting a match to measure the time it takes for combustion to occur. (maybe measure the frictional force required) (400 fps)
  • Swinging a hammer through glass to measure the the impulse of the hammer as it swings through. (700 fps)
  • Combustion of a hydrogen balloon - Measure the velocity of the expanding flames. (700 fps)
  • Drop a stone in water to measure the ripples (wavelength, amplitude, frequency, velocity, etc) (200 fps)

Project 1:
  • Light a match and measure the time it takes for it to ignite. From there, we should measure the velocity of striking on impact and after impact to estimate the frictional force.
Project 2:
  • photo (4).JPG
    1. Using the setup illustrated above, designate certain lengths of PVC to vary the speed with which the hammer strikes the glass. For each length of PVC follow the steps below:
      1. Adjust the position of the glass according to each respective length of the “pendulum” used in the experiment
      2. Raise the hammer to a point parallel to the floor and perpendicular to the glass
      3. Start recording using a high speed camera at 200-300 fps and release the hammer from its resting point
      4. If glass breaks or not, repeat using a longer PVC pipe to increase speed on impact
    2. Using the footage obtained from the experiment, calculate the distance travelled by the hammer over a time interval for an experimentally obtained speed before AND after the collision
    3. Measure the mass of the hammer in order to apply momentum conservation to the experiment where the combined momentum of the hammer-glass system before impact is equal to the momentum after impact

  • Materials:
    • ### Estwing 64 oz. Steel Blacksmith Hammer
      1. 18 in. x 36 in. Clear Glass
      2. 2 in. x 10 ft. PVC Sch. 40 Plain-End Pipe
      3. High Speed Camera
      4. Power Drill
      5. ¼” Thread Screws
      6. Everbilt 4 in. Zinc Plated Heavy Duty Tee Hinge
      7. HDX 2 in. Spring Clamp
      8. Hills Mobile Clothes Stand

Project 3:
  • We can measure the time it takes for the balloon to "unravel," and then analyze how fast the flames expand and at which point they diminish.
  • Materials:
    • Balloon
    • Zinc
    • Muriatic Acid (HCl) (6M)
    • Apparatus that allows for separation of Hydrochloric gas and Hydrogen
    • Container for reaction
    • Fuse?
    • Lighter
  • Procedure:
    • React the zinc with the HCl and run the reaction through the gas separator in order to obtain hydrogen to fill the balloon
    • Attach a fuse to one end of the balloon and light it
    • Once the explosion occurs, use the footage to measure the velocity of the flames and determine the rate of change of the volume
    • Also, the speed at which the balloon unravels can be determined so that we can calculate the elasticity of the material
Project 4:
  • Materials-
    • Plastic one inch diameter sphere. Hopefully such a sphere is denser than water.
    • access to the pool
    • high speed camera
  • Procedure- Drop the stone in water from varying heights in order to vary entrance speed.
    • Document the footage of the motion of the stone
    • Using the footage, measure the distance the stone travels over time to calculate velocity
    • Use the same technique to calculate wave speed, and if the camera shot the action on a level surface, amplitude can be determined.

Game Plan:

  1. Conduct another experiment, breaking a pane of glass at a shorter radius (slower entrance speed)
  2. Analyze the results from all experiments, collecting data on pixel versus frame. Proceed to determine the metric length of one pixel, and convert frames to seconds. Graph resulting data in excel and fit a best fit line to the data.
  3. Calculate the experimental as well as the theoretical impulse and cross reference the results with our hypothesis.
  4. Finish write up for the experiment.









RESOURCES