Question

A 0.140 kg baseball is pitched toward home plate at 30.0 m/s. The batter hits the ball back (opposite direction) to the pitcher at 44.0 m/s. Assume that towards home plate is positive. If the ball was in contact with the bat for 0.002 seconds, what is the average force the bat exerts on the ball?

−9700 N

−1000 N

−4700 N

−5200 N

Answer 1

The average force the bat exerts on the ball is -5200 N. This can be calculated using the equation F = Δp/Δt, where F is the average force, Δp is the change in momentum (pf-pi), and Δt is the time interval. In this case, Δp = m * (vf - vi) = 0.14 kg * (44 m/s - 30 m/s) = 5.4 kgm/s, and Δt = 0.002 s. Thus, F = 5.4 kgm/s / 0.002 s = -5200 N.