Question

Imagine you are driving a car up Pike’s Peak in Colorado. To raise a car weighing 1000 kilograms a distance of 100 meters would require about a million joules. You could raise a car 12.5 kilometers with the energy in a gallon of gas. Driving up Pike's Peak (a mere 3000-meter climb) should consume a little less than a quart of gas. But other considerations have to be taken into account. Explain, in terms of efficiency, what factors may keep you from realizing your ideal energy use on this trip.

a) Friction, air resistance, and engine inefficiencies.
b) Gravity, elevation, and tire pressure.
c) Aerodynamics, road conditions, and fuel quality.
d) Weather, temperature, and fuel tank capacity.

Answer 1

Factors that can affect a car's efficiency while driving up Pike's Peak include friction, air resistance, and engine inefficiencies. These prevent the car from achieving theoretical energy usage, causing it to consume more than the ideal amount of gas for the climb. The correct option is a) Friction, air resistance, and engine inefficiencies.

Step-by-step explanation:

When driving a car up Pike's Peak in Colorado, the ideal energy use may not be realized due to various factors affecting the car's efficiency. The car in question would ideally require less than a quart of gas to climb 3000 meters, based on the energy required to raise it a certain distance. However, there are real-world factors that reduce the efficiency of the car and increase the energy consumption beyond the theoretical calculation. These factors include:

• Friction - The resistance between the car's tires and the road surface consumes additional energy.

• Air resistance - As the car moves, it has to push through the air, which requires extra energy, and the resistance increases with speed.

• Engine inefficiencies - Not all the energy from the fuel is converted into motion; some is lost as heat due to the thermodynamic limits of the engine and other mechanical losses within the car's powertrain.

While gravity, elevation, and tire pressure do affect the car's performance, they do not relate directly to efficiency in the same way as friction, air resistance, and engine inefficiencies do. Aerodynamics and fuel quality could also impact efficiency, but to a lesser extent in comparison with the factors listed in the correct option. Weather, temperature, and fuel tank capacity are also less relevant to the car's efficiency on this specific trip up Pike's Peak.

In the final part, it's clear that option (a) Friction, air resistance, and engine inefficiencies most directly explain the additional energy use not accounted for in the ideal scenario.