Question

Kilimanjaro is the world's tallest water slide. It has a vertical drop of 49 meters. George has a mass of 90 kg and has 21,000 J of kinetic energy when he reaches the water at ground level. How much energy is converted into heat when George reaches ground level? Show your work​

Answer 1

To calculate the amount of energy converted into heat when George reaches the ground level, we need to find his initial and final kinetic energy. By solving for the initial velocity using the given mass and kinetic energy, we find that George's velocity is approximately 6.83 m/s. The difference between the initial and final kinetic energy represents the amount of energy converted into heat, which is 21,000 J.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the amount of energy converted into heat when George reaches the ground level, we need to first find his initial kinetic energy using the formula:

KE = 0.5 * mass * velocity²

Given that George has a mass of 90 kg and has 21,000 J of kinetic energy, we can rearrange the formula to solve for the initial velocity:

21,000 = 0.5 * 90 * velocity²

Simplifying, we find that velocity² = 21,000 / (0.5 * 90) = 46.67

Taking the square root of both sides, we get velocity ≈ 6.83 m/s

Now, we can calculate George's final kinetic energy at ground level, using the same formula:

KE = 0.5 * mass * velocity²

Final KE = 0.5 * 90 * (0 m/s)² = 0 J

The difference between the initial and final kinetic energy represents the amount of energy that is converted into heat:

Energy converted into heat = Initial KE - Final KE = 21,000 J - 0 J = 21,000 J

Therefore, 21,000 J of energy is converted into heat when George reaches ground level.