Question

car traveling on a flat (unbanked), circular track accelerates uniformly from rest with a tangential acceleration of a. The car makes it one-quarter of the way around the circle before it skids off the track.From these data, determine the coefficient of static friction between the car and the track

Answer 1

0.572

Step-by-step explanation:

First examine the force of friction at the slipping point where Ff = µsFN = µsmg.

the mass of the car is unknown,

The only force on the car that is not completely in the vertical direction is friction, so let us consider the sums of forces in the tangential and centerward directions.

First the tangential direction

∑Ft =Fft =mat

And then in the centerward direction ∑Fc =Ffc =mac =mv²t/r

Going back to our constant acceleration equations we see that v²t = v²ti +2at∆x = 2at πr/2

So going backwards and plugging in Ffc =m2atπr/ 2r =πmat

Ff = √(F2ft +F2fc)= matp √(1+π²)

µs = Ff /mg = at /g √(1+π²)=

1.70m/s/2 9.80 m/s² x√(1+π²)= 0.572