SPH3U: Physics, Grade 11, University Preparation
Unit 4: Energy and Society
U4L4F: Conservation of Energy
Energy Transformations Investigation
... [Show More] Formative Assignment
Purpose: To investigate energy transformations between gravitational potential energy and kinetic energy, and
to verify the law of conservation of energy.
Hypothesis: Make hypotheses regarding the following:
a. Where on each roller coaster will the speed be the highest?
→ the speed will be the highest on the bottom end of each roller coaster (in between the hills)
b. Where on each roller coaster will the speed be the lowest?
→ the speed will be the lowest on the top of the roller coaster
c. How will the mass of the cart affect the energies?
→ The mass of the carts will affect the energies, the higher the mass, the higher the energy
d. How will the mass of the cart affect the speed?
→ The mass of the cart will not affect the overall speed
e. Will energy be conserved?
→ Yes, energy will be conserved because the roller coaster track applies friction which is where energy is gained
as thermal energy
Procedure:
1. Build a roller coaster with three hills, where the first hill is the highest and the last hill is the lowest. Run your
coaster with three different cart masses and record the mass of the cart, the height of each hill, the height of the
lowest points between the hills, and the end height. In addition, record the speed of the cart at each of the
heights recorded. You should organize your observations in a table similar to the one shown below.
It doesn’t matter if you stop the cart exactly on the crest of the hill or the very bottom of the hill as long as you
record the height and the speed accurately. Measure the height with the sliding scale.
2. Repeat for a roller coaster where the first hill is the highest and the second hill is the lowest.
3. Repeat for a roller coaster where the second or third hill is the highest.
You will have three charts similar to the blue one shown below when you are done [Show Less]