Question

A block of mass 0.2 kg is suspended from the ceiling by a light string. A second block of mass 0.3 kg is suspended from the first block by another string. Find the tensions in the two strings. Take g = 10 m/s².

Answer 1

The free-body diagrams for both the blocks are shown below:



From the free-body diagram of the 0.3 kg block,
T = 0.3g
⇒ T= 0.3 × 10 = 3 N

Now, from the free-body diagram of the 0.2 kg block,
T₁ = 0.2g + T
⇒ T₁= 0.2 × 10 + 3 = 5 N
∴ The tensions in the two strings are 5 N and 3 N, respectively.