Question

A shell of mass 0.020 kg is fired by a gun of mass 100 kg. If the muzzle speed of the shell is $80m{s}^{-1}$, what is the recoil speed of the gun?

Answer 1

Mass of the gun, M = 100 kg
Mass of the shell, m = 0.020 kg
Muzzle speed of the shell, v = 80 m/s
Recoil speed of the gun = V
Both the gun and the shell are at rest initially.
Initial momentum of the system = 0
Final momentum of the system = mv – MV
Here, the negative sign appears because the directions of the shell and the gun are opposite to each other.
According to the law of conservation of momentum:
Final momentum = Initial momentum
$mv-MV=0\therefore V=\frac{mv}{M}=\frac{0.020\times 80}{100}=0.016m/s$