Question

A truck starts from rest and rolls down a hill with a constant acceleration. It travels a distance of 400 m in 20 s. Find its acceleration. Find the force acting on it if its mass is 7 metric tonnes (Hint: 1 metric tonne = 1000 kg).

Answer 1

Initial velocity, u = 0 (since the truck is initially at rest)

Distance travelled, s = 400 m

Time taken, t = 20 s

According to the second equation of motion:

Where,

Acceleration = a

1 metric tonne = 1000 kg (Given)

∴ 7 metric tonnes = 7000 kg

Mass of truck, m = 7000 kg

From Newton’s second law of motion:

Force, F = Mass × Acceleration

F = ma = 7000 × 2 = 14000 N

Hence, the acceleration of the truck is 2 m/s² and the force acting on the truck is 14000 N.