What Does Not Affect Potential Energy: Detailed Facts

In this article, we are going to discuss various factors what does not affect potential energy of objects and detailed facts.

The potential energy is converted into another form of energy but the velocity, rigidity, wavelength associated with the object, brittleness, size of the object, length, the volume does not affect the potential energy of the object.

What Object does not affect potential energy

The potential energy of the object is said to have remained unaffected only if the potential difference traced between the two different schedules is found out to be the same.

The rigid objects are unable to compress or stretch and hence, does not gain or release the energy that it possesses. The energy stored by the rigid object is therefore constant unless and until some extreme conditions affect them. These objects are non-elastic whose shape and size do not deform by the application of external forces.

For a system at rest, the potential energy of a system associated with it will remain unchanged until some external forces will act on the system. Hence, the object whose position is at a state of rest will not change the potential energy of a system.

In the case of elastic collision, the momentum and energy of the object are conserved. Newton cradle demonstrates an example of conservation of energy and momentum. It consists of five bobs of equal sizes and masses attached to the cradle with the support of strings perfectly aligned in a straight line.

what does not affect potential energy
Newton’s Credle; Image Credit: hearthsong

If a ball number 1 is given momentum and released, it will collide with the second bob transferring the energy to the last ball present in the line. The energy gained by the 5th bob will make the bob sway in the air and return back, transferring back its kinetic energy to the 4th bob, where the energy will convert into potential energy. This energy will be transferred to all the bobs in the middle and finally supplied back to the first bob; now, the potential energy will be converted to kinetic energy and will make the bob swing into the air; and this process continues.

In this case, the potential energy of the cradle remains unchanged as both momentum and energy of the bobs are conserved.

What properties of an object does not affect its potential energy

Strength of the gravity: The center of mass of an object is where the gravity of an object persists. The strength of gravity of an object determines how fast the object will accelerate down the surface of the Earth by the effect of Earth’s gravity.

Velocity: Potential energy is energy stored by the object and utilized during the work is done. The object at its stable position has enough stored energy with it. Only when the external force is exerted on the object, the object is displaced from its position. As it is displaced, the speed or the velocity of the object does not change while the potential energy is converted to kinetic energy.

Hardness: Hardness is the ability of the objects to resist the external forces exerting on the object.

Brittleness: It is the property of the material to withstand permanent deformation; they break on the application of force rather than bending under any impact.

Rigidity: It is a property of the material that determines the strength and plasticity of the material enabling it to withstand even vigorous external pressure and impact.

Ductility: The materials which are not brittle and can be deformed and molted into any shape and size without losing its property of toughness are said to be ductile.

Size: Potential energy of the object is independent of its size; well it depends only on the mass per unit cross-section area of the object.

Volume: Potential energy depends upon the mass of the object other than its volume. More the volume of the object but lighter the weight then the object will be associated with a very small potential energy. Due to less mass, it will not experience sufficient gravitational pull by the Earth and will remain in the air for a longer duration.

Length: Potential energy is independent of the length of the object. Longer or shorter the length of the object, but the potential energy stored in the object depends upon the total mass of the object.

Albedo: Albedo is the property of the object to reflect the rays of light absorbed by the object and it is directly proportional to the rays of light incident on the surface of the object.

Wavelength associated with the object:The wavelength associated with the moving object is given as ƛ=h/p where h is a Plank’s constant h=6.626*10-34Js. Hence, the wavelength is independent of the potential energy of the object and is not responsible for the change in the potential energy of the system.

Momentum: The momentum of the object does not affect the potential of the object if the momentum is conserved. If energy is conserved then the potential energy is also conserved.

What does not affect the amount of potential energy of an object

The potential energy of the object depends upon the mass of the object, its acceleration due to gravity, the height of the object from the surface of the Earth, types of forces acting between the two objects, external sources affecting the objects, electrostatic forces, the elasticity of the object, etc.

The density of an object does not decide the amount of potential energy the object can store. The more the density of the mass, the faster the object will fall back on the surface due to gravity. The mass per unit volume of an object will change by the influence of external heat but the mass will remain the same. Hence, the amount of energy stored does not depend upon the density of the object.

The acceleration due to the gravity of the Earth is constant and does not affect the potential energy of an object.

What does not affect gravitational potential energy

The weight of the object owing to gravity is mass times the acceleration due to gravity. The gravitational potential energy is the energy obtained by the object due to the presence of gravitational force. The potential energy due to gravity is given by V=mgh; which shows that the potential energy stored by the object is directly dependent on the mass of the object, its height from above the ground, and its accelerations due to gravity.

The potential energy of the object near the ground is negligible compared to the object raised at a certain height above the ground. The speed of the object due to gravity does not affect the gravitational potential of the object. It evidently depends upon the height of the object that will vary its potential energy.

Since the gravitational force is an attractive force, the work done to bring the two objects which show the force of attraction towards each other will be negative as the work is done is in the direction opposite to the direction of the attractive force.

Gravitational potential energy does not depend upon the size, volume, and density of the object.

Read more on What Affect Potential Energy: Detailed Facts.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is gravitational potential?

The gravitational potential is always negative because it is an attractive force.

The work done in bringing the point charge from infinity to the source by the effect of the gravitational pull is called the gravitational force and is given by the formula:-

Gravitational Potential=V=-GM/r

How can you increase the potential energy?

If the mass of the object is constant then the gravitational potential energy of the object can be increased by raising the height of the object from above the ground.

The potential energy between the two objects attractive to each other can be increased by increasing the distance separating them both and by decreasing the distance between the objects repelling away from each other.

Which state of the matter will possess the highest potential energy state?

The potential energy will be highest for a state of matter whose kinetic energy will be lower.

Hence, solid will have the highest potential level as its kinetic energy compared to all the other states of matter will be less.

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