Nonconservative forces Definition and 23 Threads

A conservative force is a force with the property that the total work done in moving a particle between two points is independent of the path taken. Equivalently, if a particle travels in a closed loop, the total work done (the sum of the force acting along the path multiplied by the displacement) by a conservative force is zero.A conservative force depends only on the position of the object. If a force is conservative, it is possible to assign a numerical value for the potential at any point and conversely, when an object moves from one location to another, the force changes the potential energy of the object by an amount that does not depend on the path taken, contributing to the mechanical energy and the overall conservation of energy. If the force is not conservative, then defining a scalar potential is not possible, because taking different paths would lead to conflicting potential differences between the start and end points.
Gravitational force is an example of a conservative force, while frictional force is an example of a non-conservative force.
Other examples of conservative forces are: force in elastic spring, electrostatic force between two electric charges, and magnetic force between two magnetic poles. The last two forces are called central forces as they act along the line joining the centres of two charged/magnetized bodies. A central force is conservative if and only if it is spherically symmetric.

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  1. H

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    This is my solution ,and I just use the definition .But I still feel unclear about the concept of non-conservative force.$$ W = F x = 30N (\frac{1}{2}\pi r ) = 56.2 J $$ $$ E_{system} = \Delta K + \Delta U = W $$ $$ (K_{f}- K(i))+(U(f)-U(i)) = W $$ $$ (\frac{1}{2} *m{V_{f}}^2...
  2. ergospherical

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  3. F

    I System, potential energy, and nonconservative forces

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  4. momoneedsphysicshelp

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  5. F

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  6. Nikhil Rajagopalan

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  7. F

    I Can nonconservative forces change either KE or PE?

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  8. S

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  9. Z

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  10. P

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  11. J

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  12. C

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  13. S

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  14. I

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  15. M

    Energy with nonconservative forces

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  16. F

    About the equation for net work done by nonconservative forces

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  17. J

    Application with conservative and nonconservative forces

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  18. L

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  19. X

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  20. B

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  21. M

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  22. B

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  23. I

    Why Does a Car Speed Up on a Sloped Driveway Despite Friction?

    I am really having a hard time with this there is something I am missing can someone help a 2100 kg car starts from rest at the top of a 5.0 m long driveway that is sloped at 20 Deg with the horizontal . if an average friction force of 4000 N impedes the motion find the speed of the car at the...
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