Kinetic Energy of Charged Particle

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The discussion focuses on calculating the kinetic energy of particle B, which has a charge of 5Q, when two charged particles are separated by a distance of 2.9976 m. The potential energy was calculated at two distances, yielding initial and final values of 49.0683 J and 16.3299 J, respectively. Using the conservation of energy principle, the total kinetic energy of the system was determined to be 32.7384 J. It was concluded that the kinetic energy of particle B is simply half of the total kinetic energy of the system. The problem was ultimately resolved by recognizing the relationship between the kinetic energies of the two particles.
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[SOLVED] Kinetic Energy of Charged Particle

Homework Statement


Particles A (of mass m and charge Q) and B (of m and charge 5Q) are released from rest with the distance between them equal to 0.9976 m. If Q=33e-6 C, what is the kinetic energy of particle B at the instant when the particles are 2.9976 m apart?


Homework Equations


U=kq1q2/r
K=(mv^2)/2
ΔU+ΔK=0
F=ma

The Attempt at a Solution


I solved for the potential energy at both distances using U=kq1q2/r to find Ui=49.0683 J and Uf=16.3299 J. Then I used conservation of energy to find K so K=Ui-Uf and got K to be 32.7384 J. But I'm not sure how to get just the kinetic energy of particle B. I tried to sum the forces and use Newton's third law to find acceleration to see if that would help but I don't know how to find it without knowing the mass. I'm not sure if maybe I have to do a ratio to find the energy? I don't know what to do.
 
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nevermind, i figured out its just half of the system kinetic energy
 
The book claims the answer is that all the magnitudes are the same because "the gravitational force on the penguin is the same". I'm having trouble understanding this. I thought the buoyant force was equal to the weight of the fluid displaced. Weight depends on mass which depends on density. Therefore, due to the differing densities the buoyant force will be different in each case? Is this incorrect?

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