Physics - Energy
OCR A-Level Physics 2022
Energy and its conservation
What is energy?
The capacity of one object or system to do work or cause a change on another.
What is the principle of the conservation of energy?
The energy of a closed system always remains constant; energy can never be created or destroyed, only transferred.
Forms of energy
What form of energy is due to the position of a mass in a gravitational field?
Gravitational potential energy.
What form of energy is due to the bonds between atoms in a substance?
Chemical energy.
What form of energy is due to a reversible change in shape of an object?
Elastic potential energy.
What form of energy is due to the forces between protons and neutrons in an atom?
Nuclear energy.
What form of energy is due to randomly distributed potential and kinetic energies of atoms within a system?
Thermal energy.
Energy transfers
What effect does friction have on the energy of a moving object?
Transfers kinetic energy primarily to thermal energy.
What does the difference between gravitational potential energy and the kinetic energy tell you?
The work done against resistive forces.
What height should you use when calculating the change in gravitational potential energy?
What height should you use when calculating the change in gravitational potential energy?