Question

Projectiles that strike objects are good examples of inelastic collisions. A 0.1 kg nail driven by a gas powered nail driver collides in an inelastic collision with a 10 kg block of wood at rest. The total momentum of the system after the collision is 4.8 kg · m/s. Round your answers to two significant digits.

The velocity of the nail and block after the collision is calculated to be
m/s.

The expected velocity of the nail prior to the collision is
m/s.

Answer 1

Total mass after sticking = 10.0 + 0.1 = 10.1 kg.
v_after = p / m = 4.8 / 10.1 = 0.475... ≈ 0.48 m/s (two sig. figs.)

Initial nail velocity: p = m_nail v_nail → v_nail = 4.8 / 0.1 = 48 m/s (two sig. figs.)