An object moving along a horizontal track collides with and compresses a light spring (which obeys Hooke's Law) located at the end of the track. The spring constant is 47.3 N/m, the mass of the object 0.230 kg and the speed of the object is 1.80 m/s immediately before the collision.

Question

An object moving along a horizontal track collides with and compresses a light spring (which obeys Hooke's Law) located at the end of the track. The spring constant is 47.3 N/m, the mass of the object 0.230 kg and the speed of the object is 1.80 m/s immediately before the collision.
a)Determine the spring's maximum compression if the track is frictionless
b) If the track is not frictionless and has a coefficient of kinetic friction of 0.120, determine the spring's maximum compression