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State the laws of equilibrium for a set of co-planar forces. - Leaving Cert Physics - Question c - 2021

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State the laws of equilibrium for a set of co-planar forces.

Worked Solution & Example Answer:State the laws of equilibrium for a set of co-planar forces. - Leaving Cert Physics - Question c - 2021

Step 1

Sum of the forces (in any direction) is zero

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Answer

For an object to be in equilibrium, the vector sum of all forces acting on it must equal zero. This means that the forces acting in both the horizontal and vertical directions must balance each other out. Mathematically, this can be expressed as:

extSumofHorizontalForces=0 ext{Sum of Horizontal Forces} = 0

and

extSumofVerticalForces=0 ext{Sum of Vertical Forces} = 0

Step 2

Sum of the moments (about any axis) is zero

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Answer

In addition to the forces, for an object to remain in equilibrium, the sum of all moments (or torques) about any axis must also be zero. This condition ensures that there is no net rotation acting upon the object. This can be expressed mathematically as:

extSumofMomentsaboutpoint=0 ext{Sum of Moments about point} = 0

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