A diesel engine of mass is coupled to three identical freight wagons

PHYSICS · Multi-part · CBSE · Physics · Laws of Motion · Laws of Motion

Problem

A diesel engine of mass

6.0\times10^{3}\,\text{kg}

is coupled to three identical freight wagons, each of mass

2.0\times10^{3}\,\text{kg}

. The train moves along a level track where the total resistive force due to friction is

5.0\times10^{3}\,\text{N}

. The driver wishes to accelerate the train uniformly from rest. Using this information, answer the following: (i) Find the total mass of the train. (ii) When the engine develops a tractive force of

3.0\times10^{4}\,\text{N}

, determine the acceleration produced. (iii) The driver now wants the train to accelerate at

2.0\,\text{m s}^{-2}

. Calculate the net force needed for this acceleration and hence find the tractive force that the engine must develop. (iv) If, while maintaining the tractive force obtained in part (iii), the frictional resistance suddenly doubles, compute the new acceleration of the train.

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