Asked in ETEA MDCAT 2005 2005Moderate

Two forces having magnitude 3.5N and 5.5N are acting on a body. Which one of the following can not be the resultant of their possible sum:

Correct answer: A. 1.5N

  • A. 1.5N
  • B. 2.5N
  • C. 4.5N
  • D. 6.5N

Explanation

Since there are 2 forces, the minimum resultant force is when they are pointing in opposite directions i.e. they are at 180° to each other. In this case, the resultant force will be 5.5 - 3.5 = 2N. For the maximum resultant force, both forces must be pointing in the same direction i.e. 0° between each other. In this case, the resultant force will be 5.5 + 3.5 = 9N. Therefore, at any angle, the resultant force R will always be 2 ≤ R ≤ 9. Hence, A is correct since it falls outside this range.

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