Inspired by Nihar Mahajan

Classical Mechanics Level 2

Potential energy of mass 'm' placed at a height 'h' from ground = mgh. This means that as the height of the object increases its potential energy also increases. Using this as a fact what can you say about the statement below: "Since the potential energy increases with height and potential energy is a stored energy, if a 100 m. deep well is dug exactly below where the object mass is suspended by a massless inelastic string to the ceiling above, then its potential energy . . . . . "

cannot be determined. is unaffected. is increased by insignificant amount. is increased by 981m.

Rajen Kapur by Rajen Kapur , 72, India

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2 solutions

Manish Mayank
Jun 15, 2015

We actually calculate the potential energy with respect to an object at the plane of the ground. So no matter how deep is dug the ground it has same potential energy with respect to that reference object.

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Aran Pasupathy
Jun 16, 2015

Gravitational potential energy of (mgh)J can be interpreted as the amount of work that needs to be done to vertically displace an object of mass m kg by h metres to or from a zero point of reference in a uniform gravitational field of strength g N/kg. As long as the relative positions of the object and the zero point of reference do not change, the gravitational potential energy of the object does not change.

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But if the string is cut the object will have kinetic energy which will be much more than mgh if potential energy is unaffected. How is this possible? Does conservation of energy get violated?

shuddhabho nandi - 4 years, 10 months ago

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