Rubber Band Lab

• The Big Question: How can we store energy to do work for us later?  How does the force it takes to stretch  a rubber band depend on the amount by which you stretch it?
• In the lab we decided to stretch a rubber band in different leghnths and measured our results on how much force we were using. 
• The force F is Fs because that is the force to stretch a rubber band. 
• My table's results were:

1cm=0.01m=0.171N
2cm=0.02m=1.109N
3cm=0.03m=1.659N
4cm=0.04m=2.167N
5cm=0.05m=3.197N

• Here is our data graphed on a line graph.  We then had to find out the Fs of our data which was 95n/mx.  In class we also learned the equation to find the elastic potential energy which is the symbol of Us.  To find the Us we had to find the product of 1/2x times the Fs.  Fs=K times x.
• K=the elastic constant and x= the distance stretched.  Because we cannot use Fs we subtitute it for the K times x making the problem Us=1/2Kxsquared. 

Did you know...



• When using a slingshot there is also elastic potential energy used.  When we pull the object back with the rubber band we are holding energy. It is not until we release the object that we are using the energy from the rubberband.