Question -
Answer -
Thegiven system of two masses and a pulley can be represented as shown in thefollowing figure:
Smaller mass, m1 =8 kg
Larger mass, m2 =12 kg
Tension in the string = T
Mass m2, owing to itsweight, moves downward with acceleration a,and mass m1 movesupward.
ApplyingNewton’s second law of motion to the system of each mass:
For mass m1:
Theequation of motion can be written as:
T – m1g = ma …(i)
For mass m2:
Theequation of motion can be written as:
m2g – T = m2a …(ii)
Adding equations (i) and (ii),we get:
Therefore, the acceleration of the masses is2 m/s2.
Substituting the value of a inequation (ii), we get:
Therefore,the tension in the string is 96 N.