Calculating Actual Mechanical Advantage of a Pulley System

What is the actual mechanical advantage (AMA) of the pulley system?

A worker uses a pulley system to raise a 225 N carton 16.5 m. A force of 129 N is exerted and the rope is pulled 33.0 m.

Answer:

The actual mechanical advantage of the system would be 0.573.

Mechanical advantage is important in understanding how pulley systems work. The AMA (Actual Mechanical Advantage) of a pulley system is calculated as the ratio of the force applied to the system to the force required to lift the load.

In this particular scenario, the force applied is the pulling force on the rope, which is 129 N, and the force required is the weight of the carton being lifted, which is 225 N.

To determine the force required, we need to calculate the weight of the carton using the formula: weight = mass x gravity. The mass of the carton can be found by dividing the weight by the acceleration due to gravity, which is approximately 9.81 m/s^2.

After calculating the weight of the carton, we can then calculate the Actual Mechanical Advantage (AMA) using the formula: AMA = force applied / force required. Plugging in the values gives us an AMA of 0.573 for this pulley system.

Understanding the AMA of a pulley system can help in determining the efficiency of the system and how much force is required to lift a specific load. More information on mechanical advantages can be explored further in related resources and educational materials.