Calculating tension in a rope involves understanding the forces acting on the object it supports. Tension can be thought of as the force transmitted through a string, cable, or in this case, a rope when it is pulled tight by forces acting from opposite ends. In the original exercise, the lift's motion involves both its weight and the additional upward acceleration.
To determine the tension in the rope, we utilize Newton's Second Law of Motion, which is a fundamental principle in mechanics. According to this law, the force required to move an object is equal to the mass of the object multiplied by its acceleration:
- Weight force acting downwards = mass (m) x gravitational acceleration (g)
- Force required to accelerate the lift upwards = mass (m) x additional acceleration (a)
Thus, the total tension force (T) in the rope can be found by combining these two forces:\[ T = m (g + a) \]This is because the tension must support both the lift's weight and its upward acceleration. The calculated tension of 10,800 N indicates how much force the rope needs to exert to move the lift as described.