Crumple Zone Investigation Report

The crumple zone investigation was done successfully, obtaining relevant and reliable data which can be used to obtain a conclusion as to whether the hypothesis statement was correct. Graph 1 shows Crumple zone material against the deceleration of the cart upon impact, graph 2 the crumple zone material against the force of the impact. When comparing the data of both graphs, a direct relationship between graph 1 and graph 2 is evident in all materials except the paper box. The control, as expected due to there being no crumple zone, was the worst result for both deceleration and force by a considerable margin. Cardboard the worst crumple zone behind bubble wrap for both deceleration and force, with foam, and the paper box (unreliable result),

Compression strength is the capacity of a material to withstand loads tending to reduce its size. The foam was the best at reducing force and achieving a low deceleration time due to the physics behind the materials compressive strength. After compressed due to the possessed kinetic energy of the cart obtained by its motion from the angled track, the foam is compressed relative to its relaxed position to the extent when there is an increase in the elastic potential energy which is stronger than that of the kinetic energy of the cart. Forcing the cart in the opposite direction, as explained in Newton’s third law, for every action there must be an equal and opposite reaction, creating a rebound effect. As none of the materials crumpled to absorb the entirety of the force involved the collision, all materials caused this rebound effect instead of absorbing the entirety of the crash as a real world crumple zone is designed to do. The worse the compressive strength, the better the material is at absorbing the forces omitted in the investigation. The order of best to worst compressive strength followed in the order, brick, cardboard, bubble wrap, foam and the worst being the paper box. The true measurement of the materials which are found through this investigation is not the

This trampoline effect can be explained through Newton's three laws of motion, but also the law of conservation of energy, which states, energy cannot be destroyed it can only be transformed from one form to another. As per the law of conservation of energy, a small amount of force was absorbed by the paper box, as measured and listed in table 3, with the remainder of the energy pushed back upon the cart causing it to travel back up the track, displaying how none of the energy was lost, all of it used in transformations of different