Moments, levers and gears

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Question 31
Medium

Figure 1 shows a builder trying to lift a heavy concrete slab using a metal crowbar as a lever.

The slab has a weight of 1500 N. The builder can only exert a maximum downward force of 400 N.

A diagram showing a builder attempting to lift a concrete slab using a metal crowbar as a lever. The lever rests on a pivot. The concrete slab is on the left-hand end, applying a downward weight force of 1500 N at a distance of 0.3 m from the pivot. The builder is on the right-hand end, applying a downward force of 400 N at a distance of 1.0 m from the pivot.

Explain, using calculations, why the builder cannot lift the concrete slab.

[3]

Moments, levers and gears Questions

  1. GCSE
  2. /Physics
  3. /Moments, levers and gears