Question #be1e8
1 Answer
F = -kx Neither.
Explanation:
Hooke’s Law for spring constants shows that the spring constant can be determined by a mass and the force required to extend the spring. Springs in ‘parallel’ may support more mass, but because the extension/contraction is distributed over multiple springs, it does NOT affect the individual spring constants.
Similarly, in series, springs with equal constants will simply be longer, but the spring constant will remain unchanged. Springs with different spring constants will be limited by the spring with the weakest constant (largest extension per force applied).
A stronger spring will have limited or not interaction with the system – acting essentially as a rigid body supporting the weaker spring until the weaker spring is either completely extended or compacted.
The formulas for multiple springs look at the “effective spring constant” in terms of the mass displacement (http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/SpringsTwoSpringsinSeries.html),
but that is not really a description of the “spring constant”.
