In: Physics
A bullet of mass 5.00 g is fired horizontally into a wooden block of mass 1.16 kg resting on a horizontal surface. The coefficient of kinetic friction between block and surface is 0.240. The bullet remains embedded in the block, which is observed to slide a distance 0.200 m along the surface before stopping.
Part A What was the initial speed of the bullet?
Solution:
Given,
mass of the bullet 
mass of the wooden block 
coefficient of kinetic friction 
distance travelled by the combination 
The total mass of the bullet and the block is
  
The normal reaction of the surface on the bullet-block combination is
  
Let 
 be the kinetic friction between the block and the surface,
then
  
Suppose, the speed of the bullet just before striking the block
is 
. The bullet-block combination moves a distance 
 before coming to rest. It means that the kinetic energy of the
bullet is consumed in doing work against the frictional force
 between the block and the surface. That is,

  
  