Mathematics 9709 · AS & A Level · Newton's laws of motion

Newton's laws of motion — practice question

A railway locomotive with mass $240\,000\text{ kg}$ is pulling a coach of mass $36\,000\text{ kg}$ down a slope whose angle to the horizontal is $\sin^{-1} 0.04$. The locomotive provides a driving force of $450\,000\text{ N}$, while the resistive forces are $120\,000\text{ N}$ on the locomotive and $15\,000\text{ N}$ on the coach. The coupling linking the locomotive and the coach is light, rigid and parallel to the hill.
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Determine the acceleration of the locomotive and the tension in the coupling.

Worked solution & mark scheme

This 5-mark question has a full step-by-step worked solution and mark scheme. One marking point: Make at least one attempt to apply Newton's second law

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