Energy Conservation Explorer
Drag the position slider to move an object along a track and watch the energy bars shift between kinetic and potential energy. Add friction to see energy lost as heat. All calculations run in your browser.
Track
Parameters
Energy Distribution
Reference Guide
Conservation of Energy
In a closed system with no friction, the total mechanical energy stays constant. Energy transforms between forms but is never created or destroyed.
When friction is present, some mechanical energy converts to thermal energy (heat). The total energy (including heat) is still conserved.
Kinetic and Potential Energy
Kinetic energy is the energy of motion. The faster an object moves, the more KE it has.
Gravitational potential energy depends on height. The higher an object is, the more PE it has.
As an object slides down a frictionless hill, PE converts to KE. It speeds up going down and slows down going up.
Spring and Elastic Energy
A compressed or stretched spring stores elastic potential energy. When released, this energy converts to kinetic energy.
- is the spring constant (stiffness, in N/m)
- is the compression or extension distance (in m)
A stiffer spring (larger ) or greater compression (larger ) stores more energy and launches the object faster.
The Work-Energy Theorem
The net work done on an object equals its change in kinetic energy. This connects forces to energy.
Friction does negative work (it opposes motion), removing kinetic energy and converting it to heat.
where is the friction coefficient and is the distance traveled along the surface.
