A 2300 kg truck has put its front bumper against the rear bumper of a 2400 kg SUV to give it a push. With the engine at full power and good tires on good pavement, the maximum forward force on the truck is 18,000 N. What is the maximum possible acceleration the truck can give the SUV?

Explanation:

We can solve this problem by applying Newton's second law, which states that:

where

F is the net force on an object

m is the mass of the object

a is its acceleration

In this problem, we have:

m = 2300 + 2400 = 4700 kg is the total mass of the truck+the SUV

F = 18,000 N is the force exerted by the engine (that must be used to accelerate both the truck and the SUV)

Therefore, the acceleration on the truck-SUV system is

we need to know the time interval during which the force acts. impulse of force = momentum change