Importance of force and pressure
Force and pressure are the two basic concepts of Physics which are usually wrongly misinterpreted by people. Force and pressure are different entities, and there are vast differences between them, which you can understand only if you have thorough knowledge. Have you ever thought about how football moves? Or how a drawer opens? This happens when the force is applied to an object. In simple words, force is the pull or push which changes the state of motion or the state of rest or the direction of an object.
Have you ever thought why the tools which are used to cut, trim, chop or pierce items have sharp edges? Have you wondered why heavy vehicles have broad tyres? Here comes the concept of pressure, which is the applied force per unit area. This article provides you with some simple and significant differences between force and pressure.
Definition of Force
Force is the push or pull, which arises due to the physical interaction of two objects, and which changes or tends to change the present state of the object. Force is a vector quantity, i.e. it has both magnitude and direction. The magnitude of force determines the amount of force applied to an object.
In simple words, force is the influence which changes or tends to change the state of motion or rest of the body upon which it is applied. The speed and direction describes the state of the motion. When force is applied to an object, it can change its state of motion or its shape.
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When more than one force is applied to an object, the resultant force is called a net Force. When two different forces are subjected to an object in the same direction, then the resultant force is the sum of two forces. And when two different forces are applied in the opposite direction, the resultant force is the difference of the applied forces.
Broadly, the Forces are of Various Types, These are:
Contact Force
Muscular Force
Frictional Force
Non-contact Force
Magnetic Force
Electrostatic Force
Gravitational Force
Definition of Pressure
The amount of force applied per unit area of a surface is called pressure. In simple words, it is the force acting perpendicularly over the surface of the area, which makes it spread about that area. When force is applied to a large surface area, the pressure is low, and when force is applied to a small area, the pressure is high.
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The pressure is the forces spread out by continuous pressing or pushing of two objects with each other. It is calculated as follows:
Pressure = Force / Area
Or, Mathematically: P = F/A
Where:
P is the pressure,
F is the magnitude of the external force, and
A is the surface area of the surface in contact.
Unlike force, the pressure is a scalar quantity, and it has only magnitude. The vector of force acting normal to the surface is the vector element of pressure.
Importance of force and pressure
The impact of one object over another is Force and the physical quantity of force that is spread over a particular area is Pressure. Force can be defined as a push or a pull that makes an object, or a thing change its state of direction or motion. A force is always applied to a ball when we want to hit the ball, and until the ball is stopped by a motion of gravity, or by friction, the ball will be in motion.
A force can stop a moving object or body, it can make it move faster and it can even make the object or the body change its direction. Force has magnitude and direction.
The physical quantity of force that is spread over a particular area is what we say to be Pressure. Let us take the amount of force that is being applied to an object or a body. If this is divided with the area of contact, then we will get the pressure that is applied to the object or on the body.
We can say that: pressure=force/area, which implies that if the same force is applied on an area that is smaller, that will produce a greater pressure compared to when applied to a larger area.
FAQs on Difference Between Force and Pressure for JEE Main 2024
1. What is the Difference Between Force and Pressure?
Here we have mentioned some key difference between force and pressure in detail below:
1. The acceleration which results from the push or pull due to the physical contact of two bodies is called force. The force when you normally apply to an area, acting perpendicular to its surface area, is called pressure.
2. The SI unit of Force is Newton and is donated by N. It is equal to 1-kilogram metre per second squared. The SI unit of pressure is Pascal, which is donated by Pa and is equal to 1 Newton per metre squared.
3. Dynamometer is a device used to measure force; whereas a Manometer is used to measure pressure.
4. Force is a vector quantity that has both direction and magnitude, whereas pressure is a scalar quantity having only magnitude.
5. Force can be applied to the face, edges, and vertices of any object, whereas pressure can be applied only to the face of an object.
6. The force applied to an object can change its speed, whereas the pressure applied to the object cannot change the speed of the object.
2. Is Pressure a Result of Force? Or is Force a Consequence of Pressure?
Pressure is a concept which rises when force is applied to a unit area; in simple words, the pressure is the force per unit area. According to the formula P = F/A, the pressure is directly proportional to the force, i.e. if force is more, the pressure will also be more. The pressure is inversely proportional to area, so if the area is small, the pressure will be more. Pressure cannot exist without force.
3. How Does the Pressure Change When Force is Applied to a Smaller?
The pressure is the force that is divided upon an area. For small areas the pressure is large, and for large areas the pressure is small.
Force applied to a small area causes a significant impact on the object because there is less space for the force to be dissipated; the same force, when applied to a large area, doesn't cause much impact and gets dispersed over the entire region.
4. Is Pressure a Scalar or a Vector Quantity?
The pressure is a scalar quantity; it has only magnitude and no direction.
Let us consider that a force F is applied upon an area ∆A. Pressure will be defined as the standard component of force divided upon area ∆A.
P = (F . n) / ∆ A. Where n is a unit vector normal to the area ∆A.
What if the force is not reasonable to the area? In this case, the pressure will come into effect as a tangential component of stress called shearing stress.
5. Mention a few differences between Force and Pressure.
The Push and Pull action which makes an object or a body change its state of motion and direction, is Force, whereas the physical quantity of force that is spread over a certain area is Pressure.
Newton is the unit of Force, whereas Pascal is for Pressure.
Force is measured by a Dynamometer whereas Pressure is measured by a Manometer.
Force is described to be a Vector quantity meaning it has both magnitude and Direction, whereas Pressure is a Scalar quantity that has only magnitude.
6. What happens when a Force is applied to a smaller area?
A force that is divided into a particular area is what we understand as Pressure. The pressure is always larger for smaller areas and the pressure is always smaller for large areas.
When force is applied to a smaller area, there is a significant impact on the object of the body due to less space for the force to spread. But when applied to a larger area, then the impact is much less and the force gets dispersed over the entire area.
7. Pressure is a Scalar Quantity. Explain.
Pressure is known to be a Scalar quantity which means that it only has magnitude and does not have any direction, meaning it has a value that can be measured. Pressure is understood to be the ratio of force to an area.
Consider that a force denoted as ‘F’ is applied on area A. The standard component of a force that is divided on area A is what Pressure is.
P = (F . n) / A, where N denotes a unit vector that is normal to the area A
The pressure will come into effect as a tangential component of stress which is known as “ shearing” stress, provided the force is not reasonable to the area.
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