Conservation of Energy
Helpful before this lesson
- Not completed: Kinetic Energy
- Not completed: Potential Energy
- Not completed: Work and the Work-Energy Theorem
These topics can make this lesson easier, but you can start now.
Learning Objectives
- Students will understand energy conservation in mechanical systems
- Students will calculate energy transformations between potential and kinetic
- Students will apply conservation of energy to solve problems
Core Concepts
- Total mechanical energy: E = KE + PE
- In absence of non-conservative forces: E_initial = E_final
- Energy transforms but total is conserved