CHEMISTRY GLOSSARY

kinematics    →   kinematika

Kinematics is the classification and comparison of motions.

kinetic theory    →   kinetička teorija

Kinetic theory explains the behaviour of solids, liquids and gases and their state changes dependable upon motion of particles they are made of.

Navier-Stokes equations    →   Navier-Stokesove jednadžbe

Navier-Stokes equations are a set of complex equations for the motion of a viscous fluid subject to external forces.

point-like object    →   materijalna točka

Point-like object is an expression, usual in kinematics: a point-like object (or a particle) is an object with dimensions, which can be neglected while considering its motion.

inertia    →   inercija

Inertia is an expression for the tendency of all bodies to resist motion, or to continue in motion if already moving. If a body undergoes linear motion (translation), inertia corresponds to the mass of the body. In order to express inertia of a rotating body, the so-called rotational inertia is defined as suitable physical quantity. A bowling ball has more inertia than a tennis ball, due to its higher mass.

kinetic energy    →   kinetička energija

Kinetic energy (E_k) is associated with the state of motion of a body. It is a scalar property and defined to be

Kinetic energy is most clearly exhibited in gases, in which molecules have much greater freedom of motion than in liquids and solids.

potential energy    →   potencijalna energija

Potential energy (E_p) is the energy stored in a body or system as a consequence of its position, shape, or state (this includes gravitation energy, electrical energy, nuclear energy, and chemical energy). Gravitational potential energy is the energy associated with the state of separation between bodies that attracts each other via gravitational force. Elastic potential energy is the energy associated with the state of compression or extension of an elastic object. Thermal energy is associated with the random motions of atoms and molecules in a body.

Newton’s gravitational law    →   Newtonov zakon gravitacije

Every object in the universe attracts every other object with a force (gravitational force F_G) directed along the line through centres of the two objects that is proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.

m₁ and m₂ are masses of the two objects and r is the distance between them. G is universal constant of gravitation, which equals 6.67•10^-26 N m² kg^-2. Strictly speaking, this law applies only to objects that can be considered pointlike object. Otherwise, the force has to be found by integrating the forces between various mass elements.

It is more properly to express Newton’s gravitational law by vector equation:

in which r₁ and r₂ are position vectors of masses m₁ and m₂.

Gravitational forces act on distance. Newton’s gravitational law is derived from Kepler’s law for planetary motion, using a physical assumption considering Sun as the centre and the source of gravitational force.

Additionally, every object moves in the direction of the force acting on it, with acceleration that is inversely proportional to the mass of object. For bodies on the surface of Earth, the distance r in gravitational law formula is practically equal to the Earth radius, R_E. If the mass of the body on Earth surface is m and the mass of earth is M_E, the gravitational force acting on that body can be expressed as:

where g is gravitational acceleration which is, although dependent on geographical latitude, usually considered as constant equal to 9.81 m s^-2.