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Q: Glass balls, steel balls and rubber balls. ( No Answer,   4 Comments )
Question  
Subject: Glass balls, steel balls and rubber balls.
Category: Science > Physics
Asked by: mihilism-ga
List Price: $2.00
Posted: 09 Dec 2005 08:26 PST
Expires: 05 Jan 2006 06:56 PST
Question ID: 603657
Is it true that glass balls bounce higher than rubber balls and if so how exactly?

Clarification of Question by mihilism-ga on 15 Dec 2005 03:13 PST
Wouldn't the glass ball break as soon as it hit a hard surface?
Answer  
There is no answer at this time.

Comments  
Subject: Re: Glass balls, steel balls and rubber balls.
From: bozo99-ga on 09 Dec 2005 10:20 PST
 
It depends on the surface you bounce from.

For maximum "Coefficient of Restitution" one surface should be rigid
and the other elastic - e.g. a rubber ball on a metal surface or vice
versa.

http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/CoefficientofRestitution.html
Subject: Re: Glass balls, steel balls and rubber balls.
From: normmccray-ga on 09 Dec 2005 11:58 PST
 
You may also be thinking of Acrylic balls, which are used in a type of
juggling called contact juggling.  Acrylic is, of course, plastic, and
the balls bounce VERY well, probably moreso than rubber.  They are
clear and do look like glass.
Subject: Re: Glass balls, steel balls and rubber balls.
From: rracecarr-ga on 09 Dec 2005 15:52 PST
 
Yes, from a very hard, rigid surface, glass balls and steel balls will
bounce higher than rubber ones.  The reason is that rubber balls
deform significantly on impact, flattening onto the surface, and then
springing back.  In the process of this squashing, some energy is lost
as heat.  Glass balls lose less energy during contact, because contact
time is much shorter, and deformation is less.  So they bounce higher.
Subject: Re: Glass balls, steel balls and rubber balls.
From: rracecarr-ga on 15 Dec 2005 12:42 PST
 
No, unless the glass ball was very large or travelling very fast, it
wouldn't break.  Have you ever seen a broken marble?

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