Absolutely Lost on this Physics Problem??!?

Question

A block of mass m = 2.02 kg slides down a 30.8 ° incline which is h = 3.46 m high. At the bottom, it strikes a block of mass M = 6.90 kg which is at rest on a horizontal surface (Assume a smooth transition at the bottom of the incline.)
If the collision is perfectly elastic, and friction can be ignored, what is the speed of the smaller block and larger block after the collision?

Determine how far back up the incline the smaller mass will go.

How would you work through this problem? Please Help!

Answer 1

Force is mass x acceleration, mass will accelerate down the ramp at the freefall rate adjusted for the incline of the ramp, that is, less than the free fall rate. Force disapated in the collision will be equal to the inerita of the mass that is hit and the mass that hits it, so proportion it out, at the instance of the hit the speed of both is zero, after hit the larger block will eventually accelerate to infinity since there is no friction, the small block will go up incline part way (guess 1/3) and will stop momentarily before it slides back down. Anyway, that is what I think.

Answer 2

At the top of the incline, the small mass has potential energy. At the bottom of the incline, the potential energy will be totally converted to kinetic: mgh = 1/2 mv^2. Solve for v (This will be called u1 below.)

Regarding the collision, I expect your book derives the formulas for perfectly elastic collisions. Call the small mass #1. A special case is when u2 = 0. Then the formulas simplify to:
v1 = (m1-m2)/(m1+m2)*u1 and
v2 = (2m1/(m1+m2))*u1

Answer 3

Start with the slide down.
The acceleration on the 2.02 mass is 9.81 (vertically). Find the vector value for a 30.8deg slope (trigono or graphic). You get the acceleration on the slope.
From there, you get the final speed before the collision, hence the Energy at the instant of the shock.
Split that energy between the two masses and convert it into movement, which will give you a velocity of the bigger mass, going away, and the velocity of the small mass, bouncing up the slope.

Answer 4

break it down. It will fall at what rate? how will the 30deg incline change this down velocity into horizontal velocity? once you have the v at the bottom, you can determine momentum, that is completly transfered to the other block with a known mass. p=mv for the last part.

I want to help, just don't want to do it for you.

Answer 5

They are both at rest/stopped
Smaller won't go up incline at all
After the collision both move no more