Easy Questions

1 (a) A cyclist is riding along a straight, level road at a constant speed.

Complete the sentences with a suitable word or phrase.

As the cyclist rides along the road, energy in the .................................... energy store of the
cyclist’s body decreases.

The speed of the cyclist is constant when the work done by the cyclist is
.................................... the work done against air resistance.

(2 marks)

(b) Write the equation linking power (P), time (t) and work done (W).

(1 mark)

(c) Calculate the work done by the cyclist when his power output is 350 W for 1500 seconds.

Work done = .................... J

(3 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 2
2 (a) Figure 1 shows how cavity wall insulation is installed in the wall of a house.

Explain how the wall reduces unwanted energy transfers.

(3 marks)

(b) Figure 2 shows a simplified layout of a non-condensing gas boiler that was typically used

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 3
to heat houses in the United Kingdom.

Complete the following sentences describing the energy transfers taking place inside this
system.

Choose answers from the box.

Each answer can be used once, more than once or not at all.

nuclear thermal chemical magnetic

Energy is transferred from the .................................... energy store of the fuel to the
................................... energy store of the water and then to the ...................................
energy store of the air.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 4
 (3 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 5
3 (a) Figure 1 shows a cell connected to a lamp. In a circuit, energy is transferred from the
cell.

Figure 1

Which of the following units is the correct unit for energy?

Tick (✓) one box.

kg
□

N
□

J
□

W
□

J/kg
□

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 6
 (1 mark)

(b) Complete the sentences.

Choose answers from the box.

Each answer can be used once, more than once or not at all.

nuclear chemical thermal

Energy is transferred from the .............................. store of the cell, to the components.

Energy is transferred to the .............................. store of the lamp.

Energy is transferred from the lamp to the .............................. store of the surroundings.

(3 marks)

(c) Write the equation linking useful energy transfer output, total input energy transfer, and
efficiency.

(1 mark)

(d) 60 J of energy is transferred from the cell to the lamp. 16 J is transferred from the lamp
to the thermal store of the surroundings.

Calculate the efficiency of the lamp.

Efficiency = .....................................

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 7
 (3 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 8
4 (a) Figure 1 shows a toy car on a race track that performs a loop-the-loop.

At which point does the toy car have the most energy in its gravitational potential energy
store?

(1 mark)

(b) Describe the energy transfer taking place between position A and position B.

(1 mark)

(c) The toy car has 1.5 J of energy in its gravitational potential store at position A

Assuming that energy losses are negligible, state the energy in the car's kinetic store at B,
then determine the speed of the car when it reaches position B.

The mass of the car is 400 g.

Speed = ................................... m/s

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 9
 (4 marks)

(d) In reality, there are energy losses in the system.

The car's speed at position D will be less than its speed at position B.

Suggest why this is the case.

(1 mark)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 10
5 (a) Figure 1 shows a water slide called Verti-go at the water park, Aqualandia, in Spain.

Water is pumped down the slide to make the rider go faster.

Slide 1 is 28 m tall, and Slide 2 is 33 m tall.

This type of slide is called a 'freefall' water slide.

Suggest why it is given this name.

(2 marks)

(b) What is the purpose of the water being pumped down the slide?

Tick (✓) two boxes.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 11
 To keep the riders cool in the sun
□

To decrease friction
□

To increase the gravitational potential energy of the riders

To increase the speed of the riders

To decrease the kinetic energy of the riders

(2 marks)

(c) The mass of one rider on Slide 2 is 50 kg.

Calculate the change in gravitational potential energy as they climb the stairs and stand
at the top of the slide, giving the units.

(3 marks)

(d) Determine how much more gravitational potential energy the rider from part (c) has on
Slide 2 than if they rode on Slide 1.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 12
 (3 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 13
Medium Questions
1 (a) Figure 2 below shows a student doing a bungee jump from a stationary platform.

The bungee cord has an unstretched length of 30.0 m.

Figure 2

The mass of the student is 60.0 kg.

The gravitational field strength is 9.8 N / kg.

Write down the equation which links gravitational field strength (g), gravitational
potential energy (Ep), height (h) and mass (m).

(1 mark)

(b) Using the equation from 1(a), calculate the change in gravitational potential energy from
the position where the student jumps to the point 30.0 m below.

Give your answer to 3 significant figures.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 14
 (3 marks)

(c) 75% of this change in gravitational potential energy is transferred to the student’s kinetic
energy store.

Determine how much the student’s kinetic energy store increases after falling 30.0 m.

Kinetic energy gained = ________________________ J

(1 mark)

(d) Calculate the speed of the student after falling 30.0 m.

Give your answer to two significant figures.

(4 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 15
2 (a) What is meant by specific heat capacity?

(2 marks)

(b) Quenching is a process used to change the properties of steel by rapidly cooling it.

During the quenching process, the steel is heated to a very high temperature and then
placed in a container of cold water.

A steel rod is quenched by heating it to a temperature of 815 °C before placing it in cold

The mass of the steel rod is 15 kg.

The final temperature of the rod and water is 60 °C.

Calculate the energy transferred from the steel rod to the water.

Use the correct equation from the Physics Equation Sheet.

Specific heat capacity of steel = 490 J/kg °C.

Give the answer to two significant figures.

(4 marks)

(c) The temperature of the steel rod eventually returns to room temperature.

Compare the energies and movement of the particles in the steel rod and in the air at
room temperature.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 16
 (2 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 17
3 (a) Figure 1 shows a person on a zip wire. The person's weight is 650 N.

The person has 15 000 J in their gravitational potential store at the top of the tower.

Determine the vertical height of the tower.

Give your answer to 3 significant figures.

Vertical height of tower (3 significant figures) = ...................... m

(3 marks)

(b) The height of the zip rope at the end of the ride is 2.5 m above ground.

Determine the change in gravitational potential energy over the course of the zip rope
ride.

(3 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 18
(c) Calculate the mass of the rider.

Give your answer to the nearest kg.

(2 marks)

(d) Write down an expression relating energy in the kinetic store (E ) and energy in the
k
gravitational potential store (E ).
p

Determine the amount of energy in the rider's kinetic store when the rider is at the end
of the zip rope.

You can assume frictional forces to be negligible.

(2 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 19
4 (a) Figure 1 shows a cyclist riding down an incline.

Complete the sentences.

Choose answers from the box.

Each answer can be used once, more than once or not at all.

thermal elastic potential kinetic

nuclear gravitational potential chemical

As the cyclist rides down the hill, the amount of energy in his .............................. store
decreases.

As the cyclist accelerates, energy in his .............................. store increases.

When the cyclist uses his breaks to stop, energy is transferred to the ..............................
store of the brake pads.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 20
 (3 marks)

(b) In one journey, the cyclist applies his brakes.

The break pads increase in temperature from 13°C to 51°C.

The material of the break pads has a specific heat capacity of 517 J/kg °C.

The mass of the break pads is 0.043 kg

Calculate the change in thermal energy of the break pads.

Give your answer to 3 significant figures.

Change in thermal energy (3 significant figures) = .................... J

(3 marks)

(c) The cyclist descends the hill on another journey, this time without braking.

The hill the cyclist rode down has a vertical height of 23.5 m.

20 kJ of energy was transferred from the cyclist's gravitational potential energy store as
he rode from the top of the hill to the bottom.

Determine the mass of the cyclist.

Give your answer to 3 significant figures.

Mass of cyclist (3 significant figures) = .................................... kg

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 21
 (4 marks)

(d) Calculate the maximum speed of the cyclist during his descent.

Assume now that there are no energy losses.

Give your answer to 1 significant figure.

Maximum speed (1 significant figure) = ............................... m/s

(4 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 22
5 (a) A group of students carry out an investigation into the specific heat capacity of water.

Figure 1 shows the equipment the students use.

Describe a method the students could use to determine the specific heat capacity of
water.

(6 marks)

(b) Explain the purpose of insulating the beaker of water.

(1 mark)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 23
(c) The students noticed that when the power supply was turned on, the water did not
immediately begin to heat up.

Suggest one reason why.

(1 mark)

(d) The energy transferred to the heater in 600 s was 36 050 J.

The temperature of the water increased by 17°C.

The specific heat capacity of water is 4200 J/kg °C.

Determine the mass of water the students used.

Mass of water = .................................... kg

(3 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 24
Hard Questions
1 (a) The diagram in Figure 1 below shows a wind turbine.

Figure 1

The relationship between the power output of the turbine and the kinetic energy of the
air passing the blades each second is directly proportional.

Describe the change to the power output when the wind speed is reduced by half.

(3 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 25
(b) During a moderate breeze, the average mass of air passing the wind turbine each minute
is 14 000 kg.

The average speed of the wind is 7.6 m/s.

Calculate the average power output of the wind turbine.

You can assume that the process is 100% efficient.

Average power output = .................................... W

(4 marks)

2 Figure 3 shows a rollercoaster.

Figure 3

The rollercoaster car is raised to a height of 40m in 35 seconds by an electric motor.

The mass of the rollercoaster and passengers is 550 kg.

The motor has a power rating of 10 000 W.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 26
Gravitational field strength = 9.8 N / kg.

Calculate the efficiency of the motor.

Efficiency = ....................................

(5 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 27
3 (a) The CPU (Central Processing Unit) in a desk-top computer controls most of the functions
of the computer.

Modern CPUs generate large amounts of heat.

Specially designed cooling units such as the one shown in Figure 1 are used to dissipate
this heat away from the CPU.

This is to prevent it from overheating and being damaged.

Energy is transferred from the CPU through the metal base of the cooling unit

Explain how this process occurs.

(4 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 28
(b) The CPU cooling unit has metal fins that are designed to transfer energy quickly to the
surroundings.

Name two features that would help the metal cooling fins to transfer energy quickly to
the surroundings.

(2 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 29
4 (a) Salmon are born in freshwater rivers, spend most of their lives in the sea, but return to
freshwater rivers to breed. As they swim up rivers, they often have to jump up waterfalls.

Figure 1 shows a salmon attempting to jump up a waterfall with a vertical height of 0.36
m.

Figure 1

The salmon has a mass of 1.84 kg.

The salmon leaves the water with a speed of 3.2 m/s.

Determine whether the salmon can make the height required for the jump.

(5 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 30
(b) Another salmon of mass 2.2 kg tries to make the jump.

Calculate the minimum speed with which the salmon would have to leave the water in
order to reach the height required.

Minimum speed = .................................... m/s

(3 marks)

(c) The salmon swim further upstream and encounter a waterfall that is much higher than
the previous one.

The salmon attempts the jump, but fails, and performs a somersault during the descent.
The salmon straightens out before it enters the water as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2

Explain whether the speed of entry into the water is greater than, less than or equal to
the speed with which it leaves the water. Ignore any effects of air resistance.

(2 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 31
(d) The temperature of the water at the bottom of a waterfall is greater than the
temperature of the water at the top.

Suggest why this is the case.

(1 mark)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 32
5 (a) Figure 1 shows a student at two stages of a bungee jump.

Complete the sentences. Choose answers from the box.

Each answer can be used once, more than once or not at all.

elastic potential gravitational potential chemical

kinetic electrostatic magnetic

Before the student jumps, they have energy in their .............................. store.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 33
 As the student falls, energy is transferred to their .............................. store.

At the bottom of the jump, the bungee cord stretches and energy is transferred to the
.............................. store of the rope.

(3 marks)

(b) At the lowest point of the jump, the student is momentarily stationary. At the lowest
point of the jump, the length of the bungee cord is 82 m. The unstretched length of the
cord is 40 m.

The bungee cord acts like a spring with a spring constant of 45 N/m.

Calculate the energy stored in the bungee chord at the lowest point of the jump.

Include the correct unit in your answer.

Use the correct equation from the Physics Equations Sheet.

Energy = ................................. Unit = ..............................

(4 marks)

(c) Determine the mass of the student.

You may assume there are no energy losses in the system.

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 34
 (4 marks)

(d) Determine the speed of the student at the point in the jump where the bungee cord is at
its maximum unstretched length.

You can assume air resistance is negligible.

(5 marks)

© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at savemyexams.com 35