🎢 Energy Conservation

Energy Conservation Simulator: KE, PE & the Half-Pipe

This energy conservation simulator puts a ball on a half-pipe and shows the running tally of its energy. On a frictionless track kinetic and potential energy trade back and forth — all potential at the turning points, all kinetic at the bottom — while their sum never changes, so the ball always climbs back to its exact release height and hits its top speed v = √(2gh) at the lowest point. A live bar chart tracks KE, PE, heat, and the constant total side by side. Turn up friction and each pass falls short as mechanical energy leaks into the growing heat bar, until the ball settles at the bottom — yet KE + PE + heat still equals the original total, the law of conservation of energy in action. Set the release height, toggle friction, and predict whether the ball returns to the same height or lower.

What you can do in this simulation

• Release a ball on a half-pipe and watch KE and PE trade off through every swing
• A live bar chart shows kinetic, potential, heat, and total energy — the total stays constant
• Frictionless: the ball returns to its exact release height and peaks at v = √(2gh) at the bottom
• Add friction and watch mechanical energy drain into the heat bar until the ball settles at the bottom
• Predict mode: call whether the ball returns to the same height or lower, and set the release height

Concepts covered

conservation of energy · kinetic energy · potential energy · friction and heat · mechanical energy · v = sqrt(2gh) · energy transformation

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