Determining Mechanical Advantage of a Pulley System

Understanding Mechanical Advantage

Mechanical advantage is a measure of how much a machine multiplies force or distance. It is calculated by comparing the amount of force needed to lift an object to the amount of force actually applied to the machine.

Given Data

Mass of carton: 24 kg

Load distance: 16.5 m

Effort force: 129 Newton

Effort distance: 33 m

Acceleration due to gravity: 9.8 m/s^2

Calculating Mechanical Advantage

First, let's calculate the force acting on the load:

Force = Mass x Acceleration due to gravity

Force = 24 kg x 9.8 m/s^2 = 235.2 Newton

Now, we can determine the mechanical advantage:

Mechanical Advantage = Load / Effort

Mechanical Advantage = 235.2 Newton / 129 Newton = 1.82

Therefore, the mechanical advantage of the pulley system is 1.82, indicating that the system multiplies the force applied by a factor of 1.82.