Question 7: Modern cars are not rigid but are designed to have crumpled zones that collapse upon impact. What is the advantage of this new design?
Answer
Modern cars are designed to have crumpled zones (crumple means out of shape or irregular bends). The advantage of these zones is that it decreases the chance of serious injuries to the occupants of the vehicle. In case the car is solid rigid, all the energy from the impact of the car gets transferred to the passengers in the car. When the car is crumpled, it absorbs some of the energy in the crumples and, consequently, less amount of energy reaches the passengers.
Explanation
The impulse is given by
We see force is inversely proportional to the time. Therefore, when the time of contact increases, the force decreases. The crumple zones in the car design increases the time of contact and hence the crash is slowed down. The force experienced by the passengers and the car decreases and the damage of life and property is reduced.
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