Edexcel M3 — Question 1

Exam BoardEdexcel
ModuleM3 (Mechanics 3)
TopicNon-constant acceleration

  1. A student is attempting to model the expansion of an airbag in a car following a collision.
The student considers the displacement from the steering column, \(s\) metres, of a point \(P\) on the airbag \(t\) seconds after a collision and uses the formula $$s = \mathrm { e } ^ { 3 t } - 1 , \quad 0 \leq t \leq 0.1$$ Using this model,
  1. find, correct to the nearest centimetre, the maximum displacement of \(P\),
  2. find the initial velocity of \(P\),
  3. find the acceleration of \(P\) in terms of \(t\).
  4. Explain why this model is unlikely to be realistic.