Average pressure is the normal force distributed over an area.
Difficulty
Beginner
Read time
5 min
Prerequisites
Basic algebra and consistent SI units
Source
OpenStax, College Physics 2e, §11.3 (Paul Peter Urone and Roger Hinrichs)Textbook reference retained from the OpenFormulaGraph dataset; adaptation credits and license are provided below.
Adapted from OpenFormulaGraph, under CC BY 4.0.
FormuLab adapted the notation, explanations, assumptions, and topic placement, and expanded the numerical check into a worked example.
Average pressure is the normal force distributed over an area. A larger area reduces the average pressure for the same normal force. Local pressure may vary even when the total force and area are known.
| Symbol | Meaning | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Average normal pressure | ||
| Normal force magnitude | ||
| Loaded area |
Compare normal loads distributed over different areas.
Relate fluid pressure and piston force.
A normal force of 10.0 N is uniformly distributed over 2.00 m². Find the pressure.
Textbook reference retained from the OpenFormulaGraph dataset; adaptation credits and license are provided below.
Adapted from OpenFormulaGraph, under CC BY 4.0.
FormuLab adapted the notation, explanations, assumptions, and topic placement, and expanded the numerical check into a worked example.
Assumptions
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