Calculate ideal drop energy from mass, constant gravity and vertical height, or reverse-solve mass or height. Speed and momentum assume release from rest without drag. An optional downward stopping stroke gives average contact force E/d + mg, including gravity during stopping; it is not peak force or a safety rating.
Free Fall Energy Formula
The following equation is used to calculate the Free Fall Energy.
Variables:
- Where FFE is the Free Fall Energy (joules)
- m is the mass of the falling object (kg)
- h is the height of the fall (m)
- g is the acceleration due to gravity (m/s^2)
To calculate ideal fall energy, multiply mass by constant gravitational acceleration and vertical drop height. The examples below use g = 9.81 m/s²; select Custom gravity and enter 9.81 to reproduce them, rather than the default standard Earth value 9.80665.
How to Calculate Free Fall Energy?
The following two example problems outline the steps and information needed in order to calculate the Free Fall Energy.
Example Problem #1:
- First, determine the mass of the falling object (kg). In this example, the mass of the falling object (kg) is measured to be 50.
- Next, determine the height of the fall (m). For this problem, the height of the fall (m) is calculated to be 40.
- Finally, calculate the Free Fall Energy using the formula above:
FFE = m*g*h
Inserting the values from above and solving the equation with the imputed values gives:
FFE = 50*9.81*40 = 19,620 (joules)
Example Problem #2:
Using the same process as example problem 1, we first define the needed variables outlined by the formula. In this case, the values are provided as:
mass of the falling object (kg) = 31
height of the fall (m) = 45
Entering these values into the formula or calculator above gives us:
FFE = 45*9.81*31 = 13,684.95 (joules)
