Difference Between Force and Pressure Explained

Force and pressure are two quantities in physics and they are used to govern the motion of an object. The Difference between Force and Pressure is that force causes an object to change its motion while pressure is the measure of force that is applied. This force is applied perpendicular to the surface. Another Difference between Force and Pressure is their units.

Force: Definition and Examples.

Force causes the motion of an object to change if it is not being opposed by another force. When force is applied to any object that has mass, its velocity changes and the object would start moving. If it is at rest at the moment, it will accelerate. In simple terms, push and pull are two forces. A Difference between Force and Pressure is that Force is represented by F and Pressure is represented by P. Force is governed by Newton’s Laws that explain how force acts on an object.

According to the second law, net force that is acting on any object is equal to the rate of change in momentum. When the mass remains constant over time, the acceleration is directly proportional to force and is indirectly proportional to mass. This means if the mass increases, the acceleration will decrease and if the force increase, acceleration will also increase.

There are different kinds of forces that can be classified into two groups; fundamental forces and non-fundamental forces. Nuclear force is a fundamental force that exists between subatomic particle and is only applied at short distances. Gravitational force is present between masses. Electromagnetic force is present between electric charges. Nuclear forces may be weak or strong. All other forces such as friction and tension arise from these fundamental forces. Force is measured in Newton.

Pressure: Definition and Examples.

Pressure is a quantity used in thermodynamics and it refers to the force that is applied perpendicular to an object. Different units are used for pressure. The SI unit is Pascal. Other than that, Newton per square meter is also used because pressure can be explained as force applied per square meter.

There are different types of pressure. One of them is Fluid pressure which refers to the compressive stress that is present in a fluid. Fluid pressure maybe in open condition, such as in a pond or in closed condition, such as in a water pipe.

When a fluid is forced to stop moving, it exerts a pressure that is called stagnation pressure. When it is forced to come to standstill, the stagnation pressure becomes very high. An ideal gas also has pressure which is inversely related to volume and directly proportional to the quantity of gas and temperature.

Summary of Difference Between Force and Pressure:

• Force is something that changes the motion of an object while pressure is the measure of force exerted per square meter.
• The Difference between Force and Pressure is in their units, which are Newton for force and Pascal for Pressure.
• The symbols are also different, F for force and P for pressure.
• There are different kinds of forces and pressure.