Springs. Force, energy and Hooke’s law

A spring is a flexible and elastic mechanical device used to store elastic potential energy and apply force when deformed. It consists of a strip, wire or rod of elastic material, such as steel or metal, that has a coiled, spiral or zigzag shape. When a spring is compressed or stretched, it stores potential energy in the form of elastic deformation, and when released, that energy is converted into kinetic energy.

Springs can have different shapes and configurations depending on their specific use. Some common examples include compression springs, extension springs and torsion springs.

These devices are governed by Hooke’s Law, which states the linear relationship between the force applied on a spring and the resulting deformation. Hooke’s Law is stated as F = -kx, where F represents the applied force, k is the spring constant (also known as the elastic constant) and x is the deformation experienced by the spring. The equation indicates that the force is proportional to the deformation and acts in the opposite direction to it. Strictly speaking, Hooke’s Law is a valid approximation as long as the deformation is small and the spring material maintains its linear elastic behavior. However, at larger deformations, other factors such as plasticity and fatigue can affect the spring response.

Springs have a huge variety of applications: automotive suspensions, watches, mattresses, automatic doors and many more.