The sum of the kinetic energy and any potential energies of a system.
Page Contents |
|---|
Motivation for Concept
It is a fundamental postulate of physics that energy is not created or destroyed. The total energy of the universe is fixed, but it can be transformed from one type of energy to another. In order to make wide use of this principle, many types of energy must be considered (e.g. nuclear, chemical/electrostatic, gravitational, kinetic, etc.). To give a first illustration of the principle, however, introductory physics introduces three energy types that are related to the topics of mechanics: kinetic energy, gravitational potential energy, and elastic potential energy. Collectively, these three types of energy are classified as mechanical energy because of their role in the mechanics of macroscopic bodies.