Answer: 360 N/m
Explanation:
The elastic potential energy of a spring is given by
[tex]E=\frac{1}{2}kx^2[/tex]
where
k is the spring constant
x is the compression/stretching of the spring
In this problem, we know the elastic potential energy, E=16.2 J, and the compression, x=0.30 m. Therefore, we can re-arrange the formula to calculate the spring constant k:
[tex]k=\frac{2E}{x^2}=\frac{2\cdot 16.2 J}{(0.30 m)^2}=360 N/m[/tex]
