If a television with mass 15kg is lifted to a shelf of height 1.2 m, how much gravitational potential energy is added to the television.

The gravitational potential energy added to the television is 176.4 J

Explanation:

Conceptual analysis

Potential Energy (U) is the energy of a body located at a certain height (h) above the ground and is calculated as follows:

U = m × g × h  Formula (1)

U: Potential Energy in Joules (J)

m: mass in kg

g: acceleration due to gravity in m/s²

h: height in m  

Equivalences

1 N = 1 (kg×m)/s²

1 J = N × m

Known data

m = 15kg

g = 9.8 m/s²

h = 1.2m

Problem development

We replace data in formula (1)

U = 176.4 J

The gravitational potential energy added to the television is 176.4 J