Question

Which of the following physical quantity is a scalar quantity :
A) Mass
B) Force
C) Impulse of Force
D) Momentum

Answer 1

Hint:A quantity that can be measured is known as scalar quantity. A scalar quantity has only magnitude and not direction.

Complete step-by-step answer:
Step I:
Mass: It is the quantity of matter present in a body or an object. Therefore it will have only magnitude and the mass of a body will not change if the direction of the body changes. Therefore, it is a scalar quantity.
Step II:
Force is the product of mass and acceleration. Since acceleration is a vector quantity, so force will have both magnitude and direction. Since it has direction also, so force is a vector quantity.
Step III:
Impulse is a type of force that is applied to an object. It provides a vector change in the linear momentum in the same direction in which the force is applied. Since momentum and force both are vector quantities, so Impulse of Force is also a vector quantity.
Step IV:
Momentum is defined as the product of mass and the velocity of the object. Since velocity is related to the direction of the particle, so it is a vector quantity. Therefore momentum is also a vector quantity.

Since only mass is a scalar quantity, therefore option A is the right answer.

Note: It is to be noted that scalar quantities can have or can not have negative values. In case there is a negative value of a scalar quantity, then it will not affect its direction. One of the examples that can be taken is that temperature can have negative value, but it is a scalar quantity. So it will not have any direction.