Difference Between Kinetic Energy and Potential Energy

Thekey difference between kinetic energy and potential energyis that kinetic energy is the energy an object possesses because of its state of motion, whereas potential energy is the energy an object possesses because of its position of rest.

能量以多种形式存在于宇宙中，例如太阳能，thermal energy，电能，磁能，重力和化学能。所有能量基本上都被分为两个类别，称为动能和势能。

CONTENTS

1.Overview and Key Difference
2.What is Kinetic Energy
3.What is Potential Energy
4.Kinetic Energy vs Potential Energy in Tabular Form
5.Summary – Kinetic Energy vs Potential Energy

What is Kinetic Energy?

The kinetic energy of an object can be defined as the energy that arises due to the motion of that object. It is the work we need to accelerate an object having a certain mass from its rest state to a particular速度state. During the acceleration of the object, it gets kinetic energy and maintains it (at the same level) until the speed changes. In contrast, the object does the same amount of work during decelerating its speed from that particular velocity to the rest state.

We can give the kinetic energy of a non-rotating object having a mass of “m” that is moving at a speed of “v” through a mathematical expression as follows:

E =（1/2）MV²

However, the above equation is important when speed “v” is a very small value compared to the speed of light. The unit of measurement for kinetic energy is joule, but the English unit for the measurement of kinetic energy is “foot-pound”.

What is Potential Energy?

势能是一个物体所拥有的能量，因为它具有静止性。我们还可以命名IT恢复能量。所有对象都有趋势返回其休息位置，因为势能对任何位移力作用。这是因为地球的引力。例如，如果没有引力力，在空中扔的球将永远不会回到地球并继续前进。我们可以将势能缩写为PE。

The most common types of potential energy includegravitational potential energy, elastic potential energy在电场中电荷的延长弹簧，电荷的电势能等。势能测量单位是焦耳（J）。

Chemical potential energy is related to the structural arrangement of atoms and molecules. This arrangement forms as a result of chemical bonds that occurs within the molecules. This chemical potential energy can transform into different energy forms during chemical reactions.

What is the Difference Between Kinetic Energy and Potential Energy?

We can categorize all forms of energies basically into two classes as kinetic energy and potential energy. In other words, Kinetic Energy and Potential Energy are the two states of energy. The key difference between kinetic energy and potential energy is that kinetic energy is the energy an object possesses because of its state of motion, whereas potential energy is the energy an object possesses because of its position of rest.

The following infographic presents the difference between kinetic energy and potential energy in tabular form.

Summary – Kinetic Energy vs Potential Energy

所有能量基本上都被分为两个类别，称为动能和势能。动能和势能之间的关键区别在于，动能是一个物体由于其运动状态而拥有的能量，而势能是一个物体由于其静止位置而具有的能量。

Reference:

1. “What Is Potential Energy? – Definition, FORMULA, EXAMPLES, Types and FAQs.”BYJUS，Byju's，2021年5月4日。

Image Courtesy:

1. “Potential Kinetic energy” By Benjamin J. Burger – Own work(CC BY-SA 4.0)via Commons Wikimedia

2. “Springs 009”(CC BY-SA 3.0)via Commons Wikimedia