TOPICS

Circular motion
Newton’s law of gravitation
Satellite motion
Kepler’s laws
Concept of work, energy, and power
Mechanics of Rigid bodies – angular momentum and torque
Moment of a force about a point

CIRCULAR MOTION

The angular displacement of a body is a measure of the amount of rotation it

undergoes. If a point 𝑨 on a disk moves to a new position 𝑩 as the disk rotates about an
axis through its centre, the angular displacement is denoted by the angle 𝜃.

𝑠
𝜃 (𝑟𝑎𝑑) =
𝑅
where 𝑠 = length of arc described by the angle 𝜃 and 𝑅 is the radius of the disk. Also
note that
1 𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 = 360° = 2𝜋 𝑟𝑎𝑑
Example 1
One end of a rope is attached to a bucket of water and the other end is wrapped in
several turns around a circular drum of radius 12 cm. How many revolutions of the drum
are required to lift the bucket a vertical distance of 5 m?

1
1. Angular velocity
Angular velocity can be defined as the rate of change of angular displacement. If an
object rotates through an angle 𝜃 in a time 𝑡, its average angular velocity is given by

∆𝜃
𝜔= 𝑟𝑎𝑑/𝑠
∆𝑡
In units of revolutions per min, angular acceleration 𝜔 = 2𝜋𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑠/𝑠

Example 2

A bicycle of radius 33 cm rotates at 40 rpm. What distance will the bicycle travel in 30
s?

2. Angular acceleration
The rate of rotation of an object can increase or decrease. For example if the angular
velocity of a body changes from an initial value say 𝜔𝑖 to a final value 𝜔𝑓 in a time 𝑡, the
angular acceleration is given by

𝜔𝑓 − 𝜔𝑖
𝛼=
𝑡

𝜔𝑓 = 𝜔𝑖 + 𝛼𝑡

In terms of initial and final angular velocities, average angular velocity is

𝜔𝑓 + 𝜔𝑖
𝜔=
2

and angular displacement

𝜔𝑓 + 𝜔𝑖
𝜃 = 𝜔𝑡 = 𝑡
2
The equations of motion under constant angular acceleration are as follows.
𝜔𝑓 = 𝜔𝑖 + 𝛼𝑡

1
𝜃 = 𝜔𝑖 𝑡 + 𝛼𝑡 2
2

𝜔𝑓2 = 𝜔𝑖2 + 2𝛼𝜃

2
Linear velocity can be expressed as a function of the angular velocity by the expression
𝑣 = 𝜔𝑅

Examples

3. A flywheel increases its rate of rotation from 6 rev/s to 12 rev/s in 8 s. Find its angular
acceleration in rad/s2.

4. A flat disc rotating initially at 6 rad/s receives a constant acceleration of 2 rad/s2 for a
duration of 3 s. Find its angular displacement and its final angular velocity.

3. Tangential Acceleration
Assume a particle is moving in a horizontal circular path of radius R and that its linear
velocity changes from an initial value 𝑣𝑖 to a final value 𝑣𝑓 in a time 𝑡. Its tangential
acceleration is given by

𝑣𝑓 − 𝑣𝑖
𝑎𝑇 =
𝑡

The tangential acceleration is related to the angular acceleration by

𝑎𝑇 = 𝛼𝑅

4. Centripetal Acceleration
When a body moves in a circular path around a fixed point with constant angular speed,
it is said to be accelerating because the direction of the angular speed is changing. The
acceleration of the body is always directed inwards, towards the centre of the circular
path and is called the centripetal acceleration 𝑎. A centripetal force accelerates a body
by changing the direction of the body’s velocity without changing the body’s speed.

𝑣2
𝑎= ≡ 𝜔2 𝑟
𝑟

𝑚𝑣 2
𝐹𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑒𝑡𝑎𝑙 =
𝑟

where 𝑣 = linear velocity, 𝜔 = angular velocity, and 𝑟 = radius of curved path. The time it
takes for the body to complete a revolution (period) is given by

3
 2𝜋𝑅
𝑃=
𝑣

Examples

5. A 4 kg ball is swung in a horizontal circle by a cord 2 m long. Find the tension in the
cord if the period is 0.5 s.

6. A 2 kg body is tied to the end of a cord and whirled in a horizontal circle of radius 1.5
m. If the body makes three complete revolutions every second, determine its linear
speed and centripetal acceleration.

5. Moving around a flat curve/Moving around a banked curve

When a vehicle moves around a curved path on a level road, friction between the car
tires and the road provides the centripetal force required to prevent the car from
skidding of the road. Therefore the maximum static frictional force will determine the
maximum speed with which a car can negotiate a turn of a given radius.
On a flat curve,
𝐹𝑓𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 = 𝐹𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑒𝑡𝑎𝑙
𝑚𝑣 2
𝜇𝑅 =
𝑟
𝑚𝑣 2
 𝜇𝑚𝑔 =
𝑟
𝑣2
∴ 𝜇𝑔 =
𝑟
Example:
7. What is the maximum speed at which an automobile can negotiate a curve of radius
100 m without sliding if the coefficient of static friction is 0.7?

Banking the turn on a road means that the road is raised at an angle at that position.
Banking reduces or eliminates the need for frictional force to produce the centripetal
acceleration required to prevent a car from skidding off the road. This way, the wear and

4
tear on car tires caused by friction is reduced to a minimum. When a car is at rest or
moving slowly on a banked curve, the frictional force (between the car tires and the
road) acts up the incline. However, when the car begins to move and its speed
increases, the force of static friction gradually diminishes and kinetic friction (which is
directed down the incline) appears.

WHEN THE CAR IS IN MOTION AROUND THE CIRCULAR PATH/BANKED CURVE

(static frictional force=0)

The optimal banking angle is as given by

𝑣2
tan 𝜃 =
𝑔𝑟

On an unbanked road where friction is present, we have

𝑣= 𝜇𝑔𝑟

Example
8. The speed limit on a particular highway is 80 km/h. Find the optimum banking angle
for a curve of radius 300 m.