Workbook_102
Uploaded by
jijage9595Workbook_102
Uploaded by
jijage9595Open Rubric
Dear student,
This workbook contains exercises dealing with the study material covered in the study guide. The answers, and in
some cases full solutions, are given at the end.
You are welcome to contact the lecturer for queries about any of these exercises!
2
APM1612/102/3
Study unit 3 EXERCISES
3.1 Two particles of masses 1 = 2 and 2 = are located at the points 1 = 3 − 2 and 2 = −4 + 6 Find the
centre of mass of the system.
3.2 Three particles of masses 1 = 4, 2 = 3 and 3 = 2 are located at the points 1 = 2 + , 2 = −5 and
3 = −3 − 4, respectively. Find the centre of mass of the system.
3.3 Find the centre of mass of the system consisting of four particles of masses 1 = 2, 2 = 3 = and
4 = 2 located at the points 1 = 3 − 3, 2 = 2 + 2 + 2 3 = 4 − 4 − 4 and 4 = 2 + , respectively.
3.4 Particles of masses 1 = 1, 2 = 2 and 3 = 4 are located at the points (1 1 1 ) = (2 −1 6),
(2 2 2 ) = (0 0 5) and (3 3 3 ) = (3 −2 1) respectively. Find the centre of mass of the system.
3.5 Particles of masses 1 = , 2 = 2, 3 = and 4 = 2 are located at the points (1 1 1 ) = (1 0 1),
(2 2 2 ) = (−1 0 3) (3 3 3 ) = (−2 4 −1) and (4 4 4 ) = (1 1 1) respectively. Find the centre of
mass of the system.
3.6 Find the centre of mass of a system consisting of particles with masses 5 3 and situated at points (0 0 2)
(2 1 2) and (−7 −1 0) respectively.
3.7 Find the centre of mass of a system consisting of particles with masses 10 1 and 1 with the position vectors − −
+ + and −10 respectively.
3.8 Identical particles of mass have the position vectors = 2 + 3 = 5 + 2 = 4 + 7 = 5 Find the
centre of mass.
3.9 Particles of mass , 2, 3 and 4 respectively have position vectors and as in the previous Exercise 3.8.
Find the centre of mass.
3.10 A particle of mass is placed at the position and another particle of mass 3 is placed at 4. Find the centre of
mass of the two objects together. Where should a particle of mass 2 be placed to ensure that the centre of mass
has the position vector 5 + ?
3.11 Particles of mass , 2 and 3 are placed at points (1 0), (4 0) and (5 0) on the -plane, respectively. Where
is the centre of mass of the system? Where should a fourth particle of mass 4 be placed to move the centre of mass
to (3 0)?
3.12 Particles of mass and 2 have the position vectors − + and 3 + , respectively. Find their centre of mass.
Show that it is not possible to place a new particle at the position 2 + and have the new centre of mass at the origin.
3.13 Three particles, all of the same mass are placed at the points + − and − + 2 respectively. Is it possible
to add a fourth particle at − and have the origin of the new four-particle system at the origin? If the answer is yes,
what should the mass of the fourth particle be?
3.14 Three particles, with masses 2 and are placed at the points (2 0) (−1 −1) and (2 4), respectively. Is it
possible to add a fourth particle at the point (−2 −2) and have the origin of the new four-particle system at the
origin? If the answer is yes, what should the mass of the fourth particle be?
3.15 Three particles with masses and are attached to points = (0 0), = (2 0) and = ( 4),
respectively. Assuming that the centre of mass of the system is at the point ( ), show that 2 = 3 .
3.16 Particles of mass 2 and 3 have the position vectors + and 3 + + 2, respectively.
(a) Find their centre of mass.
(b) Show that it is not possible to place a new particle, whatever its mass at the position 2 + and have the new
centre of mass at the origin.
(c) At what position + + should a new particle of mass be positioned to have the new centre of mass at
the origin?
3.17 Particles of mass and 2 have the position vectors − + + and 3 + , respectively.
(a) Find the centre of mass of the system formed by the two particles.
(b) Is it possible to place a new particle at the position 2 − + and have the new centre of mass of the three-particle
system at the origin? Assume that we are allowed to select the mass of the new particle any way we want. Justify
your answer!
3.18 Particles of mass , 2 and 4 are placed at points (2 0), (−2 1) and (2 −5) on the -plane, respectively.
3
(a) Where is the centre of mass of the system?
(b) Where should a fourth particle of mass 4 be placed to move the centre of mass to (1 0)?.
3.19 Particles of mass 2 and 3 have the position vectors 2 + and + + , respectively.
(a) Find their centre of mass.
(b) Show that it is not possible to place a new particle, whatever its mass is, at the position 2 + and have the
new centre of mass at the origin.
(c) At what position + + should a new particle of mass be positioned to have the new centre of mass at
the origin?
3.20 Four particles, with masses 2 2 2 and are positioned such that they form the four corners of a square.
Where is the centre of mass of the system, if the square is positioned on the positive axis such that the lightest
particle is at the origin and the sides are parallel to the positive and axes?
3.21 Four particles, with masses and 4 form the four corners of a square with sides of length 2 Select
a coordinate system in which two of the sides of the square go along the positive and axes. What are the
coordinates of the centre of mass?
3.22 Four particles, with masses and 4 form the four corners of a square with sides of length 2 Select a
coordinate system in which the centre of the square is at origin, all the sides of the square are parallel to either the
or the axis, and the heaviest particle is at point ( ). What are the coordinates of the centre of mass?
3.23 Assume that eight particles are situated such that they form the corners of a cube with sides of length . One of the
particles has mass 2 all the others have mass 1 Find the coordinates of the centre of mass, if the coordinate system
is selected such that the heaviest particle is at the origin, the cube is in the region where ≥ 0 ≥ 0 and ≥ 0
and three edges of the cube go along the and axes.
3.24 Find the coordinates of the centre of mass in Exercise 3.23, if the coordinate system is selected such that the heaviest
particle is at the origin, the cube is in the region where ≤ 0 ≤ 0 and ≤ 0 and three edges of the cube go
along the and axes.
3.25 Find the coordinates of the centre of mass in Exercise 3.23, if the coordinate system is selected such that the centre of
the cube is at the
¡ origin,¢ all the edges of the cube are parallel to either the or axes, and the heaviest particle
is at the point 2 2 2
3.26 Three particles of equal mass are situated at the corners of an equilateral triangle. Where is the centre of mass of the
system? Remember that an equilateral triangle is one with all sides of the same length – for a given length of one
side, you can find the height of such a triangle by applying Pythagoras’ theorem!
3.27 Show that in a two-particle system, the ratio of the distances of the two particles from the centre of mass of the
system is the inverse of the ratio of their masses.
3.28 Assume that we are given a system of particles in a 3-dimensional coordinate system. Prove that the addition of a
new particle to the system of particles moves the centre of mass from the old centre of mass towards the position of
the new particle.
Study unit 4 EXERCISES
4.1 Three particles, all with the same mass are situated on the -plane. At a time particle 1 is at − particle
2 at − and particle 3 is at − 3 The velocities of the particles are − − 2 − 3 and respectively. Particle 1
has an acceleration of − particle 2 has a acceleration of + and particle 3 has the acceleration − Calculate the
values of the following quantities at time :
(a) The position vector of the centre of mass of the system consisting of the three particles.
(b) The velocity vector of the centre of mass of the system.
(c) The acceleration vector of the centre of mass of the system.
4.2 At a given time, three particles have masses 4 2 and 3 position vectors − − − and 2 − 3 velocities
+ 2 2 − 3 and , and accelerations of − + 3 + + and −5 respectively. Find the position, the velocity
and the acceleration of the centre of mass of the system.
4
APM1612/102/3
4.3 Car 1 with a mass of 2400 kg is moving along a straight stretch of road at 80 km/h. It is followed by car 2 with a
mass of 1600 kg moving at 60 km/h. How fast is the centre of mass of the two cars moving?
4.4 A car with a mass of 1500 kg is moving along a straight stretch of road. It is followed by a truck with a mass of
10 000 kg. At a certain moment, the car is 100 meters ahead of the truck. At that moment, the car travels at 120 km/h,
while the truck is moving at 60 km/h. Also, at that particular moment, the car is speeding up, at an acceleration of 10
2 and the truck is slowing down, with an acceleration of 1 2 Find the position, velocity and acceleration of
the centre of mass at that moment. Describe the motion of the centre of mass: In what direction is it moving? Is its
speed increasing, decreasing or constant?
4.5 Three particles with masses 4, 4 and 8 are at rest at position −2 + 3, − 2 and 4 + 2, respectively.
(a) Find the centre of mass of the system.
(b) Find the acceleration of the centre of mass when the force −6 acts on the first particle, the force 6 + 6 on the
second particle, and the force 14 on the third particle.
4.6 Three particles with masses , 2 and 4 are at rest at positions − + + , 2 − and 4 + , respectively.
(a) Find the centre of mass of the system.
(b) Find the acceleration of the centre of mass when the external force −2 acts on the first particle, the external
force 2 + 3 on the second particle, and the external force 6 − on the third particle.
4.7 Two particles and are initially at rest, the distance apart. Assume that has mass and has mass .
Further, assume that and attract each other with a constant force . No external forces act on the system.
(a) Describe the motion of the centre of mass of the system formed by the two particles.
(b) At what distance from ’s original position do the particles collide?
4.8 Two particles and are initially at rest, 1 m apart. has a mass of 010 kg and a mass of 030 kg. and
attract each other with a constant force of 1 × 10−2 N. No external forces act on the system.
(a) Describe the motion of the centre of mass.
(b) At what distance from ’s original position do the particles collide?
4.9 An isolated particle of mass is moving along the -axis when it suddenly explodes into two fragments of masses
4 and 4 . An instant later, the smaller fragment is the distance above the -axis. Where is the larger fragment
1 3
at this instant?
4.10 Two particles, both with mass are situated on the -plane. At time = 0 Particle 1 has position vector
and Particle 2 has position vector − Particle 1 moves with constant velocity − + and Particle 2 with constant
velocity +
(a) Find the position and velocity of the centre of mass of the system at time = 0
(b) Find the position and velocity of the centre of mass of the system just before the particles collide with each other.
4.11 Two people, with masses 80 kg and 60 kg, stand on a slippery surface. Initially they stand next to each other, but then
they push each other away. If the 80 kg person moves a distance of 1 metre, how far does the 60 kg person move?
4.12 Give an example of a two-particle system in the plane (by specifying the masses, positions and velocities of
particle 1 and particle 2), such that the velocity of the centre of mass of the system is zero, but the particles move in
relation to each other.
Study unit 5 EXERCISES
5.1 Four particles, with masses 2 2 and 2 are situated at the corners of a massless square with sides of length
. Find the centre of mass of the system, and explain where on the system the centre of mass lies.
5.2 Assume that eight particles are situated such that they form the corners of a cube with sides of length . One of the
particles has mass 3 all the others have mass Where on the cube is the centre of mass?
5.3 Three particles of equal mass are situated at the corners of an equilateral triangle. Where on the triangle is the centre
of mass of the system?
5.4 The density of a thin rod of length varies with the distance from one end as () = 0 2 . Find the centre of
mass.
5
5.5 Four thin, uniform rods with masses 2, 3, 3 and 3 all of the same length are joined together to form the
four edges of a square. Where is the centre of mass of the object?
5.6 Four thin rods, with masses 2 2, 2 and 3 form the sides of a square. Where is the centre of mass of the
system? Where is it in relation to the square?
5.7 Two uniform squares of sheet metal of dimensions × are joined at a right angle along one edge. One of the
squares is four times heavier than the other.
(a) Find the centre of mass using a coordinate system where the origin is on the left end of the joint between the two
squares in the picture above. Copy the picture above and draw in it the coordinate system!
(b) Find the centre of mass using a coordinate system where the origin is in the middle of the heavier square,
assumed to be the bottom one in the picture above. Copy the picture above and draw in it the coordinate system!
(c) Prove that the two choices of coordinate systems described above do give the same point on the object as the
centre of mass.
(d) What kind of a coordinate system would be the best choice for this object, to make the calculations as easy as
possible? Justify your answer!
5.8 Two uniform squares of sheet metal of dimensions × are joined at a right angle along one edge. One of the
squares is three times heavier than the other.
(a) Find the centre of mass using a coordinate system where the origin is on the left end of the joint between the two
squares in the picture above.
(b) Find the centre of mass using a coordinate system where the origin is in the middle of the heavier square,
assumed to be the bottom one in the picture above.
5.9 Two uniform squares of sheet metal of dimensions × are joined at a right angle along one edge. One of the
squares has twice the mass of the other. Find the centre of mass.
5.10 Three uniform square pieces of sheet metal are joined along their edges so as to form three of the sides of a cube.
The dimensions of the squares are × Where is the centre of mass of the object?
5.11 A uniform circular disc with radius and mass has two particles attached to it. One of the particles has mass 2
and is attached at the centre of the disc, and the other particle has mass and is attached at a point at the rim of the
disc. Where is the centre of mass of the object?
5.12 In order to balance the wheel of an automobile, a piece of metal is attached to the rim of the wheel. Assume that a
piece of 20 g at a distance of 20 cm from the centre of a wheel of 30 kg balances the wheel is perfectly, i.e. the centre
of the wheel coincides with the centre of mass. How far from the centre of the wheel was the centre of mass before
6
APM1612/102/3
the balancing?
5.13 The Earth has a mass of 598 × 1024 kg, and the moon has a mass of 736 × 1022 kg. The (average) distance
from the Moon to the Earth is 382 × 108 m. How far from the centre of the Earth is the centre of mass of the
system which consists of the Earth and the Moon? Express the answer as a fraction of the Earth’s radius (which is
= 637 × 106 m).
5.14 A disc with radius has been removed from a circular metal plate with radius 2, as shown below. Find the centre
of mass.
5.15 Find the centre of mass of a uniform, circular disc with radius , which has in it a circular hole with radius 2 The
centre of the whole is at a distance 2 from the centre of the disc.
5.16 A uniform lamina consists of a disc with radius . A circular hole with radius 4 is drilled into the disc. The centre
of the hole is 2 from the centre of the disc. Find the centre of mass.
5.17 Calculate the centre of mass of the lamina shown below. The hole is a circle with its centre at (5 2) and radius 1.
Y
4
3
1 X
0 2 7
5.18 A 2 × 2 square has been cut off from one corner of a 8 × 10 rectangle made from thin uniform metal. Find the centre
of mass of the remaining object. Remember to specify your coordinate system! In addition to giving the coordinate
position of the centre of mass, describe also where on the rectangle it lies.
5.19 A 3 × 3 square has been cut off from one corner of a 6 × 10 rectangle made from thin uniform metal. Find the centre
of mass of the remaining object. Remember to specify your coordinate system! In addition to giving the coordinate
position of the centre of mass, describe also where on the rectangle it lies.
Study unit 6 EXERCISES
6.1 Find the centre of mass of the triangle shown below by direct integration,
(a) by slicing it into horizontal slices; a
(b) by slicing it into vertical slices.
a
In each case, you must select an appropriate coordinate system.
6.2 Find the centre of mass of a uniform lamina bounded by the curve
= 2 − 2 + 6
and the -axis in the interval 0 ≤ ≤ 2.
√
6.3 Find the centre of mass of a uniform lamina bounded by = 18 and the -axis in the interval 0 ≤ ≤ 2.
6.4 Find the centre of mass of a uniform lamina bounded by the curve
¡ 2 ¢
− 2
=
and the -axis between = − and =
7
6.5 Find the centre of mass of the solid of revolution formed when the curve = 4 − between = 0 and = 2 is
rotated about the -axis.
6.6 Find the centres of mass of the solids of revolution formed by rotating the curves given below about the -axis. In
each question the region is indicated.
(a) = 2 0 ≤ ≤ 8 ¡(6,0,0) ¢
(b) = + 1 0 ≤ ≤ 6 81 19 0 0
2
(c) = 2√ 0 ≤ ≤ 10¡ ¢
(d) = 2√ 0 ≤ ≤ 4 ¡2 23 0 ¢0
(e) = 16 − 2 0 ≤ ≤ 4 ¡ 32 0 0¢
(f) = 2 1
1 ≤ ≤ 2 97 0 0 ¡ ¢
(g) =
0 ≤ ≤ ¡ (This ¢ is a cone with radius and height .) 34
(h) = 2 + 1 0 ≤ ≤ 1 58
6.7 Find the centre of mass of the solid of revolution formed by rotating the curve 2 = 4 about the -axis in the
interval 0 ≤ ≤ , where and are arbitrary real numbers.
6.8 Calculate the centre of mass of the solid of revolution formed by rotating the area bounded by the lines = 0, = 0
and = 2 − about the -axis. [Please note that the curve is here rotated about the –axis, not the –axis! The
method of subsection 6.5 does still apply, but with the roles of and axes switched around.]
6.9 A solid semicircle of uniform sheet metal has a radius . Find the centre of mass.
6.10 Find the centre of mass of a uniform pyramid of height , whose base is a square with edges of lengths .
Study unit 7 EXERCISES
7.1 A uniform hollow hemisphere with mass and radius is kept vertical, with one point on the rim touching a
smooth table top.
Y
X
P
The hemisphere is then released, and allowed to slide frictionlessly along the table top. If the original position of
is assumed to be at the origin of the coordinate system, at what coordinate point will be when the hemisphere
finally comes to rest?
7.2 A uniform circular disc with radius and mass has two particles attached to it. One of the particles has mass
2 and is attached at the centre of the disc, and the other particle has mass and is attached at a point at the rim
of the disc. Where is the centre of mass of the object? (Note: Remember to draw a sketch of the object, and your
coordinate system!)
7.3 A uniform circular disk with radius and mass has a particle of mass attached to it, at a distance from its
centre. Where is the centre of mass of the object?
7.4 Suppose we take the semicircular rod described in Example 6.6 and we add to it a straight rod of length 2
connecting the ends of the semicircular rod. Where is the centre of mass of this system?
7.5 A cubical box, open at the top, with edge length 40, is constructed from metal plate of uniform density and
negligible thickness. Find the coordinates of the centre of mass of the box, if one of the lower corners of the cube
lies at the origin of the coordinate system, and the edges are parallel to the positive - - and -axes.
7.6 A uniform lamina is made from two discs with radii and , placed side to side and joined together at the rim.
Where is the centre of mass?
7.7 An object made from uniform material consists of a solid cube with sides of length with a hemisphere with radius
2 scooped out from the middle of one side. Where is the centre of mass of the object?
7.8 A uniform, solid hemisphere has radius . A region is scooped out from the middle of it in the shape of a hemisphere
with radius ( ) such that the Find the centre of mass of the remaining solid.
7.9 The uniform solid shown below consists of a hemisphere of radius on top of a cylinder of height with a base
8
APM1612/102/3
radius . Find the distance of the centre of mass from the base of the cylinder.
7.10 The solid, uniform object shown below consists of a hemisphere of radius on top of a cone of height with a base
radius .
(a) Find the centre of mass.
(b) Find the ratio : if the centre of mass is on the face common to both components.
7.11 Two people, one with a mass of 60 kg and the other one with a mass of 80 kg, stand on a smooth, frictionless surface
holding a pole with a length of 10 m and negligible mass. Starting from the ends of the pole, they pull themselves
along the pole until they meet. How far will the 60 kg person move?
7.12 A solid ball of mass and with radius is placed inside a hollow ball of the same mass and inner radius 2.
(a) Where is the centre of mass of the system?
(b) The combination is placed at rest on a tabletop in the position shown below on the left. The ball is released, rolls
back and forth inside, and finally comes to rest at the bottom of the hollow ball, as shown in below on the right.
What is the displacement of the hollow ball during this process?
7.13 Two people, with masses 120 kg and 80 kg, stand on a slippery surface. Initially they stand next to each other, but
then they push each other away. If the 120 kg person moves a distance of 1 metre, how far does the 80 kg person
move? (Hint: How does the centre of mass move?)
7.14 A 75 kg man climbs the stairs from the ground to the 20th floor of a building, a height of 60 m. How far
does the Earth recoil in the opposite direction? (The mass of the Earth is = 598 × 1024 kg and its radius,
= 64 × 106 )
Study unit 8 EXERCISES
8.1 Calculate
¡ the following
¢ vector products:
(a) 3 + − × (2)
¡ ¢
(b) × ×
¡ ¢
(c) × ×
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
(d) + × + − 2
¡ ¢
(e) ((2) × (2)) × 2 − −
8.2 A force = − + 2 acts through a point with position vector 2 + . Find the moment of about the point
with position vector − 2. Then find the magnitude of the moment.
8.3 Two forces = − − and = 2 + act at which has the position vector + 2. Find the moments of (i) ,
(ii) and (iii) + about the origin.
8.4 A force = − acts at point with position vector Find the moment of about the point:
(a) with position vector −;
(b) with position vector −2;
9
(c) with position vector − 2
8.5 A force acts parallel to the -plane and has moments
3 and − 2
about the origin when it acts at the points
− 2 and + 3
respectively. Find the force .
8.6 A force acts parallel to the -plane and has moments
2 and − 4
about the origin when it acts at the points
− and 2 + 3
respectively. Find the force .
8.7 A force acts parallel to the -plane. Calculate the magnitude of the force, if has the moment 2 about the
origin when it acts at the point − , and 2 has the moment −9 about the origin when it acts at the point
+ .
Study unit 9 EXERCISES
9.1 A particle with mass moves on the -plane with velocity 30 + 60 as it passes through the point 3 − 4
(a) What is its angular momentum relative to the origin at this moment?
(b) What is its angular momentum relative to the point with position vector −2 − 2 at this same moment?
Study unit 10 EXERCISES
10.1 The masses and coordinates of four particles on the -plane are as follows:
1 = 50 at (1 1 ) = (2 2)
2 = 25 at (2 2 ) = (0 4)
3 = 25 at (3 3 ) = (−3 −3)
4 = 30 at (4 4 ) = (−2 4)
What is the moment of inertia of this system about the (a) -axis, (b) -axis, and (c) -axis?
10.2 The masses and coordinates of four particles on the -plane are as follows:
1 = at (1 1 ) = (1 1)
2 = 2 at (2 2 ) = (0 1)
3 = 3 at (3 3 ) = (−1 −1)
4 = at (4 4 ) = (1 0)
What is the moment of inertia of this system about the (a) -axis, (b) -axis, and (c) -axis?
10.3 The masses and coordinates of four particles on the -plane are as follows:
1 = 2 at (1 1 ) = (−4 5)
2 = 3 at (2 2 ) = (2 −1)
3 = 4 at (3 3 ) = (−1 −3)
4 = 2 at (4 4 ) = (1 2)
What is the moment of inertia of this system about the (a) -axis, (b) -axis, and (c) -axis?
10.4 On the -plane, particles with masses 2 are situated at points (0 −), (0 ) and (− 0). What should the
mass of a particle situated at point ( ) be, so that the moment of inertia of the whole system about the -axis
equals = 82 ?
10.5 Find the moment of inertia of a uniform ring with mass 2 and radius 4 about an axis through its centre and
perpendicular to its plane.
10.6 Find the moment of inertia of a uniform rod of length and mass about an axis perpendicular to the rod and
through its centre
10
APM1612/102/3
10.7 Find the moment of inertia of a uniform rod of length 4 and mass 4 about an axis perpendicular to the rod and
through its centre
10.8 Find the moment of inertia of a rod of length and mass about an axis perpendicular to the rod, through one end
of the rod.
10.9 Find the moment of inertia of a rod of length 4 and mass 2 about an axis perpendicular to the rod, through one
end of the rod.
10.10 A rod has length 2 and mass Let denote the midpoint of the rod. Use the parallel axis theorem to find the
moments of inertia for the following axes of rotation:
(a) An axis perpendicular to the rod, through point
(b) An axis perpendicular to the rod, through a point midway between and
(c) An axis perpendicular to the rod, through a point at the distance 4 from towards
10.11 A rod has length and mass 4 Let denote the midpoint of the rod. Use the parallel axis theorem to find the
moments of inertia for the following axes of rotation:
(a) An axis perpendicular to the rod, through point
(b) An axis perpendicular to the rod, through a point midway between and
10.12 Find the moment of inertia of a uniform ring with mass and radius about an axis perpendicular to its plane,
through a point on its rim.
10.13 A rigid body consists of two particles of mass connected by a rod of length and negligible mass.
(a) What is the moment of inertia of this body about an axis through its centre, perpendicular to the rod?
(b) What is the moment of inertia about an axis through one end of the rod and parallel to the axis in (a)?
10.14 Show that the axis about which a given rigid body has its smallest moment of inertia must pass through its centre of
mass. (Hint: Use the parallel axes theorem.)
10.15 Four identical particles of mass are placed at the respective corners of an × square and held there by four
massless rods, which form the sides of the square. What is the moment of inertia of this rigid body about an axis
(a) that passes through the midpoints of opposite sides and lies in the plane of the square, (b) that passes through
the midpoint of one of the sides and is perpendicular to the plane of the square, and (c) that lies on the plane of the
square and passes through two diagonally opposite particles? .
10.16 Consider a rectangular lamina with = 2 and = 2 If the mass of the lamina is , find the
moment of inertia when the lamina rotates about the following axes:
(a) an axis through the midpoints of sides and
(b) an axis along the side
(c) an axis perpendicular to the lamina and through its centre
(d) an axis perpendicular to the lamina, through corner
10.17 A rigid body consists of two particles of mass attached to the ends of a massless rigid rod of length 2. The
body rotates with an angular velocity about a perpendicular axis through the center of the rod. Find the angular
momentum.
10.18 Find the following moments of inertia:
(a) A rod of length 2 and mass , rotating about an axis perpendicular to the rod, through end point
(b) A rod of length 2 and mass , with a particle of mass attached at its centre and a particle of mass 2
attached at end rotating about an axis perpendicular to the rod, through end point
(c) A rod of length 2 and and negligible mass, with a particle of mass attached at its centre and a particle of
mass 2 attached at end rotating about an axis perpendicular to the rod, through end point
10.19 Pendulum 1 consists of a rod of length 2 and mass with a thin disc of mass and radius attached rigidly
at its centre to the rod’s end point and pendulum 2 consists of a similar rod with a thin square of mass and sides
of length 2 attached rigidly at its centre to the rod’s end point Find the moments of inertia of the two pendulums,
when rotation is for an axis through point of the rod, perpendicular to the plane of the disc / the square.
11
Study unit 11 EXERCISES
11.1 Find the moment of inertia of a thin, uniform rod with mass , bent into the shape of a semicircle of radius
rotating about its diameter.
11.2 Find the moment of inertia of a thick cylinder with mass , inner radius 1 and outer radius 2 rotating about its
axis.
11.3 Find the moment of inertia of a lamina with mass bounded by a function = () and the -axis, between
= and = rotating about the -axis.
11.4 Show that the moment of inertia of a solid cylinder of mass and radius about its axis is 12 2 .
11.5 Two thin discs, both with mass and radius , are attached as shown below to form a rigid body. What is the
moment of inertia of the system about an axis perpendicular to the plane of the discs, through the centre of one of
them?
√
11.6 Calculate the moment of inertia of a triangular, uniform lamina with sides of lengths , and 2, and mass ,
about an axis along its longest side.
11.7 Find the moment of inertia of a square lamina, with sides of length 2 and mass , about an axis passing diagonally
through the square.
11.8 Find the moment of inertia of a thick hollow sphere, with an inner radius 1 and an outer radius 2 and mass ,
about an axis through its centre.
11.9 Find the moment of inertia when the lamina bounded by the function = 2 + 2 and the -axis, between = 0
and = 3 rotates about the -axis. (Hint: slice the lamina into thin rods, perpendicular to the -axis!)
11.10 Find the moment of inertia when the lamina bounded by the function = 5 + 2 and the -axis, between = 0
and = 3 rotates about the -axis. Use and for the density and mass of the lamina, respectively, and express
the final results in terms of
11.11 Find the moment of inertia of a square lamina, with sides of length 2 and mass about an axis passing diagonally
through the square.
Study unit 12 EXERCISES
In the problems that follow, you may use the table on page 198 of the study guide for the moments of inertia.
12.1 A pendulum consists of a massless rod of length , with a disc with mass and radius attached from its centre to
one end of the rod. The other end of the rod is pivoted so that the pendulum swings freely.
(a) Find the moment of inertia of the pendulum.
(b) When the pendulum forms the angle with the vertical, what is the magnitude of the moment of the gravitational
force about the pivoting point?
12.2 Two masses and ( ) are connected by a light string over a pulley with a mass and a radius . The
pulley has the form of a disc fixed so that it can only rotate about its centre The system starts from rest. Find ̈,
the upward acceleration of and the downward acceleration of .
M m
12.3 A disc–shaped object is made of a non–uniform material. Its radius is and it is free to rotate about an axis
through its centre. If a force of magnitude applied tangentially at the edge of the object produces the angular
12
APM1612/102/3
acceleration , what is its moment of inertia for rotation about that axis?
12.4 A uniform rod of mass and length 4 rotates in a vertical plane about an axis through a point at a distance
from , the centre of mass of the rod. If it performs small oscillations, show that the period is given by
s
42 + 32
2
3
12.5 A circular disc with mass and radius performs small oscillations about a horizontal axis which is tangential to
the disc at a point on the rim of the disc.
2
(a) Show that the moment of inertia about is given by = 54
q
(b) Show that the period is 2 5 4
12.6 A uniform disc with mass and radius is mounted on a fixed horizontal axle through its centre. A block with
mass hangs from a massless cord that is wrapped around the rim of the disc. Find the acceleration of the falling
block, the angular acceleration of the disc, and the tension in the cord. The cord does not slip, and there is no friction
at the axle.
12.7 A rod of length 2 and with a mass rotates about a horizontal axis through a point at its one end. Taking
to be the angle between the rod and the vertical through , measured counterclockwise, derive an expression for
the angular acceleration ̈ in terms of . What is the approximate equation of motion if the rod performs small
oscillations about the equilibrium position?
12.8 A wheel with a radius is mounted on a frictionless horizontal axis. A massless cord is wrapped around the wheel
and attached to an object with mass that slides on a frictionless surface inclined at an angle of 20◦ with the
horizontal, as shown below. The object accelerates down the incline with acceleration . What is the rotational
inertia of the wheel about its axis of rotation?
20o
12.9 The figure below shows two blocks, each with a mass , suspended from the ends of a rigid, massless rod of length
1 + 2 which is balanced on top of a pivot. The rod is held in the horizontal position shown in the figure and then
released. Calculate the accelerations of the two blocks as they start to move.
l1 l2
m m
12.10 Two blocks with masses and 2 are connected by a light string which passes without slipping over a pulley
with a mass and a radius . The pulley rotates about its centre The system starts from rest. Compare the
accelerations of the blocks, (a) if the pulley is approximately a ring, (b) if the pulley is approximately a disc.
12.11 Two men, each with a mass 2 are standing at the centre of a uniform, horizontal beam with a mass 1 which is
rotating at a uniform angular velocity about a vertical axis through its centre. If the two men walk out to the ends
of the beam and 1 is then the angular velocity, show that
1
1 =
1 + 62
12.12 Two cubes, with masses and 2 , are connected by a light string over a pulley with a mass and a radius .
The pulley has the form of a disc, free to rotate about a horizontal axis through its centre
(a) Draw a sketch of the pulley and the two cubes.
(b) Select a suitable coordinate system.
(c) Mark in your sketch all the forces acting on the pulley, and on each of the two cubes.
(d) Write down the equation of rotation of the pulley, and the equations of motion for the two cubes. Use ̈ for
the angular acceleration of the pulley, measured positive counterclockwise, and ̈1 and ̈2 for the vertical
acceleration cubes 1 and 2, measured positive upwards.
13
(e) Write down the connection between the angular and linear accelerations ̈ ̈1 and ̈2 , caused by the fact the
cubes are linked together by a non-stretching string which passes without slipping over the pulley.
(f) Solve the equations of motion to find the angular acceleration of the disc and the two forces of tension on the two
sides of the string.
12.13 A uniform rod of mass and length rotates in a vertical plane about an axis which goes through a point at
a distance 3 from If it performs small oscillations, find the period of oscillations.
12.14 A uniform rod of length is placed on top of a pivot, which is situated at a point at the length 4 from one end of
the rod.
The rod is held horizontally, and is then released.
(a) Write down the equation of rotation, and calculate the angular acceleration of the rod as it starts to move.
(b) Calculate the vertical accelerations of the two ends of the rod, as the rod starts to move.
12.15 A ring with mass and radius performs small oscillations about a horizontal axis which is tangential to the ring at
a point on the rim of the ring.
(a) Find the moment of inertia for rotation about the given axis.
(b) Find the period of the oscillations.
Study unit 13 EXERCISES
13.1 A ladder of length 2 and with mass rests on a rough floor and against a smooth wall. The coefficient of friction
between the ladder and the floor is . Find the smallest angle that the ladder could make with the floor.
13.2 A ring and a disc, both with mass and radius roll without slipping along a horizontal plane with constant
angular velocity. Which has a larger kinetic energy?
13.3 Prove that a ladder cannot rest on a smooth floor against a vertical wall, however rough the wall is.
13.4 A solid cylinder slips and rolls down an inclined plane in the time 1 . The friction is then increased until the motion
is rolling without slipping, and the time required to roll down the plane is now 2 . Show that 2 1 .
13.5 A disk with mass and radius unwinds from a tape wrapped around it (see the figure below). The tape passes
over a frictionless, non-turning pulley, and a mass is suspended from the other end. Assume that the disk drops
vertically.
(a) Relate the accelerations of and the disk, and , respectively, to the angular acceleration of the disk.
(b) Find , and .
"
M
m
a A
13.6 A uniform disc with mass and radius is placed vertically on a plane inclined at an angle to the horizontal.
Assume that the disc rolls on the plane without slipping. If the disc is given an initial angular velocity of ̇ (0) =
up the plane, how long a distance does the disc travel along the plane until it starts to roll downwards?
13.7 A rectangular block with a mass lies on two equal, parallel, rough, solid cylinders, each with mass and
radius , which can roll on a rough horizontal table. A horizontal force is applied to the block, perpendicular to
the axes of the cylinders. Assume that the mass of the block rests evenly on both the cylinders. (See the figure below.)
14
APM1612/102/3
Let ̈ denote the linear acceleration of the block, ̈ the linear acceleration of the centres of the two cylinders, and ̈
the angular acceleration of the cylinders.
(a) Write down the relations between ̈ and ̈, and ̈ and ̈.
(b) Draw a sketch of the system, and indicated in it all forces acting on the block and the two cylinders.
(c) Write down the equations of motion for the linear motion of the block, the linear motion of the two cylinders and
the rotation of the cylinders.
(d) Calculate the value of ̈.
(e) Would ̈ be larger or smaller, if the solid cylinders were replaced by hollow cylinders with the same mass and
radius?
13.8 A uniform sphere with mass and radius rolls without slipping down a rough plane which makes an angle with
the horizontal. Find the acceleration of the centre of mass and the force of friction.
N
_
_F
" Mg
_
13.9 A bowling ball is thrown down the alley at a with speed 0 . Initially
q it slides without rolling, but due to friction it
begins to roll. Show that its speed when it rolls without sliding is 57 0 .
13.10 A ring with radius and mass is rolled down a slope inclined at an angle to the horizontal. Calculate its
acceleration, and the minimum coefficient of friction for which this motion is possible. ≥ tan 2
13.11 A solid cylinder and a hollow cylinder, both with radius and mass , roll down an incline. Find their angular and
linear accelerations.
13.12 A cylinder with radius and mass rolls without slipping down a plane inclined at angle . The coefficient of
friction is . What is the maximum value of for the cylinder to roll without slipping if the cylinder is hollow, and
if it is solid?
13.13 A uniform sphere with mass and radius and a uniform cylinder with mass and radius are released
simultaneously from rest at the top of an inclined plane. Which body reaches the bottom first if they both roll
without slipping?
13.14 A uniform, circular disc with radius has a particle of mass attached to it, at a distance from its axis. It is
caused to roll upright without slipping along a horizontal surface at a constant angular velocity by applying a
varying horizontal force through its axis. Obtain an expression for this force at the instant when the particle is rising
and the radius on which it is situated is at an angle above the horizontal.
13.15 A heavy, uniform bar with mass rests on top of two identical rollers which are continuously turned rapidly in
opposite directions, as shown below. The centres of the rollers are a distance 2 apart. The coefficient of friction
between the bar and the roller surfaces is , a constant independent of the relative speed of the two surfaces.Initially
the bar is held at rest with its centre at a distance 0 from the midpoint of the rollers. At time = 0 it is released.
Find the subsequent motion of the bar.
xo
2l
13.16 A uniform disc with radius and mass stands upright on a rough surface, and a thin thread is wrapped around its
circumference. The thread is pulled with a constant force along a line tangential to the surface.
15
T
Calculate the acceleration of the centre of the disc and the angular acceleration of the disc, if it rolls without slipping.
13.17 A ladder of length 2 and with mass rests on a rough floor and against a smooth wall. A man, with mass 80 kg,
stands on the ladder, with his feet on a rung which lies exactly in the middle of the ladder. The coefficient of friction
between the ladder and the floor is . Find the smallest angle that the ladder could make with the floor without
slipping.
13.18 A ring and a disc, both with radius and mass , roll down an incline. Find their angular and linear accelerations.
13.19 A solid cylinder with mass and radius is suspended from a solid cylinder also with mass and radius ,
which is free to rotate about its axis (see the figure below). The suspension is in the form of a massless tape wound
around the outside of each cylinder, and free to unwind, as shown. Both cylinders are initially at rest. Find the
initial acceleration of cylinder , assuming that it moves straight down. Hint: you must write down the equation of
rotation for cylinder and the equation for linear translation and rotation for cylinder !]
B
M
Study unit 14 EXERCISES
14.1 A ring (mass , radius ) rolls without slipping along the top of a horizontal table, with angular velocity What
is the total kinetic energy of the ring? What proportion of the total kinetic energy is due to rotation, and what
proportion is due to translation?
14.2 A ring and a disc, both with mass and radius roll without slipping along a horizontal plane with constant
angular velocity. Which has a larger kinetic energy?
14.3 A rod of length 2 with mass is spinning horizontally on a smooth surface. It is spinning about its centre, with an
angular velocity . The centre of the rod is moving along the surface at a speed . Find the kinetic energy of the
rod.
14.4 A thin rod has a length of 2 and a mass 2 . Particles with a mass are attached at the end point and at the
centre of the rod. The combined object rotates about an axis perpendicular to the rod, through point , with angular
velocity . Find
(a) the moment of inertia of the object about the axis
(b) the kinetic energy of rotation. .
14.5 Calculate the kinetic energies for each of two uniform, solid cylinders, each rotating around its central axis. They
have the same mass and rotate with the same angular velocity , but the first has a radius and the second has a
radius 3.
14.6 A pendulum consists of a rod of length 2 and mass with a thin disc of mass and radius attached rigidly
at its centre to the rod’s end point The pendulum rotates about an axis through point of the rod, perpendicular
to the plane of the disc. If the zero energy level of the (gravitational) potential energy is taken to go through point
find the potential energy of the pendulum in the following cases:
(a) If the pendulum is horizontal;
(b) If the pendulum stands upside down vertically above point ;
(c) If the pendulum forms the angle 45◦ with a vertical line drawn directly downwards from
16
APM1612/102/3
14.7 A solid cylinder (mass , radius length ) rolls without slipping along the top of a horizontal table, with constant
angular velocity What is the total kinetic energy of the cylinder? What proportion of the total kinetic energy is
due to rotation, and what proportion is due to translation?
14.8 A uniform rod with a mass 3 and length 2 rotates on a vertical plane about an axis through . A particle of
mass 4 is attached to the rod at . Initially the rod is held at rest so that is directly above . The rod is then
released.
(a) Calculate the moment of inertia of the object consisting of the rod and the particle, for rotation about point .
(b) Determine the size of the angular velocity when is horizontal.
14.9 A thin rod has a length of 2 and a mass 2 . Particles with a mass are attached at the end point and at the
centre of the rod. The combined object rotates about an axis perpendicular to the rod, through point , with angular
velocity . Find
(a) the moment of inertia of the object about the axis,
(b) the kinetic energy of rotation.
Study unit 15 EXERCISES
15.1 A uniform, solid sphere with radius 0 25 m rolls from rest, without slipping, on a plane inclined at 30◦ to the
horizontal. Find the velocity of the centre of mass of the sphere:
(a) after 5 seconds
(b) after moving a distance of 1 m down the plane.
15.2 A uniform rod with a mass 3 and length 2 rotates on a vertical plane about an axis through . A particle
of mass is attached to the rod at . Initially the rod hangs at rest vertically and is given an angular velocity of
p
2. Use energy methods to find , the height of above the level of when ̇ = 0.
15.3 A uniform rod of length has one end in contact with a horizontal plane. Released from rest with an inclination to
the plane, the rod falls freely. Find the angular velocity just before the rod hits the plane in the following two cases:
when the plane is smooth; and when the end of the rod does not slip on the plane.
15.4 A uniform disc with mass and radius rolls without slipping down a plane inclined at an angle to the horizontal.
It is given an initial angular velocity . Calculate the velocity of the centre of the disc after it has travelled the
distance down the plane.
15.5 A disc with radius and mass is free to rotate on a vertical plane about an axis through point on its rim.
Assume there is no friction. Initially the disc is held at rest so that the centre of the disc, , is directly above . The
disc is then released.
(a) Calculate the moment of inertia of the disc for rotation about point .
(b) Determine the size of the angular velocity when is horizontal.
15.6 A disc and a ring, both with radius and mass , are released simultaneously from rest at the top of an inclined
plane which makes the angle with the horizontal. Assume that both roll without slipping, and that the length of
the slope is .A disc and a ring, both with radius and mass , are released simultaneously from rest at the top of
an inclined plane which makes the angle with the horizontal. Assume that both roll without slipping, and that the
length of the slope is .
(a) Choosing a suitable zero potential energy level, calculate the total energies of both the objects
i. initially
ii. when they have rolled the distance down the slope.
(b) Calculate the velocities of the disc and the ring when they have travelled the distance down the slope.
(c) Determine the acceleration of each object.
(d) Which of the two will reach the bottom of the slope first?
(e) Compare the kinetic energies of the objects at the bottom of the slope.
15.7 A uniform, hollow sphere with mass and radius rotates about a vertical axis on frictionless bearings. A massless
cord passes around the equator of the sphere, over a pulley with a moment of inertia and radius , and is attached to
17
a small object of mass that is otherwise free to fall under the influence of gravity. There is no friction on the pul-
ley’s axle; the cord does not slip on the pulley. What is the speed of the object after it has fallen a distance from rest?
15.8 A uniform rod of length 2 and mass moves on a vertical plane with the upper end against a smooth vertical wall
and the lower end on a smooth horizontal floor. Initially the rod was at rest in a vertical position and then it starts to
slide down the wall. Show that the angular velocity, ̇, of the rod when it makes an angle 4 with the wall is given
by ¡ √ ¢
2 3 2 − 2
̇ =
4
15.9 A uniform thin disc, with centre , radius and mass has a particle of mass attached to a point on its
circumference. Initially the disc is at rest with vertically above . The disc then rolls along the horizontal plane
without slipping. Show that the velocity of the point when is horizontal is given by
r
4
̇ =
3 + 4
15.10 A thin rod of length and mass is suspended freely from one end. It is pulled aside and allowed to swing like a
pendulum, passing through its lowest position with an angular speed . (a) Calculate its kinetic energy as it passes
through its lowest position. (b) How high does its centre of mass rise above its lowest position?
15.11 Wheels and in the figure below are connected by a belt that does not slip. The radius of wheel is three times
the radius of wheel . What would the ratio of the moments of inertia be if (a) both wheels had the same
angular momenta and (b) both wheels had the same rotational kinetic energy?
B A
15.12 A car has four 10 kg wheels and a chassis of 1000 kg . When the car is moving, what fraction of the total kinetic
energy of the car is due to the rotation of the wheels about their axles? Assume that the wheels have the same
moment of inertia as uniform disks of the same mass and size. Explain why you do not need to know the radius of
the wheels.
15.13 A uniform, solid cylindrical disc, with a mass and a radius , rolls across a horizontal table at a velocity .
(a) What is the instantaneous velocity of the top of the rolling disc?
(b) What is the angular velocity of the rolling disc?
(c) What is the kinetic energy of the rolling disc?
(d) What fraction of the kinetic energy is associated with the translation of the centre of mass, and what fraction with
rotation of the disc about an axis through its centre? .
A
v
G
15.14 A uniform rod of length 2 and mass is free to rotate on a vertical plane about an axis through one end of the rod.
in a horizontal position and then released. Find the angular velocity, ̇, and show that this has a
The rod is first heldp
maximum value of 32
15.15 A solid, homogeneous hemisphere with a radius rests on a smooth, horizontal plane with its base parallel to a
smooth, vertical wall with which the spherical surface is in contact. Initially at rest, it slips down under its own
18
APM1612/102/3
weight. Show that when the base is horizontal,
15 3
2 = , =
8 8
where is the horizontal speed of the centre of mass of the hemisphere and is its angular velocity.
15.16 A uniform rod with mass is placed like a ladder with one end against a smooth, vertical wall and the other end
on a smooth horizontal plane. It is released from rest at an inclination to the vertical. Show that the angle of
inclination at which the rod will leave the wall is cos−1 (2 cos 3). (Hint: Before the rod leaves the wall, the
centre of mass travels along a circle with radius .)
15.17 A uniform, solid sphere with radius rolls from rest, without slipping, on a plane inclined at the angle to the
horizontal. Find the velocity of the centre of mass of the sphere:
(a) after time
(b) after moving a distance down the plane.
15.18 A solid cylinder rolls down two different inclined slopes of the same height but with different angles of inclination.
Will it reach the bottom with the same velocity in each case? Will it take longer to roll down one slope than the
other? Justify your answers.
15.19 A uniform hollow hemisphere with mass and radius is kept vertical, with one point on the rim touching a
smooth table top.
Y
X
P
The hemisphere is then released, and allowed to slide frictionlessly along the table top. If the original position of
is assumed to be at the origin of the coordinate system, at what coordinate point will be when the hemisphere
finally comes to rest? (Hint: How does the centre of mass move?)
19
SOLUTIONS
Study unit 3 SOLUTIONS
3.1 2
3 + 23
3.2 − 13 4
9 − 9
3.3 8
3 − − 13
¡ ¢
3.4 2 − 97 20
7
¡ ¢
3.5 − 16 1 4
3
¡ ¢
3.6 − 19 2
9
16
9
3.7 11
12 − 34 − 19
12
3.8 The centre of mass of the system is given by = 4 + 3
3.9 44 + 28
3.10 If the system consists of two particles, with masses and position vectors 1 = 1 1 = 2 = 3 2 = 4 then the
centre of mass of the system is
1 1 + 2 2 1 · + 3 · 4 13 1
= = = = 3
1 + 2 1+3 4 4
If we now add a third particle of mass 3 = 2 at an unknown position 3 = + then the new centre of mass for
the three–particle system is
1 1 + 2 2 + 3 3 (13 + 2) + 2
̂ = =
1 + 2 + 3 6
We wish to have ̂ = 5 + so we will solve and from
(13 + 2) + 2
5 + =
6
∴ (13 + 2) + 2 = 30 + 6
½ ½
13 + 2 = 30 = 17 1
2 = 82
∴ ∴
2 = 6 =3
The third particle should be placed at the position 8 12 + 3
3.11 We have a three–particle system, with masses and position coordinates as follows:
1 = 1 = 1 1 = 0
2 = 2 2 = 4 2 = 0
3 = 3 3 = 5 3 = 0
Then using (3.2) and (3.3), we find that the centre of mass is at ( ) where
· 1 + 2 · 4 + 3 · 5 24 · 0 + 2 · 0 + 3 · 0
= = = 4 = = 0
+ 2 + 3 6 + 2 + 3
[Alternatively, we could have noted that all the particles lie on the –axis, hence the centre of mass also lies on the
–axis, so that = 0]
We will now add a fourth particle, with mass 4 = 4 and situated at a position with the coordinates
4 = 4 = and try to find values and such that the centre of the four–particle system is at = 3 = 0
Applying (3.2) and (3.3), we get
· 1 + 2 · 4 + 3 · 5 + 4 · 1 1
= = (24 + 4) = (12 + 2)
+ 2 + 3 + 4 10 5
· 0 + 2 · 0 + 3 · 0 + 4 · 4 2
= = =
+ 2 + 3 + 4 10 5
20
APM1612/102/3
Therefore, to have = 3 and = 0 and must be chosen such that
⎧ 1
⎪
⎨ 5 (12 + 2) = 3
⎪
⎪
⎪
⎩ 2 = 0
5
¡ ¢
We solve and from this, to get = 1 12 = 0 The fourth particle should be placed at 1 12 0
3.12 The centre of mass of the 2–particle system has then the position vector 53 + If we add a third particle, with
unknown mass 3 and position vector 2 + , then the new centre of mass of the 3–particle system is at
1 1 + 2 2 + 3 3 (− + ) + 2 (3 + ) + 3 (2 + )
= =
1 + 2 + 3 + 2 + 3
(5 + 23 ) + (3 + 3 )
=
3 + 3
We wish to have = 0, and must therefore have
(5 + 23 ) + (3 + 3 )
= 0
3 + 3
∴ (5 + 23 ) + (3 + 3 ) = 0
For the left–hand side here to equal zero, both the and –components must equal zero. Therefore, we get the two
conditions:
5 + 23 = 0
3 + 3 = 0 (*)
which have to hold simultaneously. But the first one gives 3 = and the second one gives 3 = −3 This
− 52
is a contradiction (3 has two different values) so that there is no value of 3 which satisfies the two equations in
(∗). And even if there were no contradiction, both values obtained for 3 are negative and therefore impossible as
a particle can not have a negative mass. The conclusion is therefore that there is no way the 3–particle system can
have its centre of mass at the origin.
3.13 No.
3.14 Yes, if is possible, if the mass of the fourth particle is
3.15 The centre of mass of the whole 3–particle system is at ( ) where
· 0 + · (2) + · 2 + (2 + )
= = = =
++ 2 + 2 +
· 0 + · 0 + · 4 4
= =
++ 2 +
³ ´
That is, the centre of mass is at the point 2+
4
If we assume that the centre of mass is, at the same time, at
the point ( ) then we must have µ ¶
4
= ( )
2 +
But this can only hold if
4 4
= ∴ = 1 ∴ 4 = 2 + ∴ 3 = 2
2 + 2 +
as claimed.
¡ ¢
3.16 (a) = 15 11 + 3 + 8
(b) This is not possible; we would need to have
⎧
⎨ 11 + 2 = 0
3 = 0
⎩
8 + = 0
but here the second equation can only hold if = 0; and if 0 then the first and third equations would give a
negative mass for ; and two contradicting values for Any of these 3 reasons is enough to show that it is not
possible to have the new centre of mass at origin, unless we have = = 0!
(c) The new particle must be positioned at the point with the position vector −11 − 3 − 8
21
3.17 (a) The centre of mass of the system of two particles has position vector where = 53 + 13 +
(b) No, it is not possible.
µ ¶
6 18
3.18 (a) The centre of mass is at − 7
7
¡5 ¢ ¡ ¢
(b) The fourth particle should be placed at 9
4 2 = 1 14 4 12
¡ ¢
3.19 (a) = 15 7 + 3 + 5
(b)—
(c)The new particle must be positioned at −7 − 3 − 5
¡4 4 ¢
3.20 7 7 where is the length of the square.
3.21 The coordinates depend on how you position the square on the positive quadrant. There are four possibilities: You
will¡get ¢
– 47 47 if the 4 particle is at the origin,
¡ ¢
– 47 10 7 if the 4 particle is on the positive axis,
¡ ¢
– 10 7 7 if the 4 particle is on the positive axis,
4
¡ ¢
– 10 7 7 if the 4 particle is on neither axis.
10
¡ ¢
3.22 37 37
¡ ¢
3.23 49 49 49
¡ ¢
3.24 − 49 − 49 − 49
¡1 ¢
3.25 18 181
181
3.26 Let us assume that the sides of the equilateral triangle have the length , and that the mass of each particle is . We
need to select a coordinate system first.
m Y
a a
X
m a m
0 a
If we assume that the coordinate ³ system√ is as
´ shown on the right, then the positions of the three particles are
given by the points (0 0) ( 0) and 2 2 . [To check that this is true, note that in the sketch below, by
1 3
Pythagoras’ law we must have
³ ´2 ³ ´2 3
2 + = 2 ∴ 2 = 2 − = 2 ]
2 2 4
a a
h
a/2
Therefore, the centre of mass is at ( ) where
√ √
0 · + · + 2 · 0·+0·+ 3
2 · 3
= = = =
++ 2 3 6
³ √ ´
The centre of mass is at 12 63 .
3.27 Assume that the masses of the two particles are and and that the distance between them is Let us position
the particles on the –axis such that the particle with mass is at the origin, and the particle with mass is at the
22
APM1612/102/3
point along the –axis. Then the centre of mass is found to be at the position
0·+·
= =
+ +
on the –axis. Therefore the distance from the –particle to the centre of mass is
= =
+
and the distance from the –particle to the centre of mass is
= − =
+
Therefor the ration of the distances is
= + =
+
which proves the claim.
Alternatively, let us assume that the (so far unknown) centre of mass is at the origin. If we still denote by and
the distances from the two particles to the centre of mass, then (assuming that is on the negative side of the
–axis) the positions of the two particles are: at − and at + If we now apply the formula for finding
the position of the centre of mass on the –axis, we must get
− · + ·
0=
+
from which the claim again follows.
3.28 Let the original system have mass and centre of mass . If a new particle of mass is added to the system, at
position then the new centre of mass will be at
+
=
+
How did the centre of mass change? It moved from to which means that it moved from to the direction
+ + + + − −
− = −= − = = ( − )
+ + + + +
Since here − is the vector from the old centre () of mass to the position () of the new added particle, this
proves that the change was indeed in the direction from the old centre of mass towards the particle.
Study unit 4 SOLUTIONS
4.1 Position vector of the centre of mass: = − 4.
1¡ ¢
(a) Velocity of the centre of mass: ̇ = − 4 + .
3
(b) Acceleration of the centre of mass: ̈ = 0.
4.2 At a given time, three particles have masses 4 2 and 3 position vectors − − − and 2 − 3 velocities
+ 2 2 − 3 and , and accelerations of − + 3 + + and −5 respectively. Find the position, the velocity
and the acceleration of the centre of mass of the system.
1¡ ¢
(a) Position vector of the centre of mass: = −2 + 4 − 13
9
1¡ ¢
(b) Velocity of the centre of mass: ̇ = 8 − 6 + 11
9
1¡ ¢
(c) Acceleration of the centre of mass: ̈ = 2 − 2 −
9
4.3 72 km/h
4.4 If we take the positive –axis to go in direction forwards on to road, with origin at the current position of the truck,
then
300 1560
= ≈ 13 (metres), ̇ = ≈ 68 (kilometers per hour)
23 23
10
̈ = ≈ 04 (km per hour per hour)
23
23
The centre of mass moves along the road, and its speed is increasing (but quite slowly).
4.5
7 5
(a) = +
4 4
µ ¶
1 7 3
(b) ̈ = +
8 8
4.6
(a) = 19
+ 37 + 17
7
µ ¶
1 6 3
(b) ̈ = + − 17
7 7
4.7 We will give below two different ways of solving this problem. Whatever method we use, however, we must first
decide on a coordinate system. We will assume that in their initial positions, particles and are situated on the
–axis, with at the origin and at position along, the –axis.
A B
X
0 a
Then we can write the initial position vectors of the two particles as (0) = 0 (0) = We are also told
that the particles are initially at rest, so that their initial velocity vectors are ̇ (0) = 0 = ̇ (0) Finally, we are
given the forces acting on each particle: The two particles attract each other with a constant force of magnitude ,
which means that a force of this magnitude acts on the –particle in the direction towards (i.e. in the positive
direction along the –axis) and an opposite force acts on the –particle towards the –particle (i.e. in the negative
direction along the –axis). That is, the force = acts on particle , and the force = − acts on particle
. We will also need the masses of the two particles, which are given as follows: = =
Method 1 From the information given in the question we can find out exactly how the two particles move; and
hence we can answer the two questions. Newton’s second law applied to particle tells us that = ̈ so that
the acceleration vector ̈ of particle can be solved from = ̈ which gives us
̈ =
Similarly, for ̈ , the acceleration of particle , we get
= ̈ ∴ − = ̈ ∴ ̈ = −
It follows that the position of each particle after seconds is given by
µ ¶
2 2
() = () = −
(a) How does the centre of mass move? The centre of mass after seconds lies at
¡ ¢
() _ () 2 + − 2
() = = =
+ + +
Thus we see that the centre of mass of the system does not move, but rather will always stay at the same point
(the distance ( + ) from the initial position of particle , towards particle .)
(b) Where will the two particles collide? The two particles will collide when they both have the same position
vector, that is, when () = () Since we have an expression in terms of for both () and () we
can find the value of for which the collision happens; and from that we can find where the collision happens.
The calculations go as follows: () = () holds when
µ ¶ µ ¶ s
2 2
= − ∴ + = ∴ =
2 2
∴ =
+ +
At that time
Ãs !2
() =
= = ()
+
+
So the particles collide at the distance
+ from 0 original position.
Method 2: An easier way to answer the two question is by using Result 4.6. According to that result, since no
external forces act on the system, we must have ̈ = 0 where (as before) ̈ is the acceleration of the centre of mass
of the two–particle system. But if the acceleration is zero then the velocity must be constant; on the other hand
24
APM1612/102/3
since both particles are initially at rest, we have ̇ = 0 Thus we immediately see the following two answers to the
questions:
(a) The centre of mass must always stay at its initial position
=
+
since its velocity and acceleration equal zero.
(b) Even if the two particles more towards each other, and eventually collide, the position of the centre of mass may
not change but must stay at
=
+
When the particles collide, the centre of mass of the 2–particle system lies at the point of collision; therefore we
conclude that they must collide at the point
+
of our coordinate system, which again means the point at a distance +
from the initial position of Particle .
4.8
(a) The centre of mass of the system does not move
(b) The particles collide at the distance 075 from 0 original position.
4.9 The explosion of the particle involves only internal forces, and therefore we can assume that no external forces act
on it. Therefore, the centre of mass of the fragments will continue moving along the –axis, and in particular, the
–coordinate of the centre of mass will always equal zero.
Y
m/4
l
X
d=?
3m/4
In the situation shown, the smaller fragment of mass 14 has –coordinate while the larger fragment of mass 34
has –coordinate − To find the value of we calculate the –coordinate of the centre of mass of the system
consisting of the two particles and set it to zero. We get
1
4 · + 34 · (−) 1 3 1
0= 1 3 ∴ 0 = − ∴ =
4 + 4
4 4 3
The larger fragment is situated the distance 3 below the –axis.
4.10 We have the following information about the two particles:
Particle Position at = 0 Velocity Mass
1 1 = ̇1 = − + 1 =
2 Position of2 centre
(a) = − of mass aṫtime
2 = +
= 0 : 2 =
1 1 + 2 2 + (−)
= = = ( − ) = 0
1 + 2 + 2
Velocity of centre of mass at time = 0 :
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
1 ̇1 + 2 ̇2 − + + + +
̇ = = =
1 + 2 +
(b) Since the velocities of the two particles are constant, their positions at any time are easy to find:
¡ ¢
̄1 () = 1 (0) + ̇1 · = + − +
¡ ¢
̄2 () = 2 (0) + ̇2 · = − + +
The particles collide when ̄1 () = ̄2 () that is, when
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
+ − + = − + +
25
We can solve from this: we get 2 = 2 ∴ = 1 From this we can now find the positions of the particles
when they collide: They will both be at 1 (1) = 2 (1) = The position of the centre of mass at the moment of
the collision is therefore also = . (until just before the collision at least!)
4.11 A good choice of a coordinate axis in this questions is to take –axis to be along the line connecting the two people
in their final positions. Assume that initially both persons are at the origin of the –axis. After they push each other
away, and come to rest, assume that the 80 kg person is at position 1 = 1on the –axis. We wish to find the value
of 2 the point where the 60 kg person will end up. This problem can be solved easily once we realise that if we
consider the system formed by the two persons, then the forces acting on the system as the two persons push each
other apart are internal to the system, and therefore the centre of mass of the system does not change. Initially the
centre of mass of the system is at the origin, since both persons are at that point. Afterwards, if the persons area at 1
and 2 respectively, the centre of mass must be equal to
80 · 1 + 60 · 2
̄ =
80 + 60
But on the other hand, we know that we must have ̄ = 0 (since the centre of mass does not change) and we know
that 1 = 1If we substitute these values into the equation above, then we can find the value of the remaining
unknown variable 2 :
80 · 1 + 60 · 2 80
0= ∴ 80 + 602 = 0 ∴ 2 = − ≈ −1 33
80 + 60 60
The 60 kg person will move the distance of approximately 1.33 metres.
4.12 For instance, we could select the masses, velocities and (initial) positions as below.
Particle 1, mass = position 1 = + velocity ̇1 = +
Particle 2, mass = position 2 = − velocity ̇2 = −
Then we do get for the velocity of the centre of mass
̇1 + ̇2
̇ = = 0
+
that is, the velocity of centre of mass is zero (the centre of mass stays at the origin), but the particles move in
relation to each other. The sketch below illustrates. Note that how we select the initial positions 1 and 2 makes no
difference.
Y
Study unit 5 SOLUTIONS
5.1 The rigid system describe here is in 2 dimensions, so we can assume that it lies on the plane, and we just need
to find the and coordinates of the centre of mass. Let us assume that the four particles lie on the coordinate
system such that the lightest particle is along the positive –axis.
¡ ¢
In this case, the centre of mass is at 47 37
Alternatively, if we choose the particles to lie on the plane such that the lightest particle is at the origin,
26
APM1612/102/3
¡ ¢ √
then the centre of mass is at 47 47 In both of these cases, the centre of mass is a point at the distance 47 2 from
the lightest particle towards the opposite corner.
5.2 If the cube lies in the coordinate system such that the origin is at the corner with heaviest particle
¡ and the three
¢
edges from that corner are the positive and axes, then the centre of mass has the coordinates 25 25 25
where is the length of the sides of the cube. If you selected another coordinate system, then your answer may differ
from√ this. Whichever coordinate system you select, the point you get as the centre of mass should lie at the distance
2
5 3from the corner with the heaviest particle towards the centre of the cube.
5.3 Let us assume that the sides of the equilateral triangle have the length , and that the mass of each particle is . We
need to select a coordinate system first.
m Y
a a
X
m a m
0 a
If we assume that the coordinate ³ system√ is as
´ shown on the right, then the positions of the three particles are
given by the points (0 0) ( 0) and 12 23 . [To check that this is true, note that in the sketch below, by
Pythagoras’ law we must have
³ ´2 ³ ´2 3
2 + = 2 ∴ 2 = 2 − = 2 ]
2 2 4
a a
h
a/2
Therefore, the centre of mass is at ( ) where
√ √
0 · + · + 2 · 0 · + 0 · + 23 · 3
= = = =
++ 2 3 6
³ √ ´ √
The centre of mass is at 12 63 . This is a point on one of the medians of the triangle, the distance 3
6 from one
of the sides — or equivalently 23 of the length of the median from the corner.
5.4
dx X
0 x l
Take the –axis to go along the rod, as shown. The density at point on the rod is () = 0 2 We divide the rod
into small mass–elements, each consisting of a short segment of the rod of length If such a segment is at position
of the –axis, then its mass can be calculated by
= density × length = () = 0 2
The positions of the small mass elements range from = 0 to = Hence, the centre of mass of the whole rod is at
R R
2 3
= R0
= R0 0 = =
2
0 4
0 0
27
The centre of mass lies the distance 34 from the lighter end.
5.5 We will first need to introduce a coordinate system. So let us assume that the rods are arranged on the –plane as
shown below, with the 2-rod along the positive –axis.
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
Then the centres of mass of the rods are: 0 2 for the rod with mass 2 and 2 2 0 and 2 for the
other three rods. Therefore the centre of mass of the entire system has the coordinates
2 · 0 + 3 · 2 + 3 · 2 + 3 · 6 2 · 2 + 3 · + 3 · 0 + 3 · 2 1
= = = =
2 + 3 + 3 + 3 11 2 + 3 + 3 + 3 2
¡6 1 ¢
The centre of mass is at the point¡ 11
¢ 2 Where on the square is this? Well, the centre of the square in our
coordinate system is at the point 2 2 and the centre of mass is at
µ ¶ µ ¶
6 1 1
= +
11 2 2 22 2
¡1 ¢
This means that the centre of mass lies a little distance 22 from the centre of the square away from the side where
the lightest rod is situated.
Alternatively, we could have selected the coordinate system such that the –axis goes through the centre of the
square and through the centre of the 2–rod, then the –axis is an axis of symmetry, and we just need to find the
-coordinate of the centre of mass. If the origin of the –axis is at the centre of the square, as shown below, then
the –coordinates of the four rods are −2 (for the 2–rod) and 0 0 2 (for the 3–rods).
The centre of mass of the whole object in this coordinate system then has the –coordinate
¡ ¢
2 · − 2 + 3 · 0 + 3 · 0 + 3 · 2 1
= =
2 + 3 + 3 + 3 22
which confirms our previous result.
5.6 We will first need to introduce a coordinate system. So let us assume that the rods have the length , and that they
are arranged on the –plane as shown below, with the 3-rod along the positive –axis.
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
Then the centres of mass of the rods are: 20 for the rod with mass 3 and 0 2 2 and 2 for the
28
APM1612/102/3
other three rods. Therefore the centre of mass of the entire system has the coordinates
3 · 2 + 2 · 0 + 2 · 2 + 2 · 1
= =
3 + 2 + 2 + 2 2
3 · 0 + 2 · 2 + 2 · + 2 · 2 4
= =
3 + 2 + 2 + 2 9
¡1 ¢
The centre of mass is at the point¡ 2 ¢ 49 Where on the square is this? Well, the centre of the square in our
coordinate system is at the point 2 2 and the centre of mass is at
µ ¶ µ ¶ ³ µ ¶
1 4 1 1 1 ´ 1
= − = − 0
2 9 2 2 18 2 2 18
This means that the centre of mass lies a little distance (namely, 18 )
1
from the centre of the square towards the side
where the heaviest rod is situated.
5.7 Let us assume that the top square has mass and the bottom one has mass 4 The centre of mass of each square
is at its centre. We can calculate the centre of mass of the entire object by using the formula of centres of mass for
compound bodies, but first we will need to decide on a coordinate system!
(a)Here, the coordinate system in three dimensions is as shown below.
Y
L
G1
L
X
G2
L
In this coordinate
¡ system, ¢ the centre of mass 1 of the lighter square (mass 1 = ) has coordinates
(1 1 1 ) = 2 2 0
¡ ¢
The centre of mass 2 of the heavier square (mass 2 = 4 ) has coordinates (2 2 2 ) = 2 0 2
Therefore, the centre of mass lies at the point (̄ ̄ ̄) with
1 1 + 2 2 · 2 + 4 · 2 1
̄ = = =
1 + 2 5 2
1 1 + 2 2 · 2 + 4 · 0 1
̄ = = =
1 + 2 5 10
1 1 + 2 2 · 0 + 4 · 2 2
̄ = = =
1 + 2 5 5
[Alternatively, in vector format, the calculations are
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
2 + 2 + 4 2 +
2 1 1 2
= = + + ]
5 2 10 5
(b)Now, the coordinate system looks like this:
G1
X
G2
L/2
L/2
Z
¡ ¢
In this case, G1 has coordinates (1 1 1 ) = 0 + 2 − 2
29
and G2 is at the origin of the system: (2 2 2 ) = (0 0 0)
Therefore the centre of mass of the entire object is at (̄ ̄ ̄) with
· 0 + 4 · 0
̄ = = 0
5
· + 4 · 0
2 1
̄ = =
5 10
¡ ¢
· − 2 + 4 · 0 1
̄ = = −
5 10
¡ ¢
[Note that this point lies along the diagonal line from 1 = (0 0 0) to 2 = 0 + 2 − 2 as it should!]
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
(c)We have to prove that the point 12 101
25 in the coordinate system of (a) is the same point as 0 10
− 10
in coordinate system (b). But it is easy to check that both of the points refer to the following point, in relation
to the object: A point which lies on the plane which divides both squares in half, the distance 10 above the
heavier square and a distance 25 in front of the lighter one.
Y
L
X
L/10
G
2L/5
Side view
L
Z
(d)The best choice for the coordinate system would need to utilize the symmetry in the object. The –plane in (b)
above is a plane of symmetry for this object, since it cuts the object into two halves which are mirror images of
each other. Therefore, the centre of mass lies on this plane. If we select (as in (b)) the origin of the –axis to be
on this plane then ̄ = 0 and we just need to find ̄ and ̄
To further simplify the calculations, we can select the origin of the system to be at the point of contact of the
two plates. In that case the centre of mass of the lighter ¡square ¢ lies on the –axis, and
¡ the¢ centre of mass of
the heavier square lies on the –axis: G1 is at (1 1 ) = 2 0 and G2 at (2 2 ) = 0 2 on the ( ) plane.
Y
L
G1
X
G2
L
Z
This will give ¡¢ ¡¢
2 + 4 (0) 1 (0) + 4 2 2
̄ = = ̄ = =
5 10 5 5
[As you can see, this is the simplest calculation so far!]
5.8 Let us assume that the top square has mass and the bottom one has mass 3 The centre of mass of each square
is at its centre. We can calculate the centre of mass of the entire object by using the formula of centres of mass for
compound bodies, but first we will need to decide on a coordinate system!
(a)Here, the coordinate system in three dimensions is as shown below.
30
APM1612/102/3
Y
L
G1
L
X
G2
L
Z
In this coordinate system, the centre of mass is at =
2 +
8 + 3
8
(b)Now, the coordinate system looks like this:
Y
G1
X
G2
L/2
L/2
Z
¡ ¢
The centre of mass of the entire object is at 0 8 − 8
¡ ¢
5.9 0 6 3 if coordinate system is such that the joint between the two squares is the the axis, with origin in the
middle of the joint, and if –axis goes through the middle of the lighter square and if the –axis goes through the
middle of the heavier square.
5.10 Let us choose the coordinate system with axes such that the corner is at origin, and the squares lie on the
and planes, as shown below:
G1
G2
X
G3
Z
¡ ¢
The centre of mass of the entire object is at the point =
3 3 3
5.11 Here is a sketch of the object consisting of the disc and the two particles.
Particle (mass M)
Particle (mass 2M)
Disc (mass M)
To simplify calculations, we should choose a sensible coordinate system here. We see that the centres of mass of all
three components (the disc and the two particles) lie on the line connecting the centre of the disc and the particle on
the rim; so if we select this line to be the –axis then the centre of mass will lie on the –axis, and we will just
need to find its –coordinate. Having made that decision, we need to still decide where to position the origin of the
31
–axis. Since the centres of mass of two of the three components here are at the centre of the disc, it is probably
easiest to select that to be the origin. So, we will position the disc and the particles as shown below, in relation to the
–axis.
X
0 r
Now, the –coordinates of the three components are very easy to find:
Disc: mass 1 = centre of mass at 1 = 0;
Particle 1: mass 2 = 2 centre of mass at 2 = 0;
Particle 2: mass 3 = centre of mass at 3 =
So the centre of mass of the whole object lies on the –axis at the position
1 1 + 2 2 + 3 3 · 0 + 2 · 0 + · 1
̄ = = =
1 + 2 + 3 + 2 + 4
The centre of mass lies on the line from the centre of the disc towards the particle on the rim, the distance 14 from
the centre.
5.12 13 × 10−2
5.13 073 ×
5.14 Let us assume that the object lies in the –plane as shown below:
Y
A
X
-2R -R 0 2R
The object “” (shaded in the picture) consists of a large disc “”, with a smaller disc “ ” removed from it. Put in
another way, the large circle can be composed of the object and the smaller circle Let 0 be
the masses of the objects and respectively, and let their centres of mass have position vectors 0 and
respectively, in the chosen coordinate system. Then we know that we must have
0 0 +
= (1)
0 +
(We can easily see what and are, and we can find the masses 0 and — so that we can solve
0 from this equation!) If we assume the material to be uniform, then the centres of mass of the discs and are
at their midpoints. The midpoint of the larger disc is at the origin, and therefore = 0 + 0 = 0 (zero–vector).
The midpoint of the smaller disc is at the point (− 0) and therefore = − + 0 To calculate the areas of
the objects, we note that if the material is uniform then
mass = density × area.
If we denote the density by (mass per unit area), then we have
2
= · (2) = 4 2
2
= · () = 2
= − = 3 2
32
APM1612/102/3
Substituting all these values into (1), we get the equation
3 2 · 0 + 2 · (−)
0 + 0 =
4 2
∴ 0 + 0 = 30 −
∴ 0 =
3
µ ¶
The centre of mass is at the point 0 That is, the centre of mass is at the distance 3 from the centre of the
3
larger disc, in the direction away from the hole.
5.15 Let us assume that the object lies in the –plane as shown below:
³ ´
Then the centre of mass is at the point 0 in the – coordinate system shown above which means that the
6
centre of mass lies the distance 6 from the centre of the disc, away from the hole cut into it. [Note that there
are many possible ways of selecting the coordinate system, and in particular how the object is situated on the
–plane. The coordinates of the centre of mass always depend on the selected coordinate system – forµinstance,¶if
5
we take the origin of the system to be at the leftmost point of the big disc, then we will get the point − 0
6
as the position of the centre of mass. However, it will always hold that the centre of mass lies the distance 6 from
the centre of the disc.]
5.16 The centre of mass is at the distance 30 from the centre of the disc, away form the whole.
5.17 The lamina here (let us call it lamina ) consists of a rectangle (call it ) measuring 4 × 7 from which have been
cut off three pieces:
– From upper–left corner, a rectangle measuring 1 × 2
– From lower–left corner, a rectangle measuring 1 × 2
– Finally, a circle with radius 1 from a position where its centre is at (5 2)
L = P
_ C
We wish to find the centre of mass of the lamina Reasoning as in Section 5.3.4 of the study guide we note that
combining laminas and we get the lamina Therefore the centre of mass of can be calculated from
the centres of mass of the objects and as follows:
+ + +
= (*)
+ + +
where for any and denote the position of the centre of mass and mass of object But since
and can be found fairly easily, we can use this equation to find the value of
Firstly, we must find the centres of mass and masses of the objects and The centres of the rectangles and
the circle are at their midpoints, so that we have = 72 + 2 = + 3 12 = + 12 = 5 + 2If
we assume that the lamina is of uniform material, then the mass of each object is equal to the density of the material
33
times the area of the object. Therefore, if we denote the (unknown) density by we get = 28 = 2
= 2 = and = − − − = (24 − ) Therefore, according to (*) we have
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
7 (24 − ) + 2 + 3 12 + 2 + 12 + 5 + 2
+ 2 =
2 28
from which we can solve : Multiplying both sides by 28 and rearranging, we get
µ ¶ µ ¶ µ ¶
7 1 1 ¡ ¢
(24 − ) = 28 + 2 − 2 + 3 − 2 + − 5 + 2
2 2 2
(94 − 5) + (48 − 2) 94 − 5
∴ = = + 2
24 − 24 −
The centre of mass of the lamina is at the point
µ ¶
94 − 5
( ) = 2
24 −
5.18 Let us assume that the object lies on the –plane as shown here.
Y
4 A
2
B X
2 5 10
We will use the method for calculating the centre of mass of objects with parts removed. The object here consists of
a rectangle from which the square has been cut off. Rectangle has area 8 · 10 and hence mass = · 8 · 10
where denotes density. the centre of mass of in our coordinate system, is at the point (5 4) The square has
mass = · 2 · 2 and its centre of mass is at (1 1). Therefore the centre of mass of the object here is at (̄ ̄)
where
( · 8 · 10) · 5 − ( · 2 · 2) · 1 99
̄ = =
· 8 · 10 − · 2 · 2 19
( · 8 · 10) · 4 − ( · 2 · 2) · 1 79
= =
· 8 · 10 − · 2 · 2 19
¡ ¢ ¡ 4 ¢
That is, the centre of mass, in the coordinate system shown above, is at (̄ ̄) = 9919 19 = 5 19 4 19 Where
79 3
on the object is this point? Well, in our coordinate system the centre of the large rectangle is at the point (5 4)
Therefore the centre of the mass, after the square has been cut off from the corner, the centre of mass moves the
distance 419 parallel to the longer side, and the distance 319 parallel to the shorter side, away from the cut–off
corner.
5.19 Let us assume that the object lies on the –plane as shown here.
Y
¡ ¢ ¡ 21 ¢
Then the centre of mass is at (̄ ̄) = 191 111
34 34
9
= 5 34 3 34 After the square has been cut off from the corner,
the centre of mass moves the distance 2134 parallel to the longer side, and the distance 934 parallel to the shorter
side, away from the cut–off corner.
34
APM1612/102/3
Study unit 6 SOLUTIONS
6.1 (a)Let us slice the triangle into horizontal slices, as shown in the sketch below.
Y
a
X
0 a
The slice which is at position on the –axis has the centre of mass with –coordinate and –coordinate
2 ( − ) If the slice has the thickness then the area of the thin slice is · ( − ) and thus its mass is
1
= ( − ) where denotes density. To integrate ("sum up") over all the thin slices, we need to integrate
with respect to from 0 to Thus, the centre of mass for the whole object is at point (̄ ̄) where
R R 1 1 1 3
( − ) ( − ) · 1
̄ = R = 0 2R = 2 1 32 =
0
( − ) 2 3
R R 1 3
( − ) 1
̄ = R = R0 = 61 2 =
0
( − ) 2 3
¡ ¢
The centre of mass is at the point (̄ ̄) = 3 3
(b)If we instead slice the triangle into vertical slices, as shown below:
Y
a
X
0 x a
then each slice has width and to "sum up" overall of them, we need to integrate over from 0 to The
slice ¢ on the –axis has area · ( − ) mass = ( − ) and its centre of mass is at
¡ 1 at position
2 ( − ) Therefore for the whole lamina we get
R R R R 1
( − ) 1 ( − ) ( − ) 1
̄ = R 0
= R = ̄ = R = 0 2R =
0
( − ) 3 0
( − ) 3
¡ ¢
Again, we have proven that the centre of mass is at (̄ ̄) = 3 3
6.2 The centre of mass has and coordinates
Z Z
1 2
() 2 ( ())
= Z =
Z
() ()
where [ ] = [0 2] and () = 2 − 2 + 6So,
R2 R2 3
(2 − 2 + 6) ( − 22 + 6) 32 3
= R0 2 = 0R 2 = = = 1
(2 − 2 + 6) (2 − 2 + 6) 32 3
0 0
[Or, alternatively, () = 2 − 2 + 6 is symmetric about = 1 so = 1]
Z 2
1
2 (2 − 2 + 6)2 Z 2
1 1 107
= Z 2 0
= (2 − 2 + 6)2 = =
2 32 3 0 40
(2 − 2 + 6)
0
¡ ¢
The centre of mass is at the point 1 107
40
6.3 (12 225)
35
µ ¶
22
6.4 The centre of mass of the lamina is at 0
5
¡ ¢
6.5 1114 0 0
6.6
(a) (6
¡ 810 0) ¢
(b) ¡ 191 0 0 ¢
(c) ¡8 32 0 0¢
(d) ¡23 3 0 ¢0
(e) ¡ 29 0 0¢
(f) ¡ 73 0 0 ¢
(g) ¡ 45 0 ¢0
(h) 8 0 0
¡2 ¢
6.7 3 0 0
6.8
Since rotation is about –axis, –axis is an axis of symmetry. Therefore the centre of mass is situated on the
–axis, and we have = = 0 To calculate we divide the solid of revolution into thin discs, as shown. The one
at position of the –axis (see picture) has thickness and radius = 2 − We want to calculate its mass,
If we assume uniform density, then mass=volume×density; and for a disc,
volume = thickness × area = thickness × (radius)2
So if we denote density by then = · · (2 − )2 The centre of mass of the thin disc has –coordinate
To calculate the –coordinate of the centre of mass of the whole solid, we use the formula
R2 2 R2 2
0
(2 − ) 0
(2 − ) 1
= R2 2
= R 2 2
= =
(2 − ) (2 − ) 2
0 0
µ ¶
1
So, the centre of mass of the solid of revolution is at 0 0
2
6.9 43 from the centre of the circle. This is a special case of Example 6.7. (Or you can prove it directly, but you’ll
need to use polar coordinates!)
6.10 Select the –axis to go as shown below, so that it goes from the middle of the base towards the apex of the pyramid,
with zero coinciding with the base.
By symmetry, the centre of mass has to be on the –axis. If we divide the pyramid into thin slices as shown, then
each slice is approximately a square. The slice shown, at height¡ above ¢ the base, has its centre of mass at point
of the –axis. The length of the sides for this square is = 1 − as can be seen by similar triangles (see the
sketch above). µ ¶
2 2 −
= ∴ =
−
36
APM1612/102/3
If this slice has thickness then its mass is
³ ³ ´´2
= (density) × (volume) = (density) × (area) × (thickness) = 1 −
The –coordinate of the centre of mass of the whole object is
Z Z
¡ ¡ ¢¢2 ¡ ¢2
1 − 1 −
0 1
= Z ¡ ¡
= Z0 = =
¢¢ 2 ¡ ¢2 4
1 − 1 −
0 0
That is, the centre of mass is 1
4 from the base of the pyramid.
Study unit 7 SOLUTIONS
7.1 Clearly, to answer this question, we need to know how the hemisphere will fall down, and accordingly where it will
lie in its final position. It should be noted that it will not roll down along its rim, since there is no friction between the
hemisphere and the table. [That is what "smooth" means!] Nor will it rotate about the centre of the corresponding
sphere, so that the contact point is always at the origin. What we do know about the way the hemisphere falls is
the following: since no horizontal forces act on the hemisphere (no friction!), but rather only the vertical forces of
gravity and the normal force from the table, the centre of mass moves straight down. This tells us that in the initial
position, the –coordinate of the centre of mass is the same as it will be in the final position:
Y Y
R
R/2
P
X X
P x x
Initially Finally
So what we can do is: Find ̄ in the initial position; hence find the final position of the hemisphere and the final
position of The centre of mass of the hollow hemisphere lies on the axis of symmetry at the distance 2 from
the centre. (See Example 6.8.) So, in the initial position we have ̄ = 2 In the final position, the centre of
mass must have the same –coordinate ̄ = 2 But in the final position ̄ is also the –coordinate of the axis of
symmetry of the hollow hemisphere (marked with the dotted lines); point lies the distance to the left of this so
the –coordinate of will be ̄ − = 2 − = −2 The –coordinate of at the final position is + So,
the point will be at the coordinates (−2 ) when the hemisphere comes to rest.
7.2 The centre of mass lies on the line from the centre of the disc towards the particle on the rim, the distance 14 from
the centre.
7.3 The centre of mass of the disc is at its centre, and the centre of mass of the particle is, of course, at the position of the
particle.
M a m M m X
0 a
r
Before we start calculating the centre of mass of the system, we should decide on a coordinate system. The centre of
the disc and the particle both lie on the radius of the disc which goes through the particle. Hence the centre of mass
of the whole system must also lie on this radius. It is therefore convenient to choose the –axis as shown above,
then the centre of the disc has –coordinate 0 and the particle has –coordinate The centre of mass of the whole
system lies somewhere on the –axis. To find its exact –coordinate, we use the results of Section 5.3.3 of the
37
study guide. We get
·0+·
= =
+ +
That is, the centre of mass lies the distance from the centre of the disc towards the particle.
+
7.4
Y
-R 0 +R
µ ¶
2
Let us choose the – and –axes as shown above.The centre of mass of the semicircle is at (1 1 ) = 0
By symmetry, the centre of mass of the straight rod is at its centre, that is, at the origin: (2 2 ) = (0 0) Next,
we need to find the masses of the two components. If we assume that both rods are made of the same uniform
material, then the mass of each component is given by mass= ·length where is the density of the rod (mass per
unit length). Accordingly, we find that the mass of the semicircular rod is 1 = · and the mass of the straight
rod is 2 = · 2 The centre of mass of the object composed of the semicircular and the straight rods has then the
coordinates ( ) where
1 1 + 2 2 0 · + 0 · 2
= = =0
1 + 2 + 2
[this could also have been concluded from symmetry considerations], and
2
1 1 + 2 2 · + 0 · 2 2
= = =
1 + 2 + 2 +2
µ ¶
2
The centre of mass is at 0 Or, put in another way, the centre of mass of the whole system lies on its axis
+2
of symmetry, the distance 2 ( + 2) from the straight rod.
7.5 (20 20 16)
7.6 The object looks like this:
R r
Disc A Disc B
The centre of mass of each disc lies at its centre, so the easiest way to find the centre of mass of the whole object is
to view it as a composite body. We are not told the masses of the two discs, but since we know their radii, and we
know that they are both made from the same uniform material, we can find their masses as functions of the density
of the material. We have
density = mass/area ∴ mass = area × density,
and for a disc, area= (radius)2 so for Disc we get the mass with = 2 and similarly for Disc , the
mass with = 2 where is the density of the material. Let us assume that the coordinate system is
as shown below:
Y
X
-R +r
Disc A Disc B
Then the coordinates of the centres of mass of Disc and Disc are, respectively, ( ) = (− 0)
( ) = (+ 0) Thus using Result 5.7, we get the coordinates ( ) of the centre of mass of the entire lamina
38
APM1612/102/3
where ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
+ − 2 + 2 3 − 3
= = 2 2
= 2 = 0
+ + + 2
In
¡ other words,
¢ ¡ 2the centre
¢ of mass lies along the line connecting the centres of the two discs, offset by
¡ 3
3
− 3
¢ − 2
from the point of contact towards the disc with radius . (Note that if then
− 3 0; thus we can say that the centre of mass always lies the distance
¯ 3 ¯
¯ − 3 ¯
2 + 2
towards the bigger disc, measured from the point of contact.
7.7 The object is shown below. Also shown is the -axis which we have selected to travel through the middle of the
scooped-out face of the cube, with the origin in the middle of the opposite face (the bottom on the cube, as shown
here).
X
Then the object here consists of the cube with sides of length minus the scooped-out solid hemisphere with
radius 2 The cube has volume 3 and therefore the mass = 3 where is the density of the uniform
material the object is made of. The centre of mass of a cube is at its centre, which in our coordinate system means
that the centre of mass of the cube has the –coordinate = 2 The solid hemisphere with radius 2 has the
volume µ ¶3
14 1
= 3
23 2 12
and therefore its mass is = 12 1
3 The centre of mass of the hemisphere lies the distance = 38 3
2 = 16
from the centre of the corresponding sphere, along the line of symmetry. This means that in our picture (above),
the centre of mass of the hemisphere would be the distance 316 below the top side of the cube. Thus, in our
coordinate system, the hemisphere has the –coordinate = − 16 3
16 Now, for the entire object (cube
= 13
minus hemisphere ) the centre of a mass will have the –coordinate
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
− 3 1
2 − 12
3 13
16 13 − 96
= = 3 1 3
=
− − 12 16 − 192
The centre of mass will lie the distance of approximately 039 above the base of the cube/object.
3(4 −4 )
7.8 8(3 −3 ) from the centre of the (hemi)spheres
7.9 Take –axis, with origin at the base of the cylinder, as shown. By symmetry, the centre of mass must be on the
–axis.
X
h+a
The cylinder has height and base radius By symmetry, its centre of mass has –coordinate = 2 The
volume of the cylinder is 2 so that its mass is = 2 where is density. The hemisphere has volume
3
2 · 3 and mass = 2 3 By Example 6.12, its centre of mass has –coordinate = + 8 Hence,
1 4 3 3
39
for the whole object the centre of mass is
2
¡ ¢ 3
3 2
+ 2 + + 8 3 62 + 8 + 32
= = 2 3
=
+ 2 + 8 + 12
3
√
7.10 The ratio in (b) is 1 : 3
7.11 We can solve this problem by considering the system consisting of the two people and the pole. If the surface
that they are standing on is frictionless, then the only external force acting on the system is gravity (downwards)
and the normal force (upwards). In particular we then know that no horizontal external forces act on the system
and therefore the horizontal position of the centre of mass cannot change. Let us assume the following coordinate
system: The 60kg and 80kg persons are situated along the –axis (so that the pole also goes along the –axis). In
the initial position the 60kg person is assumed to be at the origin of the –axis , and the 80kg person at position
= 10 (which means that one unit on our –axis corresponds to 1 metre).
Initial position:
60 kg 80 kg
Pole
X
0 10
After pulling themselves along the pole, the two persons finally meet each other at an unknown position on the –
axis. (The value of is then equal to the distance that the 60kg person moves, since that person starts from the origin!)
Final position:
60+80 kg
X
0 x 10
Now, the –coordinate of the centre of mass of the system must be the same in the initial and final positions. In the
initial position the centre of mass lies at
0 · 60 + 10 · 80 800
initial = = ≈ 57
60 + 80 140
In the final position, both persons are assumed to be at position on the –axis, so the centre of mass must then lie
at that point of the –axis: final = So, if we must have initial = final we get = 57 When the two persons
meet, the 60kg person will have moved the distance of 5.7 metres.
7.12 (a) Let us assume that the two balls lie as shown below, and that the –axes are as shown.
Y
2R
R
X
Then due to symmetry the centre of mass lies along the –axis, and we only need to find the –coordinate of
the centre of mass. For each of the two balls, its centre of mass lies at its geometric mid-point. So, the centre of
mass of the solid (smaller) ball has the –coordinate 1 = , and the centre of mass of the hollow (larger) ball
has the –coordinate 2 = 2. Therefore the centre of mass of the entire system has the –coordinate
1 1 + 2 2 () + (2) = 32
= =
1 + 2 +
That is, provided that the two balls are in contact with each other, the centre of mass is the distance 32 from the
point of contact towards the centre of the larger ball.
(b) Let us assume that the initial and final positions, respectively, of the two balls in our coordinate system are as
shown below.
40
APM1612/102/3
Initially: Finally:
Y Y
2R 2R
R R
X X
-2R -R d
The only external force acting on the system is gravity (or so we may assume), so we know that the centre of
mass of the system must move straight down; or to put it another way, the position of the centre of mass along the
–axis does not change. In the initial position, the –coordinate of the centre of mass of the system is given by
initial = −
2
(either use the result in (a), or calculate directly:
− · + 0 ·
initial = = − .)
+ 2
In the final position since the centres of both of the balls are at position on the -axis, we must have final =
If we must have initial = final then the condition
=−
2
must be satisfied, that is, the displacement of the hollow balls is the distance 2 towards the left! (So, our
picture is actually incorrect – the final position will be to the left of the initial position!)
7.13 120
80 ≈1.5 metres.
7.14 To solve this problem, we will consider the system formed by Earth and the man. Then the forces involved in the
man climbing up the stairs are internal to the system, and do not affect the position of the centre of mass of the
system. Therefore, the centre of mass of the system consisting of Earth and the man is at exactly the same point
before and after the man climbed the stairs. (The same point in space, that is — we must use a coordinate system
which is independent of the positions of Earth and the man, and not a coordinate system fixed with respect to
Earth!) In the sketch below, ⊗ denotes the centre of mass of the system, the position of the man, the position
of the centre of Earth, and the surface of the Earth. Then the distance always equals the radius of Earth.
denotes the distance from the centre of mass of the system to the centre of Earth, in the initial position. The
–coordinate axis shown, goes through the man towards the centre of earth.
Note that the centre of mass stays stationary. After the man has climbed up the stairs, he is now 60 m above the
surface of Earth. Earth recoils in the opposite direction an unknown distance Note that as Earth recoils, the stairs
and the man will of course move with it! To calculate the value of let us assume that the centre of mass ⊗ lies
at the origin of the axis shown in the sketches. Then applying the formula for calculating the centre of mass for a
compound body in the initial and later positions, we find that if denotes the mass of the man and if denotes the
mass of Earth, then
initially, –position of centre of mass
− ( − ) +
=0= (1)
+
41
later, –position of centre of mass
− ( − − + 60) + ( + )
=0= (2)
+
Now, we could just solve from (1), substitute it into (2) and solve from (2). However, it is easier to just set (1)
and (2) to be equal, as then the terms with ’s in them will cancel and disappear, as follows:
− ( − ) + − ( − − + 60) + ( + )
=
+ +
∴ (− − ) + = − ( − ) + ( − 60) + +
∴ ( − 60) + = 0
∴ ( + ) = 60
∴ = 60 ·
+
Hence, with = 75 kg and = 598 × 1024 kg, we get
75
= 60 · ≈ 753 × 10−22 metres.
75 + 598 × 1024
Study unit 8 SOLUTIONS
8.1 (a) −2 − 2 (b) 0 (c) 0 (d) −2 + 2 (e) −4 − 8
8.2 The moment of the force acting at point about point is equal to × where is the position vector from
to Since has the position vector 2 + while has the position vector − 2 we will have
¡ ¢
= (2 + ) − − 2 = 2 − + 3
and therefore the moment of about is
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
= × = 2 − + 3 × − + 2
= −2 − 4 + − 2 + 3 + 3 = − −
The magnitude of the moment is p √
k k = 12 + 12 + 12 = 3
8.3 The moment of a force , acting at point about a point is = × where is the position vector from to
In this exercise, = + 2(i) The moment of = − − is
= × = ( + 2) × ( − − ) = −2 + − 3
(ii) The moment of = 2 + is
= × = ( + 2) × (2 + ) = 2 − − 4
(iii) The moment of + = 3 − is
= × ( + ) = ( + 2) × (3 − ) = −7
8.4 (a) = − (b) = −3 (c) = 0
8.5 = +
8.6 Let us denote the unknown force by
= +
We know that ¡ ¢
− × = 2 (1)
and ¡ ¢
2 + 3 × = −4 (2)
Substituting = + into (1) and (2) gives us two equations from which we can solve and . Namely, (1)
becomes
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
− × + = 2 ∴ ( + ) = 2
∴ + = 2 ∴ + = 2 (3)
42
APM1612/102/3
and (2) becomes
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
2 + 3 × + = −4
∴ (2 − 3) = −4
∴ 2 − 3 = −4 (4)
We see that and must satisfy (3) and (4):
½
+ = 2
2 − 3 = −4
The only solution to this is
2 8
= =
5 5
so the force must be equal to
2 8
= +
5 5
8.7 The force is
13 5
= −
4 4
and its magnitude is sµ ¶2 µ ¶2 r
13 5 97
| | = + − =
4 4 8
Study unit 9 SOLUTIONS
9.1 The angular momentum of a particle with mass at point relative to some other point is
= × ̇
where = is the position vector from to and ̇ is the velocity vector of the particle. In this problem we have
= 3 − 4 (position vector from origin)
̇ = 30 + 60
(a) If = origin, then = = 3 − 4 and
= × ̇ = (3 − 4) × (30 + 60) = 300
(b) If = −2 − 2 then
= = (3 − 4) − (−2 − 2) = 5 − 2
and
= × ̇ = (5 − 2) × (30 + 60) = 360
Study unit 10 SOLUTIONS
10.1 The moment of inertia of a system of particles is given by
X
= 2
=1
where is the distance from the axis of rotation to particle number , and is the mass of particle number . Here,
= 4 and the masses of the particles, and their positions on the –plane are given as follows:
1 = 50 at (1 1 ) = (2 2)
2 = 25 at (2 2 ) = (0 4)
3 = 25 at (3 3 ) = (−3 −3)
4 = 30 at (4 4 ) = (−2 4)
(a) Let the axis of rotation be the –axis. If a particle has the coordinates ( ), then its distance to the –axis is
given by the –coordinate.
43
Y
xi (xi ,yi)
yi
X
That is, = . Therefore, the moment of inertia of the system about –axis is
4
X 4
X
= 2 = 2 = 50 (2)2 + 25 (4)2 + 25 (−3)2 + 30 (4)2 = 1305
=1 =1
(b) If the axis of rotation is the –axis, then the distance from a particle to the axis is given by its –coordinate, that
is, = Hence, the moment of inertia of the system about –axis is
4
X 4
X 2 2 2 2
= 2 = 2 = 50 (2) + 25 (0) + 25 (−3) + 30 (−2) = 545
=1 =1
(c) Let the axis of rotation be the –axis. The –axis goes through the origin of the –plane, so the distance
from particle to the –axis equals its distance to the origin, and therefore equals
q
= 2 + 2
so that
2 = 2 + 2
Y xi (xi ,yi)
yi
X
Hence, the moment of inertia for rotation about the –axis is
X4 X4
¡ ¢
= 2 = 2 + 2
=1 =1
¢¡ ¡ ¢ ³ ´ ³ ´
= 50 2 + 22 + 25 02 + 42 + 25 (−3)2 + (−3)2 + 30 (−2)2 + 42 = 1850
2
Alternatively, we could have used the perpendicular axis theorem: are mutually perpendicular, the system
lies in –plane, and so according to the perpendicular axis theorem,
= + = 1305 + 545 = 1850
10.2 (a) 6 (b) 4 (c) 11
10.3 (a) 97 (b) 50 (c) 147
10.4 The mass should be
10.5 322
10.6 1
12
2
10.7 16
3
2
10.8 1
3
2
10.9 32
3
2
¡ ¢2 ¡ ¢2
10.10 (a) 13 2 + 2 = 43 2 (b) 13 2 + (c) 13 2 + 3
2 = 7 2
12
4 = 43 2
48
µ ¶2
¡ ¢2 ¡ ¢2 ¡ ¢2 ( 2 )
10.11 (a) 13 4 2 + 4 2 = 43 2 (b) 13 4 2 + 4 2
7
= 12 2
44
APM1612/102/3
10.12 The parallel axis theorem gives = + = 2
2 2 2
10.13 The rigid body looks like this:
m Mass = 0, Length = L
Note that since the connecting rod is massless, it will not contribute to the moment of inertia!
(a) The axis, which we will call , in this question is shown below.
AxisA
m L/2 L/2
Since we will ignore the rod, the rigid body consists of just two particles, each at the distance
2 from the axis of
rotation. Therefore the moment of inertia will be
µ ¶2 µ ¶2 µ ¶
2 2 1 1
= · +· = + =2 2 = 2
2 2 4 4 4 2
(b) Here, the axis (let’s call it axis ) is parallel to the one in (a) above, that is, again perpendicular to the rod, but
now through one of the particles.
Axis B
m L
Now, one particle is at the distance from the axis while the other one lies on the axis (that is, distance 0 from
the axis). Therefore, in this case the moment of inertia when the object rotates about axis is
2 2
= () + (0)
= 2
[Since the two axis and are parallel, we could also use the parallel axis theorem and the result in (a) to find
the moment of inertia here. Since axis goes through the centre of mass of the system (check this), we know that
= + 2
where = 2 is the total mass of the entire system, and = 2 is the distance between the two axes of rotation.
This gives again
µ ¶2
1 1 1
= 2 + (2) = 2 + 2 = 2
2 2 2 2
as it should.]
10.14 It is enough to show that if an axis does not pass through the centre of mass of the body, then there is at least one
other axis with a smaller moment of inertia. To prove this, let us assume that is an axis of rotation, not through
the centre of mass of the body. But if is an axis parallel to , through the centre of mass of the body, then by the
parallel axis theorem we must have
= + 2
where and are the moments of inertia when the body rotates about axis and , respectively, is the total
mass of the body, and is the distance between the two axes.
Axis B
Axis A
Since does not go through the centre of mass, we have 0; and we may assume that 0. (If = 0 then of
45
course = 0 for any axis !)
But then we will get
= − 2
where 0, 0. Therefore, must be strictly smaller than ! We have proved that for any axis not
through the centre of mass, we can find another, different axis such that From this it follows that the
axis with the smallest moment of inertia must go through the centre of mass (for otherwise we would be able to
find another axis with an even smaller moment of inertia – which contradicts the fact that was supposed to be
smallest!) [Note that not all objects have a unique axis with the smallest possible moment of inertia! For instance if
the object is a solid sphere, then any axis through the centre of the sphere gives the same moment of inertia
2
= 2
5
but this is the smallest possible value in the sense that for any axis not through the centre of the sphere, the
moment of inertia will be larger.]
10.15
m m
a
a a
a
m m
Since the rods are massless, their moments of inertia for rotation about any axis is zero. Only the four particles
contribute to the moment of inertia, therefore for any given axis the moment of inertia is calculated by the formula
= 12 + 22 + 32 + 42
where is the distance from the –th particles to the axis
(a) .
X
a/2 a/2
a/2 a/2
³ ´2 ³ ´2 ³ ´2 ³ ´2
= + + + = 2
2 2 2 2
(b) .
Axis
A
d
a/2
d
a/2
d a/2
a
Here ³ ´2 ³ ´2
= + + 2 + 2
2 2
where ³ ´2
5 2
2 = 2 + =
4 2
So, we get µ ¶
5 5 9
= 2 + + 1 × 1 = 2
4 4 2
(c)
46
APM1612/102/3
D
b
Here,
= · 02 + · 02 + 2 + 2
where is half of the length of the diagonal, that is,
√
2 1
= ⇒ − 2
2 2
So, µ ¶
1 2
= 2 · = 2
2
10.16
(a) The moment of inertia for rotation, let us call it is
1
2
3
Here is another way of calculating : This time, let us divide the rectangle into thin strips, each parallel to the
axis (instead of perpendicular to it, as in Example 10.12).
Again, for the whole object will be obtained by summing up the moments of inertia about the axis of all these
thin strips. However, here the exact position of a strip (its distance from the –axis) will affect its moment of
inertia, and we will need to use integral notation. So, let us look at a thin strip, situated at distance from the
–axis. If its width is , then its weight is
= · 2 ·
where is the density of the lamina (mass = density × area!). The moment of inertia of a rod of mass , about
an axis parallel to the rod and at a distance from it, is = 2 . This is the moment of inertia for any object
with mass where all of the mass is situated at exactly the distance from the axis of rotation. Note also that
the moment of inertia does not depend on the length of the rod!) Applying this rule, we find that the moment of
inertia of the strip, at distance from the axis, is
= · 2 · · 2
= 2 2
Integrating over all rods, we get for the whole lamina
Z
4
= 2 2 = 3
− 3
On the other hand, the mass of the lamina is related to the density via
= (2) (2)
Substituting
=
4
into the formula above, we again get
1
= 2
3
(b)
47
The axis described here is parallel to the –axis in (a) above, and the –axis in (a) goes through the centre
of mass of the lamina, , since is at the midpoint of the rectangle. Thus the parallel axis theorem can be
applied. The distance between the axes is , and therefore the moment of inertia for rotation about an axis along
the side is
1 4
= + 2 = 2 + 2 = 2
3 3
(c)
Let us assume that the lamina lies in the –plane as shown. We wish to calculate the moment of inertia with
–axis as the axis of rotation. From (a) we know that
1
= 2
3
By repeating the argument in Example 10.12 (or (a) above), we find that similarly,
1
= 2
3
The perpendicular axis theorem now gives
1 1 1 ¡ ¢
= + = 2 + 2 = 2 + 2
3 3 3
(d) .
Again, we can
√ use the parallel axis theorem: the axis here is parallel to –axis in (c), the distance between the
two axes is 2 + 2 , –axis goes through the centre of mass , and therefore the moment of inertia is
³p ´2 1 ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ 4 ¡ ¢
= + 2 + 2 = 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 = 2 + 2
3 3
10.17 The angular momentum of a rigid body rotating about a fixed axis is given by
= ̇ (1)
where it is assumed that the axis of rotation coincides with the –axis of a right–handed coordinate system
is the unit vector in –direction, ̇ is the angular velocity, and is the moment of inertia of the rigid body when it
rotates about the –axis.
So to find , we first need to find the moment of inertia
48
APM1612/102/3
A B
r r
Axis of rotation
The object here consists of two particles, and attached to the ends of a massless rod The total moment of
inertia is found by adding up the moments of inertia of the three components, that is,
= + + rod
For the moment of inertia of the particle about the given axis, we use (2.19) which for one particle gives
= 2
where is the distance from particle to the axis of rotation. Similarly, for particle we have
= 2
As for the rod, the moment of inertia of a rod of length 2 and mass rotating about an axis through its midpoint is
equal to
1
rod = 2
3
However, the rod is massless, that is, = 0 Therefore,
rod = 0
(Indeed, any object with zero mass has always zero moment of inertia for rotation about any axis!)
Thus, the total moment of inertia is
= 2 + 2 + 0 = 22
So, since we have = 2 and ̇ = (1) gives
2
= 22
10.18
(a) This is a simple application of the parallel axis theorem: The moment of inertia for rotation about an axis
perpendicular to the rod, through the centre of the rod is
1
= 2
3
so the moment of inertia for rotation about a parallel axis, through point is (since the distance between points
and is ) is given by
4
= + 2 = 2
3
(b) The rod and the axis here is the same as the one in (a), but now two particles are attached to the rod: Particle 1
with mass attached at the centre and Particle 2 with mass 2 attached at end point To find the moment
of inertia for the whole object (rod and the two particles), we will add up the moments of inertia of the three
components:
rod particle 1 particle 2
= + +
Here,
rod 4
= 2
3
from (a). For the particles, the moment of inertia is calculated using
= 2
where is the mass of the particle and the distance from the particle to the axis of rotation – in this question,
therefore, from the particle to point So, we get
4 2 1
= 2 + 2 + (2 ) (2) = 10 2
3 3
(c) This question differs from (b) in that the rod is now considered to be massless. It follows that
rod
= 0
and
2
= 2 + (2 ) (2) = 9 2
10.19 The pendulums look like this:
49
A A
2L 2L
B r B 2a
Pendulum 1 Pendulum 2
The moment of inertia of each pendulum can be found by adding together the moment of inertia of rod rotating
about point and the moment of inertia of the disc/square for rotation about point ; the latter can in turn be
found by parallel axis theorem from the moment of inertia of a disc/square rotating about an axis perpendicular to it,
through its centre.
For rotation about an axis through the centre of a disc/square, perpendicular to its plane: For the disc we have
disc 1
= 2
2
and for the square, using Example 10.12 and the perpendicular axis theorem,
square 1 1 2
= 2 + 2 = 2
3 3 3
Since the distance from to is 2 we further get
disc disc 2 1
= + (2) = 2 + 4 2
2
square square 2
= + (2)2 = 2 + 4 2
3
The moments of inertia for the pendulums are therefore: For pendulum 1,
1 rod disc 4 1
= + = 2 + 4 2 + 2
3 2
and for pendulum 2,
2 rod square 4 2
= + = 2 + 4 2 + 2
3 3
Study unit 11 SOLUTIONS
11.1 1
2
2
11.2 The object in this question looks like this seen from one end:
The mass of the cylinder is and we will denote its length by (However, we will find that the length makes no
difference to the moment of inertia when the cylinder rotates about its axis.)
We know how to calculate the moment of inertia of a hollow cylinder, of a given radius, about its axis (see Example
11.3). We can solve this problem by using that result, as follows: If we consider the thick cylinder to be divided
into concentric thin cylinders, as shown below, then each of these cylinders is approximately a hollow cylinder, and
we know how to find its moment on inertia once we know its mass and radius. To find the moment of inertia of the
entire thick cylinder, we will then need to integrate (”sum up”) over all the thin cylinders.
Assume that the thin cylinder has the radius (where 1 2 ) and that its walls have the thickness Its
50
APM1612/102/3
mass is then equal to
= × volume = × length × circumference × thickness
= () (2) = 2
if denotes the density (mass per unit volume) and its moment of inertia for rotation about its axis is therefore given
by
= () 2 = 23
To integrate over all the thin cylinder, we must integrate from = 1 to = 2 Therefore, the moment of inertia
for the entire thick cylinder is
Z 2 Z 2
1¡ ¢
= = 23 = 2 24 − 14 (*)
1 1 4
Finally, it remains to express in terms of the mass and dimensions of the original object. Since
= × volume,
we need to find the volume of the thick cylinder with inner radius 1 and outer radius 2 Note that ”volume =
circumference × thickness × length” does not work here, it only works for very thin cylinders! The easiest way to
find the volume is to reason that
Volume of our cylinder
= (Volume of solid cylinder with radius 2 )
= (Volume of solid cylinder with radius 1 )
= 22 − 12
Thus we have
¡ ¢
= 22 − 12 ∴ = (**)
(22 − 12 )
[Note that the calculation of the mass of a thin cylinder with radius and thickness could also have been
calculated by this method, using for 1 and + for 2 This would give
³ ´ ³ ´
2 2
= ( + ) − 2 = 2 + 2 + () − 2 ≈ 2
where we have ignored the very small term ()2 ] When we substitute (**) into (*), we finally get
¡ ¢
24 − 14 1 ¡ ¢
= ∴ = 22 + 12
2 (22 − 12 ) 2
(where we have used the formula ( + ) ( − ) = 2 − 2 with = 22 = 12 )
Alternatively we could use the fact that the moments of inertia of separate parts of an object add up to give the
moment of inertia of the whole object. The thick cylinder of this exercise (call it ) can be obtained by taking a
solid cylinder with radius 2 (call it cylinder ) and cutting away from it another solid cylinder with radius 1 (call
it cylinder ) To put it in another way, the solid cylinder can be created by joining together the solid cylinder
and our cylinder Accordingly, we must have
= +
where and are the moments of inertia of the cylinders and respectively, when they rotate about
their common axis. Thus
= −
Assuming that we know that the moment of inertia of a solid cylinder of radius and mass rotating about its axis
is given by
1
= 2
2
we get
1 1
= 22 − 12
2 2
where and are the masses of the cylinders and All that remains now is to find and We
assume that all cylinders have the same density. Then by applying
mass = density × volume
we easily get
= 12 = 22
51
Thus,
1 ¡ ¢
= 24 − 14
2
The density is, as calculated before, given by
=
(22 − 12 )
[Alternatively we can note that we must have
¡ ¢
= − = 22 − 12
and solve from this.] Therefore, again we get
1 ¡ 2 ¢
= 2 + 12
2
11.3 We will assume that the lamina is uniform, that () ≥ 0 for all , and that . The lamina will then look as
follows:
f(x)
a x b
To find the moment of inertia for rotation about the –axis, we can again divide the lamina into thin slices
perpendicular to the –axis. Each slice is then approximately a thin rod and we can assume that the one on position
on the –axis has length () and width . Its mass is then
= · ()
where is the density of the lamina (mass per unit area). We need to find the moment of inertia of such a thin slice
for rotation about the –axis. But each slice is apprixmately a rod, and we know that the moment of inertia of a rod
rotating about its end point is
4
= 2
3
where is the mass of the rod and 2A is its length. Applying this rule to the thin slice described above, we find
that its moment of inertia for rotation about the –axis is
µ ¶2
4 () 1
= = ( ())2 ()
3 2 3
The total moment of inertia of the entire object is found by integrating over all the thin slices, i.e. from = to
= : Z Z
1
= = ( ())3 (1)
3
Please note that this is as far as we can get in the integration unless we are given the actual function ()! The
expression above is already the answer to the question, but we can further re–write it into a form which has in it the
total mass of the lamina, instead of its density. To see how this is done, we note that the total mass is equal to the
density times the total area, and the total area is obtained by integrating the function () from to :
Z
=· ()
If we solve from this and substitute it into (1), we get the alternative expression
R 3
1 ( ())
= R (2)
3 ()
[For example, if we take () ≡ then the lamina is a rectangle; the moment of inertia becomes
1 ( − ) 3 1
= = 2
3 ( − ) 3
which does not depend on and at all.] Note that to find the numerical value of the moment of inertia of this
uniform lamina, we must always in addition be given either its density (in (1)) or its mass (in (2))! This is because
the moment of inertia does always depend on the mass of the object, whereas from the values of and and the
function we can only calculate the area of the lamina. Compare this with the calculations by integration of centres
of mass, when the density cancels out, and the end result does not necessarily depend on the total mass of the object!
52
APM1612/102/3
11.4
dx
0 x l
a
Let us divide the cylinder into thin slices, as shown. Let the length of the cylinder be , and denote the density of
the material the cylinder is made of (mass per unit volume). The slice situated at position , 0 ≤ ≤ along the
axis is approximately a thin disc. If it has thickness , then the mass of this disc is given by
= × volume = × area × thickness = × 2 ×
Each of the thin discs therefore has the moment of inertia
1 1
= () 2 = 4
2 2
For the whole cylinder, we integrate over all the thin discs, i.e. from = 0 to = , to get the total moment of
inertia: Z Z
1 1
= = 4 = 4 (1)
0 2 2
Finally, the total mass of the cylinder was , and its total volume is ; so,
2
Mass
= =
Volume 2
Substituting this into (1), we get
1 1
= 2
4 ∴ = 2
2 2
11.5 Let us call the two discs Disc 1 and Disc 2, and assume that the axis of rotation goes through the centre of disc 1, as
shown below.
Disc 1 Disc 2
Axis A
Then the moment of inertia of Disc 1 rotating about this axis is
1
disc 1 = 2
2
[This is just the moment of inertia of a disc with mass and radius , rotating about its centre!] For the moment of
inertia of disc 2 for rotation about axis , we need to apply the parallel axis theorem. The moment of inertia of disc
2 rotating about an axis through its centre and perpendicular to the disc, is again
1 2
=
2
Axis here is parallel to axis but at a distance 2 from it, so parallel axis theorem gives us
2 1 2
disc 2 = + (2) = 2 + (2)
2
Disc 2
2R
Axis A Axis X
The moment of inertia for the whole object, when it rotates about axis , is then
1 1 2
= disc 1 + disc 2 = 2 + 2 + (2) = 52
2 2
[Just to check the answer, let us calculate the value of using a slightly different approach. The centre of mass
of the rigid body is at the point of contact between the two discs (this follows directly from symmetry).
53
Disc 1 Disc 2
G
Axis
through G
The moment of inertia of both disc 1 and disc 2 for rotation about an axis through point , perpendicular to the
discs, is 32 2 , so that the moment of inertia when the entire object rotates about this axis is
3 3
= 2 + 2 = 32
2 2
Now, our axis A is parallel to this axis, at the distance from it, so by the parallel axis theorem we get (remember
that the whole object has mass 2) :
= + (2) 2 = 32 + 22 = 52 ]
11.6 Note that the lamina described here is the object formed when a square lamina with sides of length and mass 2
is cut into two along its diameter.
a
a
2a
We will give here three different ways of calculating the moment of inertia, firstly by direct integration by two
different methods, and finally by using symmetry and the perpendicular axis theorem.
Method 1
In this method we will divide the triangle into thin rods perpendicular to the axis of rotation, find the moments of
inertia for these rods, and integrate over all rods to find the moment of inertia of the entire triangle. For simplicity,
we can first divide the triangle into two smaller triangles and each of which has the same moment of inertia.
= A +
We will calculate the moment of inertia of one of these small triangles for rotation about the given axis, and
multiply by two to get for the original triangle.
X
x
0
We will select –axis to go along the axis of rotation as shown. Then a thin strip of thickness at position along
the –axis has the length and mass where denotes density. Since this strip is approximately a rod, its
moment of inertia for rotation about axis is given by
4 ³ ´2 1
rod = () = 3
3 2 3
To obtain the total moment √of inertia of triangle we “sum up” (integrate) over all the thin strips, i.e. we integrate
over from = 0 to = 22 Thus,
Z √22
1 3 1
= = 4
0 3 3 · 16
It follows that the moment of inertia of the original triangle is
1
= 4
3·8
54
APM1612/102/3
Finally, we note that the density can be found from the mass of the triangle:
2 2
= ∴= 2
2
Therefore
1
= 2
12
Note that the reason for first subdividing the triangle into two smaller triangles and was just to keep integration
simpler.√If we proceed directly to divide the original triangle into thin√strips then we have¡√
to integrate
¢ from √= 0
to = 2 The length of a strip at position is now equal to if 22 and equal to 2 − 2 if 22
X
0
The integral expression would then be
Z √22 Z √2
1 3 1 ³√ ´3
= + √ 2 −
0 3 22 3
which of course gives the same answer as above.
We could also reason as follows: The original triangle can be divided into the two triangles and so that
= +
B
T = A +
But = = 1 where 1 is shown below; and therefore for the triangle 1 shown below, we also have
1 = + 1 = +
A + = T1
B1
Therefore we can find 1 instead, and for that we can slice 1 into thin slices which are now approximately thin
rods rotating about an axis through their centre.
√
Each rod has moment of inertia rod = 13 ( · 2) 2 and integration is from = 0 to = 22
Method 2
Alternatively, we can divide the triangle into thin strips parallel to the axis of rotation.
Y
55
¡√ ¢
The strip at distance from the axis has length 2 22 − and if its width is then its mass is
¡√ ¢
2 22 −
The moment of inertia of such a strip is then
³ ³√ ´ ´
rod = 2 22 − 2
¡ √ ¢
After integrating over all the strips = 0 to = 22 we get
Z √22 Ã Ã √ ! ! Z √22 Ã √ !
2 2 2 1 4
= 2 − = 2 − 2 = =
0 2 0 2 24
Again we will use the fact that the entire triangle, with area 2 2 has mass to find the value of :
2 2
= ∴ = 2
2
Therefore
1
= 2
12
Method 3 (The easiest way)
The triangle here is of course half of a square cut along its diagonal, and therefore its moment of inertia is half of the
moment of inertia of the square of mass 2 rotating about its diagonal:
1
=
2
To find the moment of inertia of a square rotating about its diagonal, we first note that due to symmetry, the moments
of inertia of the square must be the same about both of the diagonals 1 and 2 :
= 1 = 2
D1
D2
Next, we use the perpendicular axis theorem to link the moments of inertia about the diagonals, to rotation about a
more familiar axis, namely axis perpendicular to the square, through its centre.
Z
D2
D2
The perpendicular axis theorem now says that
1
= 1 + 2 = 2 ∴ =
2
How then do we find ? We can again use the perpendicular axis theorem to express in terms of the moments of
inertia about axes and through the centre of the square and parallel to its sides:
Z
Y
= +
For and we refer to Example 10.12 of the study guide:
1 ³ ´2 1
= = (2 ) = 2
3 2 6
[Remember that the mass of the square is 2 if is the mass the original triangle.]
56
APM1612/102/3
Thus for the original triangle, we get
µ ¶
1 1 1 1 1 1
= = ( + ) = · 2 = 2
2 2 2 2 6 12
as before.
11.7 1
3
2
11.8 We will give two alternative methods for calculating the moment of inertia.
Method 1: by integration
The thick sphere can be sliced into concentric hollow spheres, each specified by its radius where ranges from 1
to 2 If the thickness of one such hollow sphere is then its mass is given by
= · 42 ·
(density times area of the hollow sphere times its thickness) and according to Example 11.6, the moment of inertia
of the hollow sphere is
2
= ()2
3
For the moment of inertia of the entire object, we need to integrate over the values of from 1 to 2 :
Z Z 2 Z 2
2 2 2
= = () = ( · 42 · )2
1 3 1 3
Z 2
8 8 1¡ ¢
= 4 = 25 − 15 (*)
3 1 3 5
Finally, we wish to express this in terms of the mass of the thick sphere. The volume of such a thick sphere is the
volume of a sphere with radius 2 minus the volume of a sphere with radius 1 that is,
4 4 4 ¡ ¢
volume = 23 − 13 = 23 − 13
3 3 3
On the other hand, the mass must be equal to density times volume. Therefore, we must have
4 ¡ ¢ 3
= 23 − 13 ∴ =
3 4 (23 − 13 )
When we substitute this into (*), we get
¡ 5 ¢
3 8 1¡ 5 5
¢ 2 1 − 25
= · − 1 = 3
4 (23 − 13 ) 3 5 2 5 1 − 23
Method 2: An object with a part removed
If we combine the object in this question and the missing part, a sphere with radius 1 , we get a solid sphere with
radius 2 It follows that the moment of inertia of the object here must equal the moment of inertia of a solid sphere
with radius 2 minus the moment of inertia of a solid sphere with radius 1 We know the moments of inertia of
the latter objects, so this should be fairly easy. However, we must make sure we get the masses of the solid spheres
right: the mass of the object in this question must be so what should be the masses of the corresponding big
sphere and small sphere? The masses of these should be determined by their volumes, and the density. The small
sphere and the big sphere will have the volumes
4 4
1 = 13 2 = 23
3 3
respectively, and the object in this question will therefore have the volume
4 4
= 23 − 13
3 3
So if it has the mass then the density of the material must be such that
3
= ∴ = = 4 3 4 3 =
3 2 − 3 1
4 (23 − 13 )
It follows that the masses of the small and big spheres are
3 4 3 3 4 3
1 = 1 = 2 = 1 =
4 (23 − 13 ) 3 1 4 (23 − 13 ) 3 2
57
For the moment of inertia for the whole object we therefore get
2 2
= 2 − 1 = 2 22 − 1 12
5 5
2 3 4 3 2 2 3 4 3 2 2 15 − 25
= 2 · 2 − 1 · 1 =
5 4 (23 − 13 ) 3 5 4 (23 − 13 ) 3 5 13 − 23
Note that both methods do give the same answer, as they should!
11.9 The lamina looks like this:
y
dx
2 + x2
x
0 3
If we divide it into thin slices, then the one at position on the –axis is approximately a thin rod of length
= 2 + 2 and mass ¡ ¢
= · 2 + 2 ·
Its moment of inertia, when it rotates about the –axis, is therefore given by
µ ¶2 µ ¶2
4 2 + 2 4 ¡ ¢ 2 + 2 1 ¡ ¢3
= = 2 + 2 = 2 + 2
3 2 3 2 3
To find the total amount of inertia, we integrate over all the thin rods:
Z Z 3 µ ¶¸3
1 ¡ ¢3 1 6 1 8587
= = 2 + 2 = 8 + 43 + 5 + 7 =
0 3 3 5 7 0 35
Note that the moment of inertia depends on density ; if we alternatively wish to express it in terms of the mass
of the object, we can calculate the connection between the mass and the density by finding the area of the object:
Z 3 ¯3 µ ¶
¡ ¢ ¯ 1 3
area = 2 ¯
2 + =¯ 2 + = 15
0 0 3
hence
= =
area 15
and
8587
= ≈ 1636
35 · 15
11.10 = 4880
7·24 = 610
21 ≈ 2905
11.11 To find the moment of inertia of a square rotating about its diagonal, we first note that due to symmetry, the moments
of inertia of the square must be the same about both of the diagonals 1 and 2 :
= 1 = 2
D1
D2
Next, we use the perpendicular axis theorem to link the moments of inertia about the diagonals, to rotation about a
more familiar axis, namely axis perpendicular to the square, through its centre.
Z
D2
D2
58
APM1612/102/3
The perpendicular axis theorem says that
= 1 + 2 = 2
1
∴ =
2
How then do we find ? We can again use the perpendicular axis theorem to express in terms of the moments of
inertia about axes and through the centre of the square and parallel to its sides:
Z
Y
= +
For and we refer to Example 10.12 of the study guide:
1
= = 2
3
So, we get
2
= + = 2
3
and
1 1
∴ = = 2
2 3
Study unit 12 SOLUTIONS
12.1 The pendulum looks like this:
Axis of
rotation
A B
Rod AB (massless,length l)
Disc
(mass M, radius r)
(a) Since the rod is pivoted at the end , we need to find its moment of inertia for rotation about an axis which is
perpendicular to the disc, and through point . Since the rod is massless, the moment of inertia of the rod is
zero. The moment of inertia of the disc when it rotates about the axis through can be found by applying the
parallel axis theorem: The moment of inertia of the disc when it rotates about an axis perpendicular to the disc,
through its centre point , is
disc 1
= 2
2
By parallel axis theorem, since the axis through is parallel to this, at a distance from it, we then get
disc disc 2
= + ()
So, the moment of inertia of the entire pendulum about the axis through point is
µ ¶ µ ¶
rod disc 1 1 2
= + =0+ 2 + 2 = + 2
2 2
(b) The gravitational force has the magnitude (since the total mass of the pendulum is ), and it acts downwards
at the centre of mass of the pendulum. The centre of mass of the pendulum is at the centre of the disc, since
the rod is massless. In the position described in this question, the pendulum is situated like this:
59
P
Y r
Mg
X
The moment of the gravitational force about the pivoting point is given by
= ×
where = is the position vector from to . If we assume the and axes to be as shown above, then
we can write
= −
and
= sin − cos r
lcos l
lsin
Therefore, we get ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
= sin − cos × − = − sin
[where the negative sign indicates that the momentum acts clockwise in our sketch], and the magnitude of the
moment is
| | = |sin |
[Remarks:
∗ The angle can be larger than 2 (= 90◦ ); in this case the picture would look like this:
P
However, the magnitude of would still be the same.
∗ We could as well have drawn the position of the pendulum like this:
since here it also forms the angle with vertical! However, the earlier drawing is preferred since it conforms
to the mathematical practice that angles are measured counterclockwise on the plane. In this position,
would be equal to + sin , which agrees with the fact that in this case, the force of gravity would act
to rotate the pendulum counterclockwise about point .]
60
APM1612/102/3
12.2 We will apply the equation of rotation (12.1) to describe the rotation of the disc, and Newton’s second law (7.1) to
describe the translation of the masses and . Let denote the centre of the pulley, and let and denote the
points where the strings attached to the masses and , respectively, leave the pulley. Then the forces acting on
the pulley are gravity and the force holding the pulley in place, both acting at , and the tensions of the
string, and , acting downwards at and , respectively. The forces acting on the mass are gravity
downwards, and tension of the string upwards. The forces acting on the mass are gravity downwards and
tension of the string upwards.
N
j
i A O B
TM Tm
m pg
Tm
TM
m
M
Mg mg
If the –plane has the unit vectors and as shown in the figure then we have
= = −
= = −
= =
= − = −
Since the pulley is a disc with radius and mass , its moment of inertia for rotation about is
1
= 2
2
Thus equation (10.3) gives, when ̈ denotes angular acceleration of the disc, counterclockwise,
0 × + 0 × + × (− ) + × (− ) = ̈
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
∴ 0 + 0 + (−) × − + () × − = ̈
1
∴ − 2 ̈
=
2
1
∴ − = ̈ (1)
2
Equation (7.1) gives, when applied (separately) to the masses and ,
½
− = ̈
− = ̈
where ̈ and ̈ are the vectors giving the accelerations of the masses and . Hence,
½
− = ̈
(2)
− = ̈
Since the right–hand sides of these equations involve only the unit vectors, we see that the masses accelerate only
vertically, as expected. Let ̈ denote the upward acceleration of the mass , so that ̈ = ̈ . Then ̈ is also
the downward acceleration of , and ̈ = −̈ . (To see this, note that when the mass moves a distance
upwards, then the mass must move the same distance downwards.) We then have from (2)
½
− = − ̈
(3)
− = ̈
Finally, there is a link between ̈ and ̈: Assuming that the string does not slip, if the pulley turns through an angle
counterclockwise then the mass moves the distance upwards. That is, = when denotes the vertical
position of mass and the angle of rotation of the pulley; and differentiating twice with respect of time gives
̈ = ̈ or ̈ = ̈. Substituting this into (1) and combining with (3), we get the set of three equations of three
unknowns, ⎧
⎨ − = 12 ̈
− = − ̈
⎩
− = ̈
61
from which ̈ can be solved (e.g. by subtracting the second equation from the sum of the first and the third). We get
−
̈ = 1
2 + +
12.3 The equation of rotation tells us that
× = ̈
where ̈ is the angular acceleration counterclockwise. Although the question does not specify it, we must assume
that the object rotates about a fixed axis. We will assume that the axis goes through the centre of the object.
If we take to go as shown above, and if we choose and axes as shown, then we have
=
=
Then the equation of rotation tells us that
× = ̈ ∴ = ̈
Thus to get ̈ = we must have
= ∴ =
12.4 .
P
x
G
mg
_
The only force acting on the rod which does not act at point is gravity , acting at point . Therefore, the
equation of motion for rotation about point is (see (10.3)):
̈ = ×
where is the vector from to . The direction of vector will depend on the angle of the rod. So, let denote the
angle that the rod makes with the vertical. Choose and to be unit vectors as in the picture.
j
P i
r
G
mg
_
Then ¡ ¢
= = cos − sin
and ¡ ¢
× = × cos − sin = − sin
Therefore, the equation of motion becomes
̈ = − sin ∴ ̈ = − sin
For small oscillations ( small) we can use the approximation sin ≈ Then the equation of motion is
approximately
̈ = −
which describes harmonic motion with period
s
= 2
It remains to calculate the moment of inertia of the rod about an axis through . This is calculated using the
62
APM1612/102/3
parallel axis theorem:
= + 2
since the distance from to is . The table on page 198 of the study guide gives
1
= (2)2
3
and therefore
4
= 2 + 2
3
So, the period of the small oscillations is
s s
2 + 43 2 32 + 42
= 2 = 2
3
12.5 –
12.6
1
̈ = − 1 ̈ = − 1 = 1
2 + 2 + 2 2 +
12.7 ̈ ≈ − 34
¡ ¢
12.8 = 2 sin 200 − 1
12.9 Firstly, we note that the rod will move (rotate) just like the massless rod with a particle of mass attached at
each end of it. To see why this is true, assume that each of the two blocks of mass have been suspended from
the ends of the rod by thin string. Then the shape of the blocks is clearly irrelevant to their acceleration, and
hence we can assume that they are in fact point masses, i.e. particles. But the lengths of the strings must also be
irrelevant, and therefore we may assume that the particles are in fact attached to the rod itself. We also see that
the downward/upward acceleration of a block is equal to the downward/upward acceleration of the end of the rod
to which it is attached. Thus, let us consider a massless rod with a particle of mass attached at end and
another one at end The rod is fixed such that it rotates about point on the rod, where the distance from to
is 1 and the distance from to is 2
A B
C
Initially, the rod is held horizontal. When the rod is released, it starts to rotate about point The angular acceleration
of this rotation is fully determined by the equations of rotation once we know the moment of inertia of the system
(the rod and the two particles), and the forces acting on the system. The angular acceleration will change as the rod
changes its position, but we are interested only in the initial angular acceleration ̈0 at the moment when the rod is
horizontal. Once we have ̈0 we can easily find the upwards/downwards accelerations of the two ends of the rod.
A l1 N l2 B i
mg C mg j
The forces acting on the system consisting of the rod and the two particles are: Forces of gravity acting
downwards at point and point (where the particles are); and the normal force at point which keeps that
point of the rod fixed. Note that since the rod itself is massless, there is no force of gravity acting on the rod itself.
Also, the moment of the normal force about point vanishes since that force acts at point Therefore, to analyse
rotation about point we only need to consider the forces of gravity at and By the equation of motion of
rotation, we therefore get
× + × = ̈0 (*)
where ̈0 is the counterclockwise angular acceleration. If the –coordinate system is the usual one, as indicated in
the sketch above, then
= −1 = 2 = −
We also need to calculate the value of the moment of inertia of the system consisting of the massless rod and the
two particles when it rotates about a fixed axis through point The total moment of inertia is found by adding
together the moments of inertia of the three components, that is,
= + + rod
where and rod denote, respectively, the moments of inertia of the particle at the particle at , and the rod,
all taken for rotation about point
63
For we use (10.5) which for the case of just one particle gives
= (1 )2
since the distance from to is 1
Similarly, for the particle at we get
= (2 )2
The rod is massless, and therefore
rod = 0
So, we get
= 21 + 22
Substituting all these into (*), we see that
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
(−1 ) × − + 2 × − = 12 + 22 ̈0
¡ ¢
∴ 1 − 2 = 21 + 22 ̈0
¡ ¢
∴ (1 − 2 ) = 21 + 22 ̈0
(1 − 2 ) 1 − 2
∴ ̈0 = = 2
(21 + 22 ) 1 + 22
[Note that we see from this that if 1 2 then the rod rotates counterclockwise, and if 2 1 it rotates clockwise.
If 1 = 2 the rod will have zero angular acceleration: If it has initially stationary, it will not move even after it is
released.] Finally, we need to calculate from ̈0 the corresponding accelerations of the two ends of the rod right after
the rod has been released. As the rod rotates about point the end moves around along a circular path with
radius 1 and along a circular path with radius 2 Accordingly the (tangential) accelerations of and are equal
to 1 ̈0 and 2 ̈0 respectively, where the sign being positive means upwards acceleration for and downwards
accelerations for [This corresponds to positive angular acceleration being counterclockwise.] So, if 1 2 (as
the picture implies),
2 − 1
̈0 = − 2
1 + 22
is negative and therefore end (and the mass suspended from it) will have the downwards acceleration
(2 − 1 )
2 = 2
1 + 22
and end (and the mass suspended from it) will have the upwards acceleration
(2 − 1 )
1 2
1 + 22
12.10 Here is a sketch of the pulley, the string and the two blocks.
Pulley (mass =
M, radius = r)
A O B
2m
Block 2
m
Block 1
The pulley is pivoted at its centre . and denote the points where the string leaves the pulley. (We will need
to refer to these points later on!) To find the accelerations of the two blocks, we need to write down the equations
of the rotation of the pulley, and the translation of Block 1 and Block 2 . The forces acting on Block 1 are: gravity
downwards, and the tension of the string, 1 , upwards. Similarly, the forces acting on Block 2 are gravity 2
downwards and the tension of the string, 2 , upwards. Note that we cannot assume that 1 = 2 ! The forces acting
on the pulley are the tensions of the string, 1 acting downward at point and 2 acting downward at point ; and
gravity (down) and the normal force keeping the pulley in place, (up), both acting at point .
64
APM1612/102/3
Pulley
Y N
A O B
X T1 Mg T2
T1
T2
Block 1 m
2m Block 2
mg
2mg
Rotation of the pulley: If the coordinate system is as shown in the sketch above, then the forces acting on the
pulley can be written as −1 acting at point , −2 acting at point − acting at point and + acting at
point . Also = − and = +. Therefore the equation of rotation when the pulley rotates about its centre
is
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
(−) × −1 + (+) × −2 + (0) × − + (0) × = 0 ̈
∴ 1 − 2 = 0 ̈ (1)
where is the moment of inertia when the pulley rotates about point and ̈ is the angular acceleration with which
it rotates (taken to be positive counterclockwise on the –plane).
Translation of Block 1: The equation of the translation of Block 1 is
1 − = ̈1 ∴ 1 − = ̈1 (2)
where ̈1 is the acceleration of Block 1 (taken to be positive upwards).
Translation of Block 2: Similarly, the equation for the translation of Block 2 is
2 − 2 = (2) ̈2 ∴ 2 − 2 = 2̈2 (3)
where ̈2 is the acceleration of Block 2 (positive upwards). We have 3 equations of motion ((1), (2) and (3)) but 5
unknown quantities: 1 2 ̈ ̈1 and ̈2 . We need two more conditions, which will consist of the links between
the angular and linear accelerations. Namely, we clearly need to have ̈1 = −̈2 (this follows from the way that the
two blocks are linked together by a string which passes over a pulley: Block 1 will go up by a distance if and only
if Block 2 goes down by the same distance !) Likewise, we need to have
̈ = ̈2 = −̈1
(when the pulley rotates the angle counterclockwise, Block 2 goes up by the distance and Block 1 goes down by
the same distance). Substituting
1
̈ = − ̈1
into (1) and
̈2 = −̈1
into (2), we get the three equations ⎧
⎨ 1 − 2 = − ̈1
1 − = ̈1
⎩
2 − 2 = −2̈1
with three unknowns (1 2 ̈1 ). We can solve ̈1 from these equations, to get
̈1 = ¡ ¢
3 + 02
and
̈2 = − ¡ ¢
3 + 02
We see that whatever 0 is, Block 1 will accelerate upwards and Block 2 downwards – which is of course what we
would expect, since Block 2 is the heavier one!
65
(a) If the pulley is approximately a ring with mass and radius then
0 = 2
and the acceleration of Block 1 upwards (and Block 2 downwards) will be
̈1 =
3 +
(b) If the pulley is approximately a disc with mass and radius then
1
0 = 2
2
and in this case, we get
̈1 =
3 + 12
Comparing the accelerations in (a) and (b), we see that the accelerations of the blocks are smaller when the
pulley is shaped like a ring rather than a disc. This is as expected: ring has a larger moment of inertia than a
disc of the same mass and radius, and therefore it takes more effort to make the ring rotate!
12.11 The angular momentum of the whole object formed by the beam and the two men must be the same initially and
afterwards; and in both cases the angular momentum is given by = ̇ where is the moment of inertia of the
object, and ̇ the angular velocity. INITIALLY, we have a rod of mass and length 2 (let’s say) with both men at
the centre of the rod, so the moment of inertia for rotation about the centre of the rod is = 13 2 [the men stand at
the axis of rotation so they do not contribute to the moment of inertia]. And we are told that the angular velocity is
̇ = So, the initial angular momentum is
1
in. = 2
3
FINALLY, after the men have moved to the ends of the beam, the moment of inertia equals
1 1
= 2 + 2 + 2 = 2 + 2 2
3 3
(this is the moment of inertia of the rod, as before, plus the moments of inertia of the two men with masses at the
ends of the beam, the distance from the centre). The angular velocity is now ̇ = 1 Therefore, the final moment
of inertia is µ ¶
1 2 2
fin. = + 2 1
3
Now, the values of in. and fin. will be the same, since no no moments of forces exist to change the angular
momentum. We get
in. = fin.
µ ¶
1 1
∴ 2 = 2 2
+ 2 1
3 3
1
2
∴ 1 = ¡ 1 32 2
¢ =
3 + 2 ( + 6 )
[Note that the value of determining the length of the beam, will cancel out everywhere here!]
12.12 (a) The sketch is shown below. (b) The coordinate system is also shown in the sketch below.
mass M
M
2M
X
[Note that where the origin of the coordinate system is will make not difference here!]
(c) Pulley:
66
APM1612/102/3
A C B
Mg
T1
T2
The forces acting on the pulley are:
– Tension 1 of the left string, acting downwards at point where the string leaves the pulley;
– Tension 2 of the right string, acting downwards at point where the string leaves the pulley;
– Gravity acting downwards at the centre of the pulley;
– The normal force which counters all the other forces and keeps the pulley in place, at
[Note that it is not necessarily true that 1 = 2 !]
Cube 1 (with mass on the left in our sketch): The forces are tension 1 upwards; and gravity downwards.
Cube 2 (with mass 2 on the right in our sketch): The forces are tension 2 upwards; and gravity 2 downwards.
T1 T2
Cube 1: M Cube 2: 2M
Mg 2Mg
(d): Rotation of the pulley: The equation of rotation of the pulley, for rotation about its centre (point ), is
× 1 + × 2 + × + × = ̈
[We have taken the moments of all four forces acting on the disc, about point – but of course the forces and
act at so we know that their moments vanish!] The moment of inertia of the disc rotating about its centre is
1
= 2
2
Finally, to find the values of the vector products, we will express the position vectors and the forces in terms of the
unit vectors of our coordinate system:
1 = −1 = −
2 = −2 = +
We get the following equation of rotation:
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢ 1
(−) × −1 + (+) × −2 = 2 ̈
2
1
∴ 1 − 2 = 2 ̈ (1)
2
The equation of the motion of cube 1: If ̈1 is the acceleration of the cube, measured positive upwards, then the
equation of motion is
1 − = ̈1 (2)
[Make sure you get the signs of the forces and accelerations right – you must decide whether positive should be
upwards (like here) or downwards, and then take forces and accelerations with positive sign if they act/move in the
positive direction!] The equation of the motion of cube 2: Similarly, for cube 2 we get
2 − 2 = 2 ̈2 (3)
when ̈2 is taken to be positive upwards. [Remember to take 2 in front of ̈2 , since the mass of cube 2 is 2 !]
(e) When cube 1 goes up, cube 2 must go down by the same amount, so we must have
̈1 = −̈2 (4)
[The signs must be different since both are measured positive upwards!] And if cube 2 goes up by a distance 2 then
the pulley must rotate counterclockwise through an angle such that
2 =
67
Therefore we must also have
̈2 = ̈ (5)
(and
̈1 = −̈
which follows from (4) and (5)).
(f) We have now 5 equations, (1) to (5), from which we can solve the 5 unknown quantities ̈1 ̈2 ̈ 1 and 2
Since we want 1 2 and ̈ we will proceed by substituting (4) and (5) to eliminate ̈1 and ̈2 from (2) and (3).
Equations (1) to (3) can then be re–written as:
⎧
⎨ 1 − 2 = 12 ̈
− = − ̈
⎩ 1
2 − 2 = 2 ̈
The solution is
2 9 10
̈ = − 1 = 2 =
7 7 7
[The negative sign of ̈ indicates that the pulley rotates clockwise, which is what we expect since the heavier cube is
on the right side in our picture!]
12.13
A
P
G
mg B
The sketch above shows the rod rotating about point Clearly we need to write down the equation of rotation for
the rod about the point and for that we need to find the moment of the force (the only force on the rod not
acting at point ) about point ; as well as the moment of inertia for rotation about point The moment of the
force will depend on the angle that the rod forms with the vertical. Let be the angle that forms, measured
counterclockwise from the vertical down from and let coordinate system be as shown below.
P a/6
r
Y G
θ
X mg
Then
= + sin − cos
6 6
and
= −
The equation of motion is therefore
³ ´ ¡ ¢
sin −cos × − = ̈
6 6
∴ − sin = ̈
6
The moment of inertia of the rod when it rotates about point is equal to
³ ´2
= +
6
(according to the parallel axis theorem), where
1 ³ ´2
=
3 2
(this is the moment of inertia of a rod with mass and length 2 with = 2 , rotating about its centre). Thus
1 1 1
= 2 + 2 = 2
12 36 9
68
APM1612/102/3
So, the equation of rotation is
1
− sin = 2 ̈
6 9
3
∴ ̈ = − sin
2
If the oscillations are small (i.e. if stays small) then we have approximately
sin ≈
and approximately, the equation of motion is
3
̈ = −
2
This is harmonic motion, with period of oscillations given by
r
2
period = 2
3
[Here is how this comes about: The solution to the differential equation ̈ = −2 is given by () =
cos () + sin () as can be seen by differentiating this function twice with respect to time But
() = cos () + sin () clearly describes periodic motion; and since the period of cos () and sin () is 2
(meaning that they return back to their original values after that time), the period of cos () and sin () is 2 ·
1
]
12.14
L/4 P L/4 G L/2
mg
Let denote the point of the pivot, and the centre of mass of the rod. Then the initial positions is shown in the
sketch above.
(a) We will write down the equation of rotation of the rod about point The forces acting on the rod are gravity
at and a normal force at (We are denoting the mass of the rod by but you will see that ””s cancel out
in what follows!) The equation of motion, taking moments of forces about point becomes
− = ̈
4
where ̈ is the angular acceleration (taken to be positive counterclockwise), and is the moment of inertia when
the rod rotates about an axis through point perpendicular to the rod. We can calculate by using the parallel
axis theorem: µ ¶2 µ ¶2 µ ¶2
1 7
= + = + = 2
4 3 2 4 48
So, the equation of rotation is
7 12
− = 2 ̈ ∴ ̈ = −
4 48 7
[Note that this equation of rotation is only valid in the original position. As soon as the rod starts to move, the
moment of gravity will start to change! The negative value of ̈ indicates that the rod rotates clockwise.]
(b) The vertical accelerations of the ends of the rod can be found from the angular acceleration ̈
P
L/4 3L/4
¯ ¯
¯ ¯
The left end point moves upwards with acceleration ¯̈¯ 4 and the right end point moves downwards with
¯ ¯
¯ ¯
acceleration 3 ¯̈¯ 4. This is because the tangential acceleration is given by the angular acceleration times the
length of the radius!)
12.15
(a) We start with the fact that for a ring, the moment of inertia when the ring rotates about an axis perpendicular to
the ring, through its centre, is
= 2 But then, using the perpendicular axis theorem, we get that
= +
where
and
are the moments of inertia for rotation about any two axis through the centre of the ring,
parallel to the plane of the ring, and perpendicular to each other. Further, by symmetry,
=
69
It then follows that
1 1
= = 2
2 2
We are looking here for the moment of inertia about an axis which is tangential to the ring at a point at its
rim; this means an axis which is parallel to the plane of the ring but which touches only the point on the ring.
But then this axis is parallel to an axis parallel to the ring and through its centre and the distance from it (in the
sketch below, axis ), and so by the parallel axis theorem we get
3
= + 2 = 2
2
Z
G
X
Y
(b) The period is s
s r
3 2
2 3
2 = 2 = 2
2
[Here is how this comes about: The solution to the differential equation
̈ = −2
is given by
() = cos () + sin ()
as can be seen by differentiating this function twice with respect to time But
() = cos () + sin ()
clearly describes periodic motion; and since the period of cos () and sin () is 2 (meaning that they return
back to their original values after that time), the period of cos () and sin () is correspondingly given by
1
2 · ]
Study unit 13 SOLUTIONS
13.1 Let denote the centre of mass of the ladder, the point of contact between the ladder and the wall, and the
point of contact between the ladder and the floor. The forces acting on the ladder are, when the coordinate system is
as indicated below,
– Normal force acting at
– Normal force acting at
– Friction − acting at
– Gravity − acting at
A Nw
Mg j
Nf i
"
B
Further, we have
= − cos + sin = cos − sin
1
if denotes the angle that the ladder forms with the floor, and = 2 The motion of the ladder can be
3
70
APM1612/102/3
described by the equations
⎧
⎨ − = ̈
⎪
− = ̈
⎪
⎩ 1 2
̈ = {cos − sin − sin }
3
where ̈ and ̈ are the and coordinate of the acceleration of and ̈ the angular acceleration, measured
counterclockwise. If the ladder does not slip, we must have ̈ = ̈ = ̈ = 0 Therefore, the following equations must
hold: ⎧
⎨ − = 0
− = 0
⎩
{cos − sin − sin } = 0
from which we get
= =
and therefore
cos − sin − sin = 0 µ ¶
sin 1 1 1
∴ = ∴ tan = ∴ = tan−1
cos 2 2 2
13.2 The ring.
13.3 Let denote the centre of mass of the ladder, the point of contact between the ladder and the wall, and the
point of contact between the ladder and the floor. Further, let us denote the mass of the ladder by and its length by
2 Then the forces acting on the ladder are the following: Gravity , acting downwards at The normal force
that the wall exerts on the ladder, acting horizontally away from the wall at The normal force that the
floor exerts on the ladder, acting vertically away from the floor at The force of friction between the ladder and the
wall, acting at
Y
Fw
A
Nw
Wall
G
mg
j Nf X
i B Floor
Note that there is no friction between the ladder and the floor, since the floor is assumed to be smooth. If we assume
–coordinates to be as indicated in the sketch above, then we can express the forces in terms of the and unit
vectors as follows ⎧
⎪
⎪ = −
⎨
=
(1)
⎪
⎪ =
⎩
=
where denotes the coefficient of friction between the wall and the ladder. If we wish to investigate the rotation of
the ladder about its centre of mass we will also need to express the position vectors and in terms of the
and unit vectors. At the moment when the ladder forms the counterclockwise angle with the vertical (see the
sketch), we clearly have
= (− sin + cos ) = (sin − cos )
Also, the moment of inertia of the ladder for rotation about is approximately
1
= 2
3
Now, the motion of the ladder can be fully described by applying (13.1) and (13.2). The equation (13.1) describes
the translation of the centre of mass of the ladder, and applied to this particular case tells us that
̈ = + + + (2)
where ̈ denotes the acceleration of the centre of mass of the ladder, Let us denote by ̈ and ̈ the and
components of ̈ so that
̈ = ̈ + ̈; (3)
71
then substituting (1) and (3) into (2) and considering and components separately, we get the equations
½
̈ =
(4)
̈ = − + +
To apply the equation of rotation (13.2), let ̈ denote the angular acceleration of the rotation, measured
counterclockwise. Then taking moments of all the forces about we get the equation
µ ¶
1 2
̈ = × + × + ×
3
1
∴ 2 ̈ = (− sin + cos ) × ( )
3
+(− sin + cos ) × ( )
+(sin − cos ) × ( )
1 2
∴ ̈ = (− sin − cos + sin )
3
1
∴ ̈ = − sin − cos + sin (5)
3
So, combining (4) and (5), the equation of motion are
⎧
⎨ ̈ =
⎪
̈ = − + + (6)
⎪
⎩ 1 ̈ = − sin − cos + sin
3
This is a set of equations with 5 unknowns (̈ ̈ ̈) and 3 equations. However, since the ladder is
always in contact with the floor on the one end and the wall on the other end, it is clear that in fact ̈ ̈ and ̈ are
interlinked: Each position of the ladder can be uniquely described by, for instance, giving the angle of rotation
and the ( ) coordinates of can then be uniquely expressed in terms of In particular, ̈ and ̈ can be expressed
in terms of ̈, so that (6) has in fact 3 variables and 3 equations. We could proceed to solve ̈ and from (6),
thus determining exactly how the ladder will move. However, this will not be necessary as in this exercise we were
told just to prove that the ladder cannot be at rest, that is, that it will slide down along the floor, however large is.
To prove this, it is sufficient to look at the first equation of (6),
̈ = (7)
If the ladder does rest against the wall, then the wall must push against the ladder with a positive (non–zero) normal
force. That is, 0 But according to (7), then we must also have ̈ 0 so that the centre of mass has a
positive acceleration towards the right. Therefore, as long as the ladder rests against the wall, it cannot be at rest but
rather slides down, towards the right.
13.4
..
..
x
Let us assume that the solid cylinder has mass and radius and that the plane forms the angle with horizontal.
The moment of inertia of the cylinder, when it rotates about its centre, is = 12 2 Whether the cylinder slides or
rolls down the plane, the forces acting on it are:
C
N
F
A
Mg
– force of friction acting at point (the point of contact between the cylinder and the plane). The frictional
force is directed up the slope, since it opposes the direction of motion of the cylinder down the slope.
72
APM1612/102/3
– Gravity , acting at the centre of the cylinder (point ), and directed downwards.
– The normal force on the cylinder from the plane, at the point of contact at a direction perpendicular to the
plane, towards the cylinder.
Y X
Mgsin
C
Mgcos
N
F Mg
A
Mg
Let us assume that the –axis goes up the slope, and the –axis is perpendicular to it, as shown. Then we can write
=
=
= − sin − cos
and the position vector from to is
= = −
The acceleration vector of the centre of the cylinder can similarly be written in terms of its components parallel and
perpendicular to the slope, as
̈ = ̈ + ̈
(Note that positive ̈ here will mean acceleration up the slope, so we should expect ̈ to be negative!) Finally, we will
agree that ̈ denotes the angular acceleration of the cylinder, measured counterclockwise. The equation of translation
of the centre of mass of the cylinder is now
+ + = ̈
and the equation of rotation of the cylinder about its centre point is
× = ̈
(The forces and travel through the centre of the cylinder, so their moments about vanish.) Using the
coordinate system and the corresponding unit vectors described above, we get the following equations describing the
motion of the centre of the cylinder parallel and perpendicular to the inclined plane, and its rotation:
− sin = ̈ (1)
− cos = ̈ (2)
= ̈ (3)
We know that the cylinder is constrained to travel parallel to the inclined plane, meaning that we must have ̈ = 0;
therefore (2) implies that
= cos (4)
We will assume that the force of friction can be written using a coefficient of friction, , as
=
so by (4),
= cos
Substituting this into (1) and (3), we get the following two equations (we have also here substituted = 12 ):
cos − sin = ̈
1
cos = 2 ̈
2
which give
̈ = cos − sin (5)
1
̈ = 2 cos (6)
The one remaining unknown quantity here is the coefficient of friction The value of will determine the type of
motion that the cylinder will exhibit going down the plane (a combination of rolling and slipping, or rolling without
slipping). Unless we know the value of we cannot say exactly how long it takes for the cylinder to travel down the
plane. However, we do have a way of finding the value of in the second type of motion (rolling without slipping).
73
Namely, rolling without slipping requires a value ∗ for the coefficient of friction for which the rolling condition
̈ = −̈
holds. (The minus sign follows from the fact that counterclockwise rotation in our sketch is down the slope, but the
positive –axis is up the slope!) So, let us assume that = ∗ which is a value for which the rolling condition
holds. According to (5) and (6),
̈ = −̈
means that
∗ cos − sin = −2∗ cos
from which we can solve the value ∗ :
1 sin
3 cos − sin ∴ ∗ =
3 cos
Therefore, if the motion is rolling without slipping, the acceleration of the centre of mass of the cylinder along the
inclined plane is
µ ¶
1 sin 2
̈∗ = cos − sin = cos − sin = − sin
3 cos 3
(As discussed before, the "minus" sign means that the acceleration is down the slope.) The acceleration here is
constant, which makes it very easy for us to find the time it takes for the cylinder to roll down the plane: If we
assume that the length of the plane is and that the cylinder starts at rest at the top of the plane, then it will reach
the bottom of the plane in time 2 with
s s
2 3
2 = =
|̈∗ | sin
If, on the other hand, all we know is that the solid cylinder moves down the slope in a combination of slipping and
rolling, then we cannot find the exact value of ̈ nor therefore of 1 without knowing the value of the coefficient
of friction However we know that in this kind of motion the coefficient of friction must be smaller than in rolling
without slipping:
∗
But according to (5), this means that
̈ = cos − sin ∗ cos − sin = ∗
so that
|̈| |̈∗ |
(both accelerations being negative). But this gives then for the time 1 taken in this motion to travel down the slope
s s
2 2
1 = = 2
|̈| |̈∗ |
We have proven that it always takes longer for the cylinder to roll without slipping down the plane, than it would take
in a motion which is a combination of rolling and slipping.
13.5 .
"
T
T
a m
A
mg Mg
Let be the clockwise angular acceleration, and and the acceleration downwards of the mass and the disc,
respectively.
(a) Clearly, the distance that the centre of the disc has dropped in a certain time period, is the sum of firstly, the
length of tape that has passed over the pulley, and secondly, the length of tape that has unravelled from the disc.
Hence, clearly
= − + (1)
or,
+
=
(b) Writing down the equations of motion in vertical direction for the mass and the disc as well as the equation
74
APM1612/102/3
of rotation of the disc, we get the equations
= − (2)
= − (3)
= (4)
1
where = If we substitute (1) into (3), we get 3 equations
2
2
= −
− = −
1
2 =
2
with 3 unknown variables, and Solving the equations, we get
µ ¶
(3 − ) 2 2
= =
(3 + ) 3 +
and µ ¶µ ¶
2 − 3 −
= − + =
3 +
Note that is always positive, so that the disc always rotates clockwise.
13.6 The easiest way to solve this is by the energy conservation methods. (For an alternative method we could proceed as
in Method 2 in the solution to Exercise 4.3, later on.)
= 0
Zero energy level
d
Let us take the initial level of the centre of the disc as the zero–energy level.
Initially, at time = 0,
in. = 0
since we chose the zero-energy level so that this holds. For kinetic energy we use the formula
1 2 1
= ̇ + ̇2
2 2
where ̇ is the angular velocity and ̇ is the linear velocity of the centre of the disc. (, the angle of rotation, is
measured counterclockwise and displacement of the centre of the disc, downwards along the slope.) [Remember
that since there is both rotation and translation, the formula of the total kinetic energy has two parts! The rotation
part must be for rotation about the centre of mass, and the translation part for motion of the centre of mass (here, the
centre of the disc).] for the disc is
1
= 2
2
and since the disc is rolling without slipping, we have ̇ = ̇. We were given the initial value ́ = so the initial
kinetic energy is µ ¶
1 1 1 3
in. = 2 + 2 2 = 2 2
2
2 2 2 4
We will take as our later time the moment when the disc has rolled as far as it can up the slope. That is, at time the
disc has rolled an unknown distance up the slope and has come to a temporary stop, prior to starting to roll back
down. Then at time , the energies are
final = + sin
final = 0
The term sin in the potential energy follows from the fact that the centre of the disc has moved the distance
along a slope which makes the angle with the horizontal — and the sign is positive since the motion was upwards!
The principle of energy conservation gives now
in. + in. = final + final
75
that is
3
2 2 = sin
4
Solving for we get
3 2 2
=
4 sin
Alternatively, we could have decided to take the zero energy level go through the centre of the disc at its highests
position.
= 0
Zero energy level
d
Then the energies would be as follows:
Initially, at time = 0,
in. = − sin
3
in. = 2 2
4
Later, at time ,
final = 0
final = 0
The principle of energy conservation
in. + in. = final + final
will give
3
2 2 − sin = 0
4
which again gives
3 2 2
=
4 sin
Alternatively, we could just note that the the disc can roll up the slope until all its initial kinetic energy has been
translated into potential energy. This gives us again the equation
3
2 2 = sin
4
13.7
(a) Let us assume that ̈ and ̈ are measured towards the right and ̈ is measured clockwise. Let denote the centre
of the block, and the centre of a cylinder.
..
Block R
B
.. ..
G x
2
r
Table
The cylinders are rough, and so we can assume that the motion between the cylinders and the table, and the
cylinders and the block, is rolling without slipping. Then
̈ = acceleration of with respect to the table
= ̈
[This is the “rolling condition”: When the cylinder rotates clockwise through the angle its centre moves the
distance towards the right.]
̈ = acceleration of with respect to the table
= (acceleration of with respect to ) + (acceleration of with respect to the table)
= ̈ + ̈ = 2̈
76
APM1612/102/3
That is, ̈ = ̈ ̈ = 2̈
(b)
Mg
f N f N
N f
mg
fT NT
Forces acting on the block:
∗ The force (we don’t know what point this is applied at), towards the right.
∗ Gravity downwards, acting at the centre of the block.
Acting at the points of contact between the block and each of the cylinders, we have:
∗ Friction towards the left.
∗ The normal force exerted on the block by the cylinder, upwards.
Forces acting on the cylinders: (Identical forces act on both the cylinders.)
∗ Gravity downwards, acting at the centre of the cylinder.
Acting at the point of contact between the block and the cylinder:
∗ Friction between the block and the cylinder, towards the right,
∗ the normal force that the block exerts on the cylinder, downwards.
Acting at the point of contact between the cylinder and the table:
∗ The force of friction due to the friction between the cylinder and the table, towards the left,
∗ The normal force that the table exerts on the cylinder, upwards.
[Note that acting towards the left on the block, and acting towards the right on the cylinder form an action –
reaction pair! Same holds for the forces acting on the block and the cylinder.]
(c) Motion of the block: [In the following we have written a separate equation for the vertical and for the horizontal
motion.]
Vertical motion: [Obviously, the block does not move in the vertical direction thus the vertical forces must
cancel out.]
2 − = 0
Horizontal motion:
− 2 = ̈
Motion of the cylinder:
Vertical motion:
− − = 0
Horizontal motion:
− = ̈
Rotation of the cylinders: [Take moments about point ]:
+ = ̈
where
1 2
=
2
(d) If we substitute
1 1
̈ = ̈ ̈ = ̈
2 2
77
[from (a)] into (ii) and (iii), then we get three equations
⎧
⎪
⎪ − 2 = ̈
⎨ (1)
− = ̈ (2)
⎪ 2
⎪
⎩ + = 1 ̈ (3)
2
with three unknown quantities and ̈ . To solve ̈ we can [for instance] multiply (3) by 1
and add to (2),
to get µ ¶
2 = ̈ + 2 ̈ = + 2 ̈
2 2 2 2
If we substitute this into (1), we get
µ ¶
− + 2 ̈ = ̈
2 2
µ ¶
∴ ̈ + + 2 =
2 2
∴ ̈ = (4)
+
2 + 22
Since = 12 2 we get
4
̈ = = =
+ 2 + 4 + 34 4 + 3
(e) By equation (4) above
̈ =
+ + 2 2
2
so that a larger value for gives a smaller value for ̈ For solid cylinders,
1
= 2
2
whereas for hollow cylinders
= 2
That is, hollow cylinders have a larger moment of inertia than solid cylinders, and thus the acceleration ̈ would
be smaller if hollow cylinders were used.
[For hollow cylinders, we would get
̈ = ]
+
13.8 Proceeding as in Example 13.4, we find the following equations of motion to describe the translation and rotation of
the sphere: (
sin − = ̈
2
= 2 ̈
5
where is the force of friction, and ̈ and ̈ the linear and angular accelerations, respectively. Since the sphere also
rolls without slipping, we have ̈ = ̈ and thus the equations of motion become
(
sin − = ̈
2
= ̈
5
By adding together these equations, we get for the acceleration of the centre of mass,
5
̈ = sin
7
and for the force of friction,
2 2
= ̈ = sin
5 7
13.9 —
13.10 —
2 2 1 1
13.11 Solid: ̈ = sin ̈ = sin hollow: ̈ = sin ̈ = sin
3 3 2 2
13.12 Solid: = tan−1 (3) Hollow: = tan−1 (2)
78
APM1612/102/3
13.13
N
_
_F
" Mg
_
We will assume here that both the sphere and the cylinder are solid. Both of the objects have the same mass
and the same radius but they do have different moments of inertial. Proceeding as in Example 3.3, we find the
following equations of motion to describe the translation and rotation of either one of the objects:
½
sin − = ̈
= ̈
where is the force of friction, ̈ and ̈ are the linear and angular accelerations, respectively, of the object in
question and is the moment of inertia for the object. (Note that and hence ̈ and ̈ will have different values
for each object!) Since the objects roll without slipping, we have ̈ = ̈ and thus the equations of motion become
(
sin − = ̈
= ̈
2
from which we can solve (by adding together the equations)
sin
̈ =
+ 2
2
For the solid sphere, = 2 and thus the linear acceleration of the sphere is
5
sin sin 5
̈ = = = sin
2 2 7
+ +
5 5
1
For the solid cylinder, = 2 and therefore the linear acceleration of the cylinder is
2
sin 2
̈ = = sin
1 3
+
2
Both objects have a constant acceleration, and since 57 ≈ 0714 29 0666 67 ≈ 23 the acceleration of the sphere
is greater and therefore it will reach the bottom first. [The sphere has a smaller moment of inertia, so less kinetic
energy will need to be used to set it rotating!]
¡ ¢
13.14 = cos + 2
13.15 Let denote the centre of mass (and midpoint) of the bar, and and the points on the bar currently in contact
with rollers 1 and 2 respectively. The dotted vertical line denotes the midpoint of the two fixed rollers, and the
distance from the midpoint to equals 0
N1 N2
G
f1 f2
A B
Mg
Roller 1 Roller 2
xo
The forces acting on the bar are:
– Gravity acting downwards at point
– Normal force 1 from roller 1 acting at , and normal force 2 from roller 2 acting at Note that the normal
forces 1 and 2 are not necessarily of the same size; the bar rests more heavily on the roller which is closer to
its midpoint!
– The forces of friction 1 acting at and 2 acting at If the coefficient of friction is a constant then we have
1 = 1 2 = 2
79
Friction 1 acts towards the right and friction 2 towards the right. [Why? Let us consider the roller 1 which
rotates clockwise. This motion is opposed by the force of friction acting on the roller, due to its contact with the
bar, and to oppose to the rotation as friction must, the friction on the roller must act towards the left. But this
force of friction forms an action–reaction pair with 1 the friction acting on the bar due to the roller, which must
therefore act towards the right. Or, you can just look at the picture to see that the roller 1 will cause the bar to
move towards the right, via the action of the frictional force directed towards the right!]
Now we can write down the equations of motion describing the motion of the bar, when it lies on top of the bars
in the position shown. Firstly, if ̈ denotes the horizontal acceleration of the centre of mass of the bar, taken to be
positive towards the right in our sketch, then we have
1 − 2 = ̈ ∴ 1 − 2 = ̈ (1)
Secondly, the vertical acceleration of the bar is zero, so that the vertical forces must cancel out:
1 + 2 = (2)
Thirdly, the bar itself does not rotate, so that the moments of all the forces acting on it about point must vanish.
This gives us the condition
− ( + 0 ) 1 + ( − 0 ) 2 = 0 (3)
[Note that the distance from to is + 0 the distance from to is − 0 and the forces 1 2 and all
go through so their moments about vanish!]
From the three equations (1), (2) and (3), with 3 unknowns, 1 2 and ̈ we can find the value of ̈ for instance as
follows. From (3) we get
0
2 − 1 = (1 + 2 )
and by (2), this means that
0
2 − 1 =
If we substitute this into (1), we get
(1 − 2 ) = ̈
0
∴ ̈ = −
∴ ̈ = − 0 (4)
This equation of motion fully described the motion of the centre of mass To interpret the equation of motion and
to predict what the subsequent motion of the bar is, remember that (4) describes the acceleration of at the moment
when the displacement of from the midpoint of the rollers was 0 More generally, let denote the distance of
from the midpoint at a given time, then the acceleration of is related to by the equation of motion
̈ = − (5)
We see that the acceleration is directly proportional to but with the opposite sign, which means that if is negative,
the acceleration is positive and vice versa. It follows that starting from the position shown (0 is positive), initially
the centre of mass will accelerate towards the midpoint of the rollers (̈ negative), with acceleration diminishing
as gets closer to the midpoint. When reaches the midpoint, the acceleration ̈ is zero but the velocity of is
negative and nonzero (since there has been no positive acceleration). It follows that will not stop at the midpoint,
but rather will move on towards the left side of the midpoint. On that side, acceleration is positive (towards the right)
and the negative velocity of will start to slow down and the bar will finally come to stop at position (−0 ) that is,
still the original distance 0 from the midpoint but now on the left hand side. The process will then repeat itself, in
the opposite direction. The end result is that the bar will oscillate between the positions 0 to the left and 0 to the
right of the midpoint. [Note that equation (5) can be written as
̈ = −
for a constant = This is the equation of motion of a spring. The solution to this equation, with the initial
values (0) = 0 and ̈ (0) = 0 is
() = 0 cos
which is a function that oscillates for ever between the values +0 and −0 ]
13.16 ̈ = − 3
4
̈ = 4
3
13.17 Let denote the centre of mass of the ladder, the point of contact between the ladder and the wall, and the
point of contact between the ladder and the floor. Further, let denote the angle that the ladder makes with the
floor. We can assume that the centre of mass of the system formed by the ladder and the man also lies at since
it is reasonable to assume that the man will balance himself properly on the ladder. The forces acting on the
80
APM1612/102/3
ladder–and–man system are, when the coordinate system is chosen as indicated below,
– Normal force acting at
– Normal force acting at
– Friction = − acting at
– Gravity − ( + 80) acting at
A Nw
(m+80)g j
Nf i
"
F B
Further, we have
= − cos + sin = cos − sin
Finally, the moment of inertia of the system formed by the man and the ladder, for rotation about an axis through the
1
centre of mass of the system, can be assumed to be the same as that of the ladder alone, that is, = 2 This
3
is because the man is situated such that his weight is applied in the middle of the ladder. The motion of the system
consisting of the man and the ladder can now be described by the equations
⎧
⎪
⎨ − = ( + 80) ̈
− ( + 80) = ( + 80) ̈
⎪
⎩ 1 2
̈ = {cos − sin − sin }
3
where ̈ and ̈ are the and coordinate of the acceleration of and ̈ the angular acceleration, measured
counterclockwise. If the ladder does not slip, we must have ̈ = ̈ = ̈ = 0 Therefore, the following equations must
hold: ⎧
⎨ − = 0
− ( + 80) = 0
⎩
{cos − sin − sin } = 0
from which we get
= ( + 80) = ( + 80)
and therefore
cos ( + 80) − sin ( + 80) − sin ( + 80) = 0
sin 1
∴ =
cos 2
1
∴ tan =
2
µ ¶
1
∴ = tan−1
2
[Note that the final result does not depend on the mass of the ladder, or the mass of the man, but only on the
coefficient of friction!]
13.18 Let denote the moment of inertia of an object (ring or disc) for rotation about its axis. If we denote by the angle
of the incline, and if is the moment of inertia for the object as it rotates about its centre of mass, then we obtain the
following equations of motion for the object
½
sin − = ̈
= ̈
Applying the rolling condition, ̈ = ̈ we get
⎧
⎨ sin − = ̈
⎩ = ̈
81
from which we can solve the angular and linear accelerations:
sin
̈ = ̈ = ̈
+
For the ring, = 2 and thus
1 1
̈ = sin ̈ = sin
2 2
1
For the disc, = and therefore
2
2
2 2
̈ = sin ̈ = sin
3 3
13.19 To answer the question, we will need to write down the relevant equations of motion: for rotation of both of the
cylinders, and for the translation of cylinder A. The forces acting on the two cylinders [ignoring the gravity and the
normal force acting on cylinder B – they act at its centre, and therefore do not affect the rotation of that cylinder]
are: The tension on the rope, acting downwards along the tape on cylinder B and upwards along the tape on
cylinder A; and gravity acting downwards at the centre of cylinder A. The forces acting on the cylinders will
make cylinder B rotate clockwise about its fixed axis; while cylinder A will rotate clockwise while simultaneously
moving downwards.
Anticipating these results, let us decide do denote by ̈ the angular acceleration of cylinder A and by ̈ the angular
acceleration of cylinder B, with both measured positive clockwise. Further, let ̈ denote the linear acceleration of the
centre of cylinder A, measured such that it is positive downwards. The forces, as well as the decisions on how to
measure the accelerations, are indicated in the sketch below.
θ¨ B
B T
T θ¨ A
A
ẍ
Then the equations of motion are:
= ̈ (1)
= ̈ (2)
− = ̈ (3)
[Remember to check the signs of the forces, and match them with the way you chose to measure things! Here, for
instance, we decided that ̈ should be positive downwards, but then we must remember that all downwards forces
must also be taken with a positive sign!] Here is the moment of inertia of the (identical) cylinders as they rotate
around their centres; since the cylinders are solid, we have
1
= 2
2
In equations (1) – (3) there are 4 unknown quantities: ̈ ̈ and ̈ Since we only have 3 equations, we will
need one more condition. As usual, this is provided by a "rolling condition" linking ̈ to ̈ and ̈ . Namely, the
downwards motion of the centre of cylinder A happens as a result of the tape moving downwards as it unravels from
cylinder B; plus more tape unravelling from cylinder A. The distance that the centre of cylinder A has dropped in a
certain period of time is the sum of firstly, the length of tape that has unravelled from cylinder B in that time, plus the
length of tape that has in that time unravelled from cylinder A as that cylinder rotates. Therefore, we must have
̈ = ̈ + ̈ (4)
[Note: If you choose to measure any of the quantities in any other way, make sure to check the signs here!]
Now we are ready to solve the equations (1) to (4). For instance,we can deduce from (4) that
̈
= ̈ + ̈ (5)
On the other hand, adding up both sides of (1) and (2), we get
³ ´
2 = ̈ + ̈
82
APM1612/102/3
Substituting (5) into this we get, eventually,
= ̈
22
and combined with (3) this gives finally (after substituting in the value of as well)
2
̈ =
3
The acceleration of cylinder A is 23 downwards.
Study unit 14 SOLUTIONS
14.1 Mr2 2 1/2 and 1/2
14.2 The ring.
14.3 The kinetic energy of the rod is
= rot. + transl.
where rot. is the kinetic energy of the rotation of the rod about its centre of mass:
1 2
rot. = ̇
2
where ̇ = = 13 2 ; and transl. is the kinetic energy of the translation of the centre of mass:
1
transl. = ̇2
2
where ̇ = So, the total kinetic energy is
µ ¶
1 1 1 1 1
= 2 + 2 = 2 2 + 2
2
2 3 2 6 2
[Note that this is not a case of rolling without slipping, so that there is not necessarily any link between ̇ and ̇!
Both of these can have any values, independently of each other.
14.4
A Length=2l G Mass=2M B
m m
Axis of rotation
(a) To find the total moment of inertia, we add up the moments of inertia about the given axis through of all the
components (the rod itself, the particle attached at the midpoint, and the particle attached at point ) which
rod
we will denote by
and
For the rod itself, we know that the moment of inertia when the rod rotates
about an axis perpendicular to the rod, through its centre of mass , is equal to
rod 1
= (2 )2
3
In this question, the axis of rotation is still perpendicular to the rod but through point The parallel axis theorem
can be used, since the two axes are parallel to each other. The distance from to is equal to and therefore
by the parallel axis theorem we get
rod rod 1 8
= + (2 )2 = (2 )2 + (2 )2 = 2
3 3
For the two particles, we calculate the moment of inertia by using the equation
= 2
where is the distance from the particle to the axis of rotation. This gives for the particles situated at and
the moments of inertia
= 2
= (2)2 = 42
since the distance from to is and the distance from to is 2 In conclusion, then, the total moment of
inertia of the whole object as it rotates about the given axis is
µ ¶
rod 8 8
= + + = 2 + 2 + 42 = + 5 2
3 3
83
(b) Since we have here a rigid body rotating about a fixed axis, the kinetic energy of rotation is given by
1 2
= ̇
2
We have already calculated that for the described rotation,
µ ¶
8
= = + 5 2
3
The angular velocity is given: ̇ = Therefore, we have
µ ¶
1 2 1 8
= = + 5 2 2
2 2 3
14.5 Since the cylinders are rotating about their axes with angular velocity then each cylinder’s kinetic energy is
1
= 2
2
where is the moment of inertia of the cylinder.
1
For cylinder 1, = 2 and therefore
2
1
1 = 2 2
4
1
For cylinder 2, = (3)2 and therefore
2
9
2 = 2 2
4
14.6 The potential energy of the pendulum can be calculated from
=
where is the total mass of the pendulum, and is the height difference (positive or negative) between the centre
of mass of the pendulum and the zero energy level. Here, = + We will need to find where on the rod the
centre of mass of the pendulum is, in order to find its height in relation to the zero energy level in (a), (b) and (c).
Since the zero energy level is taken to go through what we really need is the distance from to the centre of
mass Let us denote this distance by We can easily find by taking the –axis to go along the rod, with origin
at ; then the –coordinate of the centre of mass is
B
A 2L m M X
0 L 2L
Thus we simply have
µ ¶ µ ¶
· + · 2 + 2
= = = 1+
+ + +
(a) When the pendulum is horizontal, the centre of mass lies on the zero energy level, so = 0 and hence the
potential energy is zero.
Zero energy
A G level
(b) If the pendulum stands upside down vertically above then lies the distance = + above the zero energy
level.
G
x
Zero energy
A level
Therefore, the potential energy in this case is
µ ¶
+ 2
= + ( + ) = ( + ) = ( + 2 )
+
84
APM1612/102/3
o
(c) If the pendulum forms the angle 45 with a vertical line drawn down from then lies the distance
1
= cos(45o ) = √
2
below and below the zero energy level.
Zero energy
A level
h
G
Therefore, in this case
µ ¶
1 1 + 2 1
= − ( + ) √ = − ( + ) √ = − √ ( + 2 )
2 2 + 2
[Remark: We could alternatively have added together the potential energy of the rod and the potential energy of
the disc in each case!]
14.7 Since the motion here is a combination of rotation and translation, the total kinetic energy is given by
1 1 2
= ̇2 + ̇
2 2
where ̇ is the velocity of the centre of the cylinder and ̇ the angular velocity. We have
1
̇ = = 2
2
Also, if the cylinder rolls without slipping then
³ ´2
̇2 = ̇ = 2 2
So, we get µ ¶
1 1 1 3
= ()2 + 2 2 = 2 2
2 2 2 4
The first term, 12 2 2 , is for translations and the second, 14 2 2 is for rotation, so the proportion
1 2 2
4 1
3 2 2
=
4
3
of the total is due to rotation, and the rest, 2
3 of the total, is due to translation.
14.8
(a) Let be the moment of inertia for rotation of the object consisting of the rod and the particle, about an axis
through The value of is found by adding together the moment of inertia for the rod, and for the particle, as
they rotate about the given axis. Thus, since the rod has mass 3 and length 2 and the particle has mass 4
and lies at the distance 2 from point we get
4
= 32 + 4 (2)2 = 202
3
(b) We can solve this problem by applying the energy conservation method. In the initial position, the rod has
potential energy but no kinetic energy, while at the final position it has kinetic energy but no potential energy, so
by applying energy conservation we will be able to find the kinetic energy in the final position from the potential
energy in the initial position.
Zero energy level A A G B
Initial position Later position
85
Initially, the centre of mass is above the zero energy level. To find the initial potential energy, we must find
the distance from to the centre of mass of the system consisting of the rod and the particle. But this can easily
be calculated to be
3 · + 4 · 2 11
= =
3 + 4 7
Thus, we get
11
in = (7) = (7) = 11
7
[Remember that the mass of the whole object is 7!] We could have alternatively calculated this initial potential
energy as the sum of the potential energies of the rod and of the particle:
in = (3) + (4) 2 = 11
The disc is initially at rest, so
in = 0
When is horizontal, then is along the zero energy level, so that
= 0
[The subindex refers to the “horizontal” position!] If the angular velocity of rotation at the moment when
is horizontal is denoted by ̇ then the kinetic energy at that moment is [for pure rotation]
1 2 1¡ ¢ 2 2
= ̇ = 202 ̇ = 102 ̇
2 2
The system is conservative, and therefore the sum of kinetic and potential energies is constant. If we set the
initial and final energies to be equal, we get
in + in= +
³ ´2
∴ 11 + 0 = 0 + 10 2 ̇
³ ´2
∴ 10 2 ̇ = 11
We can solve the angular velocity from this:
³ ´2 11 r
11 11
̇ = = ∴ ̇ =
10 2 10 10
¡ ¢ ¡ ¢
14.9 (a) = 52 + 83 2 = 5 + 83 2 (b) = 12 2 = 12 5 + 83 2 2
Study unit 15 SOLUTIONS
15.1 Method 1 (Using energy conservation)
We will compare energies of the system at time = 0 and at a later time when the sphere has rolled the distance
down the slope.
Zero energy level
xsin30
x
30
If we take the level of the centre of the sphere in its initial position to be the zero–energy level, then
Initially,
in = 0
in = 0 (since initially the sphere is at rest).
Finally, when the sphere has rolled the distance down the slope, we get the following energies:
1
final = − sin 30o = −
2
1 2 1 ³ ´2
final = (̇) + ̇
2 2
where is the mass of the sphere, is the moment of inertia of the sphere when it rotates about its centre, ̇ is the
velocity of the centre of the sphere down the slope and ̇ the angular velocity of the sphere, both measured at the
86
APM1612/102/3
moment when the sphere has rolled the distance down the slope. Since there is no slipping, there is a connection
between ̇ and ̇:
̇
̇ = ̇ or ̇ =
where is the radius of the sphere. The moment of inertia is given in the table on page 148 of the study guide:
2
= 2
5
So, we get
µ ¶2
1 1 2 ̇ 7
final = (̇)2 + · 2 = (̇)2
2 2 5 10
According to the principle of energy conservation, then,
in + in = final + final
1 7
∴ 0 = − + (̇)
2
2 10
5
∴ (̇)2 = (1)
7
We will use this formula in parts (a) and (b).
(a) We want to calculate ̇ after 5 seconds. Now we cannot use (1) directly since we do not know immediately how
far the sphere has rolled in 5 seconds. Instead, we will use (1) to calculate the acceleration, ̈, of the sphere. This
we do by differentiating both sides of (1) with respect to time:
∙ ¸
³ 2´ 5
(̇) =
7
5
∴ ̈2̇ = ̇
7
5
∴ ̈ =
14
That is, the acceleration has a constant value; and then the velocity, ̇, after 5 seconds is imply
25
̇ = ̈ · 5 =
14
(b) Here, = 1 so from equation (1), r
2 5 5
(̇) = ̇ =
7 7
Method 2 (using equations of motion)
Let be the point of contact between the sphere and the plane, and let denote the centre of the sphere. The three
forces acting on the sphere are: force of friction and the normal reaction exerted by the plane on the sphere,
both acting at point ; and force of gravity, acting at point Let us take –axis to be down the plane (see
picture).
G
N
_
_F
A
X Mg_
Firstly, we write down the equations of motion of the centre of the sphere. Since it moves in –direction, we only
need to consider the components of all the forces along –axis. Newton’s second law gives then
1
sin 30o − = ̈ ∴ − = ̈
2
where ̈ is the acceleration of the centre of the disc down the plane. Secondly, we write down the equation of
rotation, by taking moments about Here, only (friction) contributes because all the other forces act through
point If is the radius of the sphere, we get
= ̈
But, = 1
2
2
(from the table on page 246). So,
2 2
= 2 ̈ ∴ = ̈
5 5
87
Since there is no slipping, there is a link between ̈ and ̈ namely
̈ = ̈
Substituting this into the last equation, we see that the two equations describing the motion of the sphere are
½ 1
2 − = ̈
= 12 ̈
Solving ̈ from these, we get
5
̈ =
14
(a) When the acceleration is constant and the sphere was initially at rest, we can calculate the velocity after 5 seconds
from
5 25
̇ = ̈ = ·5=
14 14
(b) Since initially (at time = 0) = 0 ̇ = 0 we have
̇ = ̈
1
= ̈2
r2
2
∴ =
̈
where is the time it took to travel distance down the slope. So,
√
́ = 2̈
and for = 1 r r
5 5
́ = 2 =
14 7
15.2 Firstly, let us calculate for the rod the position of , the centre of mass (needed for calculations of potential energy
and moment of inertia) and , the moment of inertia for rotation about point A (needed for calculations of rotational
kinetic energy).
A
. B
To fully determine , we just need the value of , the distance from A to
A G B
x
is calculated by the formula for the centre of mass of composite bodies. The rod itself has centre of mass at
distance from A, and mass 3; the particle attached to it has mass at distance 2 from A. So,
3 · + · 2 5
= =
3 + 4
The moment of inertia of the object, when it rotates about point A, is
= +
where
= (2)2 = 42
and, by parallel axis theorem,
= + 3 · 2
Here
(3) 2
=
3
is the moment of inertia of a rod of length 2 and mass 3, rotating about an axis through its centre. So,
= 42 + 2 + 32 = 82
Now, we are ready to apply energy conservation methods. We will calculate the energy levels of the system initially
·
and later at the moment when = 0
88
APM1612/102/3
Initially Later
G
A Zero energy level
A
G .
=0
.
Let us take the horizontal line through A as the zero energy level. Then the potential energy of the object is
=
where = 4 is the mass of the whole object and where is the vertical distance from A to , positive if is
above A and negative if is below A. The kinetic energy is given by the formula
µ ¶2
1 ·
=
2
·
since there is only rotation (the object rotates about a fixed axis A). Here, is the angular velocity of the object.
Using these formulas, we get the following:
Initially,
5
= −4 = −4 · · = −5
Ãr !42
1 2
= (82 ) = 8
2
· ·
Later, when = 0: Let denote the angle that the rod makes with vertical when = 0. Then
-
xcos x-
= 4 cos
= 5 cos
and
1 ·
= ()2 = 0
2
The energy conservation principle now gives
+ = +
that is,
3
−5 + 8 = 5 cos =
5
·
This gives us the value of , the angle that the rod makes with vertical when = 0. We want to calculate , the
·
height of above A when = 0. But this is obviously
6
= 2 cos =
5
15.3 We can use the energy conservation method in the smooth and the rough cases (but not necessary in the case where
there is a limited, non-zero amount of friction between the end of the rod and the plane, since such friction would be
a non-conservative force). In both cases, initially the rod forms the angle with the plane, so by the time the rod is
horizontal (lies along the plane), it has lost the amount
4 = − sin ()
2
of potential energy, if we denote the mass of the rod by Also, initially both systems were at lost, so the initial
kinetic energies are zero.
In the case of the smooth plane, the rod undergoes both rotation and translation. Since only vertical forces act on
89
the rod (gravity down at the middle of the rod, and the normal force up at the end of the rod which is in contact with
the plane), the centre of mass will move straight down; and moment of the normal force at one end will cause the rod
to rotate. So the kinetic energy at any time is found from
µ ¶
1 2 1 2 1 1 ³ ´2 2 1 1 2 1
= ̇ + ̇ = ̇ + ̇2 = 2 ̇ + ̇2
2 2 2 3 2 2 24 2
Now, there will be a link between ̇ and ̇: Since the centre of mass moves straight down, there is no sideways
motion for the centre of mass, and we can write
̇ = ̇
where is the height of the centre of mass above the plane. Now, since one end of the rod is always touching the
plane, we will have
= sin ()
2
at an arbitrary position where the angle formed by the rod and the plane is, say, measured clockwise. As the rod
falls, will range from to 0 If we differentiate this with respect to time, we get (by using the chain rule)
̇ = cos () ̇
2
We need to find the kinetic energy of the rod in the final position, which is where the rod is parallel to the plane –
that is, when = 0 In that case, we therefore have
̇ = ̇
2
and when we substitute this into the formula of the kinetic energy, we see that the final kinetic energy, and hence the
gain in kinetic energy from the initial position, must be
1 2 1 1 2 1 ³ ´2 1 2
4 = final = 2 ̇ + ̇ 2 = 2 ̇ + ̇ = 2 ̇
24 2 24 2 2 6
Now, the energy conservation tells us that
1 2
sin () = 2 ̇
2 6
from which we can solve the value of the final angular velocity:
2 2 sin ()
2 = ̇ = 1 2
= 3 sin
6
In the case of the rough plane, the rod undergoes pure rotation, pivoting about the end of the rod which stays in
contact with the plane. The kinetic energy is now given by
µ ¶
1 2 1 4 ³ ´2 2 1 2 2
= end ̇ = ̇ = ̇
2 2 3 2 6
[Note that we must now use the moment of inertia for when the rod rotates about one of its end points!] Therefore
here the final kinetic energy, and hence the gain in kinetic energy from the initial position, is given by
1 2
4 = final == 2 ̇
6
as before, and again the energy conservation tells us that
1 2
sin () = 2 ̇
2 6
and therefore the final angular velocity is
2 2 sin ()
2 = ̇ = 1 2
= 3 sin
6
15.4 We will give two different ways to solve this, the first one by using the energy conservation principle and the second
by the equations of motion.]
Method 1:
Zero energy level
d
We will use the energy conservation principle, taking the initial level of the centre of the disc as the zero–energy
90
APM1612/102/3
level.
Initially, at time = 0,
in. = 0
For kinetic energy we use the formula
1 2 1
= ̇ + ̇2
2 2
where ̇ is the angular velocity and ̇ is the linear velocity of the centre of the disc.
(, the angle of rotation, is measured counterclockwise and displacement of the centre of the disc, downwards
along the slope.) [Remember that since there is both rotation and translation, the formula of the total kinetic energy
has two parts! The rotation part must be for rotation about the centre of mass, and the translation part for motion of
the centre of mass (here, the centre of the disc).]
for the disc is
1
= 2
2
and since the disc is rolling without slipping, we have ̇ = ̇. We were given the initial value ́ = so the initial
kinetic energy is µ ¶
1 1 1 3
in. = 2 2 + 2 2 = 2 2
2 2 2 4
At time 0, when the disc has rolled distance down the slope, the energies are
final= − sin
1 1 3 2
final = (̇)2 + (̇)2 = 2 ̇
2 2 4
The principle of energy conservation gives now
in. + in. = final + final
that is
3 3 2
2 2 = − sin + 2 ̇
4 4
2
Solving ̇ we get
2 4 2 4
̇ = 2 + sin ̇2 = ̇ 2 = 2 2 + sin
3 2 3
and r
4
̇ = 2 2 + sin
3
Method 2:
We first calculate the acceleration ̈ of the centre of mass from the equations of motion, and then solve ̇ from the
initial velocity and ̈.
N
F
A
i Mg
The forces acting on the disc are: (gravity) acting at point ; (normal reaction of plane) and (friction)
acting at point
Let ̈ be the acceleration of the centre of mass in –direction, down the slope; the equation of motion in this direction
is
sin − = ̈
[This is Newton’s second law; the left hand side is the components in –direction of all the forces acting on the disc!]
Secondly, we take moments about and get
1
= ̈ = 2 ̈
2
[ and go through so their moments about are zero.] Finally, since there is no slipping, and are
connected by
1
= ∴ ̈ = ̈ ̈ = ̈
So, the two equations of motion are ½
sin − = ̈
= 12 ̈
91
[two equations with two unknowns, and ̈] from which we can solve ̈ :
2
̈ = sin
3
On the other hand, the initial velocity ̇0 is given: Initial angular velocity is so
̇0 =
so, solving ̇ from the formula
2 = 2 + 2
we get
4
(̇)2 = (̇0 )2 + 2̈ = ()2 + sin
3
which again gives r
4
̇ = ()2 + sin
3
[The formula 2 = 2 + 2 links initial and final velocity, acceleration and distance travelled.]
15.5 (a)Let be the moment of inertia for rotation about an axis through perpendicular to the disc. The axis is
parallel to an axis through perpendicular to the disc, and the distance between these two axis is We know
that the moment of inertia for rotation about the axis through is
1
= 2
2
By parallel axis theorem we get therefore
1 3
= + 2 = 2 + 2 = 2
2 2
(a) Initial position:
Initially, the centre of mass is the distance above the zero energy level. Thus, the initial potential energy is
in = +
The disc is initially at rest, so
in = 0
When is horizontal:
Now is at the zero energy level, so that
= 0
[The subindex refers to the “horizontal” position!] If the angular velocity of rotation at the moment when
is horizontal is denoted by ̇ then the kinetic energy at that moment is
µ ¶
1 2 1 3 2 3 2
= ̇ = ̇ = 2 ̇
2
2 2 2 4
The system is conservative, and therefore the sum of kinetic and potential energies is constant. If we set the
energies in (i) and (iii) to be equal, we get
in + in
= +
3 ³ ´2
∴ + 0 = 0 + 2 ̇
4
3 ³ ´2
∴ 2 ̇ =
4
We can solve the angular velocity from this:
³ ´2 4 r
4 4
̇ = = ∴ ̇ =
3 2 3 3
(a).
92
APM1612/102/3
Initial position
of disc/ring
Later position Zero energy level
of disc/ring
"
Let us choose the zero potential energy as shown in the sketch above, so that at the initial position, both the disc
and the ring have zero potential energy. Then the total energies are as follows:
i. At the initial position, the ring and the disc are at rest. Therefore the potential and kinetic energies of the
objects are
initial initial
disc = 0 ring = 0
initial initial
disc = 0 ring = 0
and thus the total energies are
initial initial initial
disc = disc + disc = 0
initial initial initial
ring = ring + ring = 0
ii. Since only conservative forces act on both the disc and the ring, the total energy for both objects is conserved:
Each object has exactly the same amount of energy when it has rolled the distance down the slope as it had
its initial position. Thus, if disc
and ring
denote the energies of the disc and the ring at the distance down
the slope, then we must have
disc = 0 ring = 0
[Three forces act on the disc / ring: Gravity, the normal force of reaction between the object and the slope,
and the force of friction which causes the disc / ring to roll without slipping. The two last forces do not do
work and thus they do not affect the energy of the object. Gravity, on the other hand, is a conservative force.
Therefore, the principle of energy conservation can be applied.]
(b) By (a) above, we know the total mechanical energy of each object at the moment when it has rolled the distance
down the slope. To find the velocity of an object, we divide its total energy into the potential and kinetic
energies. When the object has travelled the distance down the slope, then the centre of mass of the object is the
distance sin below the zero energy level. Therefore, the potential energies are
disc = − sin
ring = − sin
The kinetic energies are given by
1 2
disc = disc ̇disc + ̇2disc
2
1 2 1
ring = ring ̇ring + ̇2ring
2 2
when ̇∗ denotes the velocity of the centre of object ∗ along the slope. Because both the disc and the ring are
rolling without slipping, for both of them the angular and linear velocities are linked:
̇disc ̇ring
̇disc = ̇ring =
The moments of inertia are
1
disc = 2 ring = 2
2
Thus the kinetic energies are
µ ¶
1 1 (̇disc )2 1 3
disc = 2 + ̇2disc = ̇2disc
2 2 2 4
1¡ ¢ (̇ring )2 1
ring = 2 + ̇2ring = ̇2ring
2 2 2
But, by (a) above the total mechanical energy of each object, that is, the sum of the potential and kinetic energies
93
must be equal to zero:
½ ½ ( 3
0 = disc = disc + disc disc = − disc ̇2disc = sin
∴ ∴ 4
0 = ring = ring + ring ring = − ring ̇2ring = sin
Solving the velocities from these equations, we get
⎧ r
⎨ 3
̇disc = sin
⎩ √4
̇ring = sin
(c) In (b) above, we found the relationships
4
̇2disc = sin disc
3
̇2ring = sin ring
between ∗ (distance travelled by object ∗ along the slope) and ̇∗ (velocity of object ∗ along the slope). To find
the acceleration ̈ we can differentiate each equation once with respect to time:
µ ¶
2 4
(̇ ) = sin disc
disc 3
4
∴ 2̇disc ̈disc = sin ̇disc |: ̇disc
3
2
∴ ̈disc = sin
3
Similarly, we get
1
̈ring = sin
2
[Alternatively, we could write down the equations of motion applying for each object, and find the acceleration
from them.]
(d) According to (c), both objects have constant acceleration down the slope, and the disc has a higher acceleration.
Therefore, the disc will reach the bottom of the slope first. [The exact time taken by each object to reach the
bottom of the slope is of course easy to calculate: If an object has constant acceleration and initial velocity
= 0 then in time it has travelled the distance
1
= 2
2
It follows that it takes the time r
2
=
to travel the distance If we apply this formula to the ring and the disc, we find that the disc reaches the bottom
of the slope in time s
3
disc =
sin
and the ring in time s
4
ring =
sin
that is, later than the disc.]
(e) Again, we can apply the energy conservation principle: The total mechanical energy of each object at the bottom
of the slope is the same as its energy at the top of the slope, which was zero. Thus
bottom initial
disc = disc = 0
bottom initial
ring = ring = 0
and therefore
bottom bottom
disc + disc = 0
bottom bottom
∴ disc = − disc
bottom bottom
ring + ring = 0
bottom bottom
∴ ring = − ring
On the other hand the ring and the disc have the same mass, so when they are at the same level at the bottom of
94
APM1612/102/3
the slope, their potential energies are the same:
bottom bottom
disc = ring
But then
bottom bottom bottom bottom
disc = − disc = − ring = ring
that is, the ring and the disc have the same kinetic energies when they reach the bottom of the slope. [Namely, the
potential energies of the objects at the bottom are equal to − sin and so their kinetic energies are equal
to sin ]
Remarks:
– The ring and the disc start at rest at the same level, and they have the same mass, Therefore, they have the
same total mechanical energy (since the total energy equals their potential energy at the initial position.) At any
other position on the slope (e.g. the distance down the slope, or at the bottom of the slope) the ring and the disc
will always have identical potential energies. But, since the total energies are also the same, it follows that the
kinetic energies of the objects are also the same at any given position. In (b), we calculated the kinetic energies
of the object when they had rolled the distance down the slope:
3
disc = ̇2disc ring
= ̇2ring
4
by the argument above, these values are in fact identical:
disc = ring !
Obviously this means that the velocities of the objects are not the same: The disc must be moving faster.
– The two objects have the same mass and radius, and obviously identical forces (gravity, friction and normal
force) are acting on them, so how come one object has greater acceleration then the other? This, of course, is
due to rotation. Because the objects roll without slipping, the centre of mass of an object can only move if the
object is simultaneously rotating as well. That means that the forces acting on an object must also make it rotate,
otherwise it won’t move. The moments of the forces are the same for both the ring and the disc (for rotation about
the centre). But, the angular acceleration that the moment of a force causes in a rigid object depends on the
moment of inertia of an object, and while the ring and the disc have the same radius and mass, their moments of
inertia are different:
1
disc = 2 ring = 2
2
Thus we could expect that the same forces would lead to a smaller acceleration for the ring.]
15.6 Initially, the system is at rest. Let us assume that the potential energy in the initial position is zero. Then, initially the
total energy of the system is zero.
v
u 2
15.7 ̇ = ut
2
1+ +
2 3
15.8 —
1 2 2
15.9 (a) lowest = 2 2 (b) =
6 6
15.10 We assume that if and are the radii of the two wheels, then
= 3
Note that we are assuming here that the moments of inertia of and cannot simply be calculated from and
but will instead use the information given in (a) and (b) to calculate the ratio . In the following we will
assume that the wheels are rotating about a fixed axis through the centre of each wheel, and that the belt does not
slip.
(a) As given in (2.17) the angular momentum of a rigid body rotating about a fixed axis is given by
· ̇
where ± is the moment of inertia and ̇ the angular velocity. So if here the angular momenta are the same, we
must have
̇ = ̇
where and are the moments of inertia, and ̇ and ̇ the angular velocities, of wheels and
respectively. This gives as the ratio of the moments of inertia,
̇
=
̇
95
We do not know the angular velocities ̇ and ̇ ; however, the fact that the belt does not slip between the two
wheels does give us some information about the ratio of these velocities. Namely, the "rolling without slipping"
condition
̇ = ̇
must hold. This means that
̇ 1
= =
̇ 3
and therefore we must have
1
=
3
(b) The kinetic energy of rotation is given by
1 2 1 2
̇ = ̇
2 2
from which we get
2 Ã !2
̇ ̇
= 2 =
̇ ̇
As in (a), it follows from the "rolling condition" that
̇ 1
= =
̇ 3
so here we get
µ ¶2
1 1
= =
3 9
15.11 Let us assume that the body of the car has a mass of 1 000 kg, and each of the wheels has the mass 10 kg. [Note
that we could alternatively interpret the question as stating that the body weighs 960 kg, plus for wheels at 10 kg
each adding up to 1 000 kg!] The total kinetic energy equals the translational kinetic energy of the body, plus the
translational kinetic energies of the four wheels, plus the rotational kinetic energies of the four wheels. If the (linear)
velocity of the car is then the translational kinetic energy of the body is
1
tr. of the body = (1 000) 2
2
The translational kinetic energy of the four wheels is
1
tr. of wheels = 4 × (10) 2
2
since the centre of each wheels travels at the same velocity as the car. Finally, the rotational kinetic energy of the
four wheels is
1 2
rot. of wheels = 4 × ̇
2
where is the moment of inertia of a wheel, and ̇ is the angular velocity of a wheel. But we are assuming that the
wheels are approximately discs, so that
1
= (10) 2
2
where is the radius of a wheel. Also, assuming that the wheels roll without slipping, the rolling condition
= ̈
holds. Therefore, the total rotational kinetic energy of the wheels is
µ ¶³ ´
1 1 2
rot. of wheels = 4 · (10) 2 = 10 2
2 2
while the total kinetic energy of the entire can is
total = tr. of body + tr. of wheels + rot. of wheels
1 1
= · 1 000 2 + 4 · (10) 2 + 10 2 = (500 + 20 + 10) 2 = 5302
2 2
This means that the kinetic energy due to the rotation of the wheels forms the fraction
rot. of wheels 10 2 1
= 2
=
total 530 53
of the total.
Why is it not necessary to know the radius of the wheels? As we saw above, the radius which we denoted by did
appear in the calculation of the rotational kinetic energy of the wheel, but the 2 –term in the moment of inertia
96
APM1612/102/3
2
cancelled out with the –term in the expression of ̇ in terms of arising from the rolling condition:
2 2
2 2
̇ =
2
This is not just a happy coincidence, but rather a general result: The rotational kinetic energy of a wheel which is
rolling without slipping at a given linear velocity does not depend on the radius of the wheel. For instance, doubling
the radius of the wheel (while keeping the mass the same) leads to a four times increase in the moment of inertia,
but on the other hand the wheel must then rotate at half the original angular velocity to keep the linear velocity of
2
the centre of the wheel at the same value. Hence the kinetic energy of the rotation, given by 12 ̇ stays the same
even if the radius of the wheel is doubled. It follows that any two wheels, with the same mass, and with a similar
shape (disc, ring, etc.), which roll without slipping with the same linear velocity will always have the same rotational
as well as translational kinetic energies. In particular, their total kinetic energies are the same. However, this does
not hold if the wheels are of a different shape (e.g. if one is a ring and the other a disc). [Note that for all possible
wheel shapes, the moment of inertia for rotation about the axis is directly proportional to the radius squared. This is
because the moment of inertia is given by X
= 2
where summation is over all the particles that the wheel consists of. Making the wheel bigger by increasing the
radius from to while keeping the mass the same, means that each also increases to and hence
increases to 2 ]
15.12
(a) The velocity of point relative to the table equals the velocity of with respect to table plus velocity of
with respect to The first part equals ; and the second part must also equal Hence
= 2
(b) Since the disc rolls without slipping, the angular velocity must be
̇ =
1 1 2 1
(c) total = 2 + ̇ where = 2 ; thus, applying (b), we get
2 2 2
3
total = 2
4
(d) The rotational kinetic energy is
1 2 1
rot. = ̇ = 2
2 4
which forms the fraction
1
rot. 2 1
= 4 =
total 3 3
2
4
of the total kinetic energy. The translational kinetic energy is
1
transl. = 2
2
which forms the fraction
1
transl. 2 2
= 2 =
total 3 3
2
4
of the total kinetic energy.
(e) Since this is a conservative system, we can calculate the angular velocity of the rod at any position, by using
the energy method. Let the axis of rotation go through end of the rod, and let denote the centre of mass of
the rod, which is also the centre of the rod since the rod is uniform. Let us choose the zero energy level for the
gravitational potential energy to go through point Then a sketch of the system might look as follows:
15.13
97
Initially Later
A G Zero energy level
A l sin
l
G
.
In the sketch we have drawn the rod in its initial position, when the rod is held horizontally at rest; and at an arbitrary
position, when the rod forms an angle with the horizontal. We calculate the potential energy ( ) and kinetic
energy () of the rod, in both of these situations.
Initially,
= 0
(since the centre of mass is on the zero energy level),
= 0
(since the rod is initially at rest).
Later, when the rod forms an angle with horizontal,
= − sin
(since the centre of mass lies the distance sin below the zero energy level),
1 2
= ̇
2
(this is the formula for kinetic energy for rotation about a fixed axis. is the moment of inertia of the object about
the axis of rotation, and ̇ is the angular velocity).
The energy conservation principle states that at all times, the total energy of the system stays constant. That is,
initial + initial = later + later
This gives in our case that
1 2
0 + 0 = − sin + ̇
2
From this we can find the value of the angular velocity ̇ when the rod forms the angle with horizontal:
1 2
̇ = sin
2
2 2 sin
∴ ̇ =
r
2 sin
∴ ̇ =
We still need to calculate the moment of inertia of the rod when it rotates about an axis through the point at
the end of the rod, perpendicular to the rod. But we know the moment of inertia about an axis through point
perpendicular to the rod:
1
= 2
3
Now, since we are considering two parallel axes of rotation, and the distance between and is the parallel axis
theorem gives
1 4
= + 2 = 2 + 2 = 3
3 3
Therefore, s r
2 sin 3 sin
̇ = 4 3
=
3
2
The value of sin always lies in the interval [−1 1]; therefore the maximum value of ̇ is
r
3
̇ =
2
achieved when sin = 1 i.e. = 2 ; this holds when the rod is vertically below point
15.14 —
15.15 —
q
15.16 (a) 5
7 (sin ) (b) 10
7 (sin )
98
APM1612/102/3
15.17 The velocities at the bottom both slopes is the same, but the times taken to roll to the bottom of the slope are different
for the two slopes.
15.18 Clearly, to answer this question, we need to know how the hemisphere will fall down, and accordingly where it will
lie in its final position. It should be noted that it will not roll down along its rim, since there is no friction between the
hemisphere and the table. [That is what "smooth" means!] Nor will it rotate about the centre of the corresponding
sphere, so that the contact point is always at the origin.What we do know about the way the hemisphere falls is
the following: since no horizontal forces act on the hemisphere (no friction!), but rather only the vertical forces of
gravity and the normal force from the table, the centre of mass moves straight down. This tells us that in the initial
position, the –coordinate of the centre of mass is the same as it will be in the final position:
Y Y
R
R/2
P
X X
P x x
Initially Finally
So what we can do is: Find ̄ in the initial position; hence find the final position of the hemisphere and the final
position of The centre of mass of the hollow hemisphere lies on the axis of symmetry at the distance 2 from the
centre. So, in the initial position we have ̄ = 2 In the final position, the centre of mass must have the same
–coordinate ̄ = 2 But in the final position ̄ is also the –coordinate of the axis of symmetry of the hollow
hemisphere (marked with the dotted lines); point lies the distance to the left of this so the –coordinate of
will be ̄ − = 2 − = −2 The –coordinate of at the final position is + So, the point will be at the
coordinates (−2 ) when the hemisphere comes to rest.
99
You might also like
- Centre of Mass: Previous Eamcet QuestionsNo ratings yetCentre of Mass: Previous Eamcet Questions5 pages
- Practice Sheet System of Particles and Centre of Mass Anil Sir VinayNo ratings yetPractice Sheet System of Particles and Centre of Mass Anil Sir Vinay7 pages
- Motion of System of Particle and COM 01 Class Notes (1) - MergeNo ratings yetMotion of System of Particle and COM 01 Class Notes (1) - Merge351 pages
- Centre of Mass: System of Particles and Rigid Body DynamicsNo ratings yetCentre of Mass: System of Particles and Rigid Body Dynamics28 pages
- Arihant Physics Master Resource Book-216-223No ratings yetArihant Physics Master Resource Book-216-2238 pages
- 1a-System of Particles and Rigid Body Dynamics (1-50)No ratings yet1a-System of Particles and Rigid Body Dynamics (1-50)50 pages
- Centre of Mass and The Law of Conservation of Momentum PDF100% (1)Centre of Mass and The Law of Conservation of Momentum PDF70 pages
- NEET REPT 2022-23 Centre of Mass A-2 Dt.09.01.2023 - 1139858 - 2023 - 03 - 21 - 00 - 22No ratings yetNEET REPT 2022-23 Centre of Mass A-2 Dt.09.01.2023 - 1139858 - 2023 - 03 - 21 - 00 - 224 pages
- DPP-1 (JEE Main) COM- Center of Mass of System of ParticlesNo ratings yetDPP-1 (JEE Main) COM- Center of Mass of System of Particles3 pages
- Centre of Mass and Vector product. Questions (2)No ratings yetCentre of Mass and Vector product. Questions (2)10 pages
- Question Bank Center of Mass Motion of System Physics 11th NEETNo ratings yetQuestion Bank Center of Mass Motion of System Physics 11th NEET145 pages
- Centre of Mass: Mistakes Are The Portals of Discovery' James Joyce MORNo ratings yetCentre of Mass: Mistakes Are The Portals of Discovery' James Joyce MOR33 pages
- NEET REPT 2022-23 Centre of Mass A-1 Dt.07.01.2023 - 1139857 - 2023 - 03 - 21 - 00 - 22No ratings yetNEET REPT 2022-23 Centre of Mass A-1 Dt.07.01.2023 - 1139857 - 2023 - 03 - 21 - 00 - 224 pages
- Motion_of_System_of_Particles_&_C_O_M___Practice_Questions_No ratings yetMotion_of_System_of_Particles_&_C_O_M___Practice_Questions_12 pages
- Centre of Mass - (Step-2 - 3) - JEE 22-FinalNo ratings yetCentre of Mass - (Step-2 - 3) - JEE 22-Final36 pages
- Rotational Motion _ DPP 01 (Of Lecture 02) __ Uday 2025No ratings yetRotational Motion _ DPP 01 (Of Lecture 02) __ Uday 20256 pages
- Centre of Mass: Mass Moment: It Is Defined As The Product of Mass of The Particle andNo ratings yetCentre of Mass: Mass Moment: It Is Defined As The Product of Mass of The Particle and67 pages
- Centre of Mass PYQ Sheet (Questions) Manzil JEE 2025No ratings yetCentre of Mass PYQ Sheet (Questions) Manzil JEE 20256 pages
- Full Free Motion of Celestial Bodies Around a Central Mass - Why Do They Mostly Orbit in the Equatorial Plane?From EverandFull Free Motion of Celestial Bodies Around a Central Mass - Why Do They Mostly Orbit in the Equatorial Plane?No ratings yet
- N5 Strength of Materials and Structures April 2021100% (1)N5 Strength of Materials and Structures April 20218 pages
- N5 Strength of Materials and Structures November 2016No ratings yetN5 Strength of Materials and Structures November 20168 pages
- N5 Strength of Materials and Structures August 2018 MemorandumNo ratings yetN5 Strength of Materials and Structures August 2018 Memorandum9 pages
- N5 Strength of Materials and Structures November 2020 MemorandumNo ratings yetN5 Strength of Materials and Structures November 2020 Memorandum5 pages
- Oswaal CBSE Class 11th Syllabus Physics For 2022-23 ExamNo ratings yetOswaal CBSE Class 11th Syllabus Physics For 2022-23 Exam8 pages
- Class 9 Phy: Chapter Motion Sample QuestionsNo ratings yetClass 9 Phy: Chapter Motion Sample Questions9 pages
- 1st - Year Physics Chapter Number 4 and 5No ratings yet1st - Year Physics Chapter Number 4 and 52 pages
- Physical Sciences p1 QP Sept 2021 - EnglishNo ratings yetPhysical Sciences p1 QP Sept 2021 - English19 pages
- 9.4 Vector Approach To Rigid Body Kinematic Analysis of VelocitiesNo ratings yet9.4 Vector Approach To Rigid Body Kinematic Analysis of Velocities5 pages
- Z Secret Pre Entrance Exam 2016E.C (Physics)No ratings yetZ Secret Pre Entrance Exam 2016E.C (Physics)25 pages
- Edexcel IAS Physics WPH11-WPH12 Revision Notes (1)No ratings yetEdexcel IAS Physics WPH11-WPH12 Revision Notes (1)67 pages
- Biofizik 2 - Var - Opt - Upload - ModuleContent - 15069 - 08-10-2024 - 122518322No ratings yetBiofizik 2 - Var - Opt - Upload - ModuleContent - 15069 - 08-10-2024 - 12251832222 pages
