Conservation of Angular Momentum

Physics Lab XI

Objective
In this lab, the conservation law of angular momentum will be tested experimentally.

Equipment List
Two platters: one with a spindle with various radii and one without; a metal bar with a hole in
the middle; a Rotation Platform; a Smart Pulley + photogate assembly; a LabPro unit; a pulley
with a table clamp; string; a mass holder and a set of masses; a motor drive for the Rotation
Platform; rubber bands; a digital caliper; a ruler and a meter stick; a digital mass scale.

Theoretical Background
Continued from the previous lab, we extend our exploration of the conservation laws to angular
momentum.

Conservation of Angular Momentum

Analogous to the translational motion, a quantity called “angular momentum” is defined in
rotational motion, so is the conservation law of angular momentum. The following table shows
the analogous quantities in rotational motion to translational motion used in this lab.

Quantities in Translational Motion Analogous Quantities in Rotational Motion

M (mass) I (moment of inertia)
v (velocity) ω (angular velocity)
p = mv (linear momentum) L = Iω (angular momentum)
1 2 1 2
mv (linear kinetic energy) Iω (rotational kinetic energy)
2 2

The conservation of angular momentum is then stated as,

I iωi = I f ω f (1)
In the experiment, a platter will be spun to certain angular speed, and then the second object
(another platter or a metal bar) will be dropped onto the first platter, resulting in a change of the
moment of inertia and the angular speed. This is analogous to a totally inelastic collision in
linear motion. The final angular speed can then be found with Equation 1:
I1
I 1ωi = ( I1 + I 2 )ω f ⇒ ω f = ωi (2)
I1 + I 2
In the equation, I1 is the moment of inertia of the first platter, I2 is the moment of inertia of the
1
second object. I1 is calculated with I1 = M p R p2 , where Mp and Rp are the mass and radius of the
2
first platter. If the second object is another platter, it can be estimated with
1
I platter = M platter R platter
2
, (3)
2
where Rplatter is the radius of the second platter.
If it is a metal bar, use the following formula.
1
I bar = M bar ( L2bar + Wbar 2
) (4)
12

Experimental Procedure
Conservation of Angular Momentum
In this part of the lab, the platter will be set at an initial angular speed. A second object (another
platter or a metal bar) will be dropped onto the spinning platter. The angular speed will be
monitored and recorded by the “RotationLab2” program. The operational procedure of this
program can be found in the previous lab manual (Lab: Moment of Inertia & Rotational Energy).

1. Measure and record the following quantities: the mass of the first platter (with the
spindle), the diameter of the first platter, Dp and the diameter of the Smart Pulley, Ds.
Assuming that you already have the “RotationLab2” program screen on your computer,
enter these two values in the corresponding boxes.
2. Measure and record the mass and diameters of the second platter (without the spindle) as
Mplatter and Dplatter. Also measure and record the mass, length, and width of the metal bar
as Mbar, Lbar, and Wbar.
3. To set the first platter at an initial angular speed, simply spin the platter with your hands.
DO NOT spin it violently.
4. Assuming that the file path at which the data will be saved is already specified in the
“RotationLab” program, click the white arrow on the upper left corner to start the
program. The program will start monitoring the angular speed of the platter.
5. Now as the first platter is spinning steadily, drop the second platter (without spindle)
right on top of the first one. Let the combined platters spin for another few seconds, then
click “Press to Stop Recording” and follow the instruction described in the previous lab
manual to save and plot the data. Identify the initial and final angular speeds (ωi and ωf)
from the plot as indicated in Figure 1. Click “Press to Stop Experiment” to stop the
current measurement, and click the white arrow to start another one.
6. Repeat step 3~5 for 4 other different initial speeds (totally 5 initial speeds) set by
different spins you provide.
7. Repeat the same experiment for dropping a metal bar (instead of another platter), and
measure the initial and final angular speeds for 5 different initial speeds.
Remember to put rubber bands on the metal bar to prevent it from sliding on the platter.
8. As described in the previous lab, the differences between the raw and smoothed data of
the angular speed are stored in the 4th column in the saved file. Estimate the uncertainties
of ωi and ωf by finding the largest differences around the “times” at which ωi and ωf are
taken.
Estimate the uncertainty of other measured quantities, i.e. Mplatter, Dplatter, Mbar, Lbar and
Wbar, and use the standard equation to calculate the percent uncertainties of all measured
quantities.

% Uncertainty = (uncertainty/smallest measured value) μ 100%

Conservation of Angular Momentum

raw record averaged record
14
13
ωi, right before dropping
12
the second object
11
ω (rad/s)

10
9
8
7 ωf,exp, right after two objects
6 settled and spin together
5
4
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Time (sec)

Figure 1. Data plot generated from Excel. The smooth curve represents the average ω,
which you will use to identify ωi and ωf,exp, as indicated in the plot by the arrows. As in
the previous section, use the fluctuations in the raw record to estimate the % uncertainties
of ωi, and ωf,exp.
Data Analysis
Conservation of Angular Momentum
1. Calculate the radii of the platters from their diameters, and the moment of inertia of both
platters and the metal bar using Equations 3 and 4.
2. Use Equation 2 to calculate the theoretical values of the final angular speed, ωf.
3. Calculate the % Difference between ωf,exp and ωf,theo.
4. Calculate the initial angular momentum Li.
Li = I1ωi
5. Calculate the final angular momentum Lf.
L f = ( I1 + I 2 )ω f ,exp
6. Calculate the ratio L f Li .
Plot Lf as a function of Li for both experiments (dropping another platter and a metal bar),
and determine the slope and y-intercept of each plot.

Selected Questions
1. In this experiment, the presence of friction was not taken into consideration. How would
the presence of friction affect the experiment? Is the angular moment still conserved? Is
this a source of random or systematic error? Why?

2. In this experiment, the rotation of the smart pulley was also ignored. If the friction in the
system can be ignored, how would the smart pulley affect the result of the experiment?
Will the Li and Lf calculated from your data still be the same? Would this be a source of
random or systematic error? Why? Why is it permissible to ignore the rotation of the
smart pulley?