CHAPTER 6 – ROTATION

ROTATION
The rotation of a body about an axis can be defined similarly to
the linear motion. In a rotational motion, the position of the object
is given by an angle 𝜃 relative to an agreed-upon axis of zero
rotation angle, this is called the angular position. Angular velocity
𝜔 and angular acceleration 𝛼 are also defined relatively to the
translational motion.

Translational and Rotational Motion Relationships

There are several quantities related to translational motion

along with their counterparts to the rotational motion.

Type Translational Rotational Relationship

displacement 𝒙 𝜽 𝒙 = 𝒓𝜽

velocity 𝒗 𝝎 𝒗 = 𝒓𝝎
acceleration 𝒂 𝜶 𝒂 = 𝒓𝜶

The quantity 𝑟 stands for radius of the motion. Take note that
you must use radians in rotational calculations.

𝟏 𝒓𝒆𝒗 = 𝟑𝟔𝟎° = 𝟐𝝅 𝒓𝒂𝒅

In calculating the total linear acceleration of a point in the
object, it requires the two components: the tangential acceleration
𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑛 and the centripetal acceleration 𝑎𝑅 .

𝒂𝑻𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 = 𝒂𝒕𝒂𝒏 + 𝒂𝑹
The centripetal acceleration is the ratio of the square of the
linear velocity and the radius of the object.

𝒗𝟐
𝒂𝑹 = = 𝒓𝝎𝟐
𝒓

Example No.1: Calculate the linear velocity and the linear

acceleration considering a point at the edge of a wheel with a
diameter of 0.40m that rotates at 1750rpm.

Solution: We first convert rpm to rad/s.

1750 𝑟𝑒𝑣 2𝜋 𝑟𝑎𝑑 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛

𝜔= × ×
𝑚𝑖𝑛 1 𝑟𝑒𝑣 60 𝑠
𝜔 = 183.3 𝑟𝑎𝑑/𝑠

To find the linear velocity and linear acceleration, we use the

full radius of the wheel and the relationship of the translational and
rotational motion.
0.40 𝑚 𝑟𝑎𝑑
𝑣 = 𝑟𝜔 = ( ) (183.3 )
2 𝑠
𝒗 = 𝟑𝟔. 𝟔𝟔 𝒎/𝒔 Answer

2
0.40 𝑚 𝑟𝑎𝑑 2
𝑎𝑅 = 𝑟𝜔 = ( ) (183.3 )
2 𝑠
𝒂𝑹 = 𝟔𝟕𝟏𝟗. 𝟖 𝒎/𝒔𝟐 Answer

If the angular acceleration is constant, the rotational equations

will just be analogous to the translational mechanics with the same
derivations.

These are the kinematic equations for the constant angular

acceleration.

Translational Rotational

𝑣 = 𝑣0 + 𝑎𝑡 𝝎 = 𝝎𝟎 + 𝜶𝒕

1 𝟏
𝑥 = 𝑣0 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑡 2 𝜽 = 𝝎𝟎 𝒕 + 𝜶𝒕𝟐
2 𝟐
𝑣 2 = 𝑣02 + 2𝑎𝑥 𝝎𝟐 = 𝝎𝟐𝟎 + 𝟐𝜶𝜽

Example No.2: A wheel running at 1350 rpm turns 1400 revolutions

before it stopped. Assuming a constant running, calculate the wheel’s
angular acceleration and the time it took to come to a complete stop.

Solution: The angular acceleration can be found using the kinematic

equation, 𝜔2 = 𝜔02 + 2𝛼𝜃, where 𝜔 = 0, 𝜔0 = 1350 𝑟𝑝𝑚, 𝜃 = 1400 𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠.

𝜔2 = 𝜔02 + 2𝛼𝜃

𝑟𝑒𝑣 2
2
𝜔 − 𝜔02 0 − (1350 )
𝛼= = 𝑚𝑖𝑛
2𝜃 2(1400 𝑟𝑒𝑣)

𝜶 = −𝟔𝟓𝟎. 𝟗 𝒓𝒆𝒗/𝒎𝒊𝒏𝟐

𝑟𝑒𝑣 2𝜋 𝑟𝑎𝑑 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛 2

𝛼 = −650 × × ( )
𝑚𝑖𝑛2 1 𝑟𝑒𝑣 60 𝑠
𝜶 = −𝟏. 𝟏𝟒 𝒓𝒂𝒅/𝒔𝟐 Answer

The time to come to a stop can be found from 𝜔 = 𝜔0 + 𝛼𝑡.

𝜔 = 𝜔0 + 𝛼𝑡
𝑟𝑒𝑣
𝜔 − 𝜔0 0 − (1350 𝑚𝑖𝑛)
𝑡= = 𝑟𝑒𝑣
𝛼 −650.9
𝑚𝑖𝑛2
𝒕 = 𝟐. 𝟎𝟕𝟒 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒔

𝒕 = 𝟏𝟐𝟒. 𝟒𝟒 𝒔 Answer
Torque

Torque is the moment of the force, suppose a force produces or

tends to produce rotation or torsion. It is also called the twisting
force and defined as the product of the force times the moment arm.

𝝉 = 𝒓𝑭

The moment arm 𝑟 or commonly called the lever arm is the

perpendicular distance to the axis which the force acts. Torque is
measured in SI units in N-m. In some cases where the forces are
inclined in an angle, the torque can be calculated by using the
vertical component.

𝝉 = 𝒓𝑭 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝜽

Example No.3: A 55N horizontal force is exerted to the end of the

gate. If the width of the gate is 2.70m and the force is exerted
perpendicularly, what is the magnitude of the torque? What is the
magnitude of the torque if the force is exerted at an angle of 57°?

Solution: For the first case, the force is perpendicular so we can

directly use the original equation.

𝜏 = 𝑟𝐹 = (2.70 𝑚)(55 𝑁)

𝝉 = 𝟏𝟒𝟖. 𝟓𝟎 𝑵𝒎 Answer

For the second case where the force is inclined, the angle is 𝜃 =
57°, we use the vertical component.

𝜏 = 𝑟𝐹 sin 𝜃 = (2.70 𝑚 )(55 𝑁) sin(57°)

𝝉 = 𝟏𝟐𝟒. 𝟓𝟒 𝑵𝒎 Answer

Rotational Inertia

The rotational inertia 𝐼 also called the moment of inertia is the

mass counterpart in rotation. It is the product of the body mass and
the square of the rotational radius of the motion. It can also be
calculated considering a system of objects.

𝑰 = 𝒎𝒓𝟐

𝑰 = ∑𝒎𝒓𝟐

With the moment of inertia, there is a direct relationship

between the torque and the angular acceleration of the object being
analyzed, the torque can also be defined as the product of the moment
of inertia and the angular acceleration. This relationship is the
rotational counterpart of the Newton’s second law of motion.

𝝉 = 𝒎𝒓𝟐 𝜶

∑𝝉 = 𝑰𝜶

The unit of the moment of inertia is simply kg-𝑚 2 in SI units.

Take note that some moment of inertia equations are already derived
for various objects with uniform composition.

Example No.4: A ball attached to a thin wire iss rotated a

horizontally in a 3m diameter circle. If the ball is 275g, find the
moment of inertia of the ball about the center of the circle.
Solution: We used the formula to calculate the moment of inertia of the
system.

𝐼 = 𝑚𝑟 2 = (0.275 𝑘𝑔)(1.5 𝑚)2

𝑰 = 𝟎. 𝟔𝟐 𝒌𝒈 𝒎𝟐 Answer

Example No.5: Find the moment of inertia about the center of a

cylindrical wheel with a diameter 20cm and a mass of 450g (𝐼𝐶𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟 =
1
𝑚𝑟 2 ). Assuming a frictional torque is used to stop the wheel from a
2
velocity of 1350rpm in 1min, calculate the applied torque needed to
spin it from rest to 1600rpm in 7s.
1
Solution: The moment of inertia of a cylinder is 𝑚𝑟 2 .
2

1 1
𝐼 = 𝑚𝑟 2 = (0.45 𝑘𝑔)(0.10 𝑚)2
2 2
𝑰 = 𝟐. 𝟐𝟓 × 𝟏𝟎−𝟑 𝒌𝒈 𝒎𝟐 Answer

The wheel slows down on its own from 1350 rpm to rest in 60s.
This is used to calculate the frictional torque.

𝑟𝑒𝑣 2𝜋 𝑟𝑎𝑑 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛

∆𝜔 (0 − 1350 )( )( )
𝜏𝐹𝑟 = 𝐼𝛼𝐹𝑟 =𝐼 −3 2
= (2.25 × 10 𝑘𝑔 𝑚 ) [ 𝑚𝑖𝑛 𝑟𝑒𝑣 60 𝑠 ]
∆𝑡 60 𝑠

𝜏𝐹𝑟 = −5.30 × 10−3 𝑁𝑚

The net torque causing the angular acceleration is the applied

torque plus the (negative) frictional torque.

∑𝜏 = 𝐼𝛼 = 𝜏𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑑 + 𝜏𝐹𝑟

∆𝜔
𝜏𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑑 = 𝐼𝛼 − 𝜏𝐹𝑟 = 𝐼 − 𝜏𝐹𝑟
∆𝑡
𝑟𝑒𝑣 2𝜋 𝑟𝑎𝑑 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛
(0−1600 )( )( )
𝜏𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑑 = (2.25 × 10−3 𝑘𝑔 𝑚 2 ) [ 𝑚𝑖𝑛
7𝑠
𝑟𝑒𝑣 60 𝑠
] −(-5.30 × 10−3 𝑁𝑚)

𝝉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒅 = 𝟓. 𝟗𝟐 × 𝟏𝟎−𝟐 𝑵𝒎 Answer

Rotational Work and Energy

The work done on an object also has an equivalent to rotation. In

calculating a rotational work, we use the torque, since we are in a
rotational motion, and multiply it to the angular position of the
object being analyzed.

𝑾 = 𝝉∆𝜽
The power of the rotational work is derived into the product of
the torque applied and the angular velocity of the object.

𝑷 = 𝝉𝝎

A rigid body rotating at any fixed axis produces a rotational

kinetic energy. In the rotational counterpart, we use the moment of
inertia to calculate the energy.
𝟏 𝟐
𝑲𝑬𝑹𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 = 𝑰𝝎
𝟐
Example No.6: If a torque of 400Nm is applied at an angular velocity
of 2500rpm, find the horsepower.

Solution: We use the direct equation to calculate the power.

 𝑟𝑒𝑣 2𝜋 𝑟𝑎𝑑 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛
𝑃 = 𝜏𝜔 = (400Nm) (2500 × × )
𝑚𝑖𝑛 1 𝑟𝑒𝑣 60 𝑠
𝑃 = 104720 𝑊

We convert the answer to horsepower.

1 ℎ𝑝
𝑃 = 104720 𝑊 ×
746 𝑊
𝑷 = 𝟏𝟒𝟏 𝒉𝒑 Answer

Example No.7: A carousel with a mass of 1200kg and a diameter of 14m

accelerates from rest to an angular velocity of 9rpm, what is the net
work needed to accelerate the carousel assuming it as a uniform
cylinder?

Solution: Since the angular velocity is used in the problem, the work
needed is the change in the rotational kinetic energy. The initial
angular velocity is 0.
𝟏 𝟐 𝟏 𝟐 𝟏 𝟐 𝟏 𝟏
𝑊𝑁𝑒𝑡 = ∆𝐾𝐸𝑅𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 = 𝑰𝝎𝒇 − 𝑰𝝎𝟎 = 𝑰𝝎𝒇 − 𝟎 = ( 𝒎𝒓𝟐 ) 𝝎𝟐𝒇
𝟐 𝟐 𝟐 𝟐 𝟐

1 1 2
𝑟𝑒𝑣 2𝜋 𝑟𝑎𝑑 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛 2
𝑊𝑁𝑒𝑡 ( )( )
= [ 1200 𝑘𝑔 7 𝑚 ] (9 × × )
2 2 𝑚𝑖𝑛 1 𝑟𝑒𝑣 60 𝑠
𝑾𝑵𝒆𝒕 = 𝟏𝟑𝟏𝟎𝟎 𝑱 Answer

Rotational Momentum

The linear momentum 𝑝 has a rotational equivalent called the

rotational momentum or the angular momentum 𝐿. If a uniform rigid body
rotates at a fixed axis through its center of mass, the rotational
momentum can be defined as the product of the moment of inertia and
the angular velocity.

𝑳 = 𝑰𝝎

If the angular momentum is conserved at some point of time, like

the energy and the linear momentum itself, the rotational momentum is
constant.

𝑳𝑰𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒍 = 𝑳𝑭𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍

Law of conservation of rotational momentum

“The total angular momentum of a rotating object remains constant

if the net torque acting on it is zero.”

Example No.8: A 1m diameter wheel with a mass of 500g rotates at an

angular velocity of 1000rpm, assuming the wheel as a uniform cylinder,
calculate the rotational momentum of the wheel. If the wheel is needed
to be stopped at the time of 10s, how much torque it will need?

Solution: The rotational momentum can be solved directly with the

equation.

1 𝑟𝑒𝑣 2𝜋 𝑟𝑎𝑑 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛

𝐿 = 𝐼𝜔 = (0.5 𝑘𝑔)(0.5 𝑚 )2 (1000 × × )
2 𝑚𝑖𝑛 1 𝑟𝑒𝑣 60 𝑠
𝒎𝟐
𝑳 = 𝟔. 𝟓𝟓 𝒌𝒈 Answer
𝒔
 The torque required is the change in the rotational momentum per
unit time. The final angular momentum is zero.

𝑚2
𝐿 − 𝐿0 0 − 6.55 𝑘𝑔 𝑠
𝜏= =
∆𝑡 10 𝑠
𝝉 = 𝟎. 𝟔𝟓𝟓 𝑵𝒎 Answer

The negative sign indicates that the torque is used to oppose the
initial angular momentum.