PHY 101

CIRCULAR MOTION
Circular motion is described as a movement of an object while rotating along a circular path.
Two types of circular motion are Uniform and Non-uniform motion. In uniform circular motion,
the angular rate of rotation and speed is constant while in non-uniform circular motion, the rate
of rotation keeps changing. Common examples of circular motion are:
1. A rotating ceiling fan. (2). A moving car’s wheel. (3). the blades in a windmill. (4). Gears
in gas turbines.
Importantly, the direction of motion of circular motion is changing continuously unlike linear
motion.
UNIFORM CIRCULAR MOTION
In a uniform circular motion, the speed of the object moving must be constant as it moves in a
circular direction. The velocity of the object changes constantly since it is constantly changing
direction. The velocity is always directed tangent to the circle. The acceleration is directed
towards the center of the circle due to changing velocity.
MOMENTS OF INERTIA
The moment of inertia, also known as the angular mass or rotational inertia can be described as a
quantity that decides the amount of torque needed for a specific angular acceleration in a
rotational axis. The SI unit is kgm-2.
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I =m r Where m = sum of the product of the mass, r = distance from the axis of the rotation.
Moment of inertia is the measurement of the resistance of a body to a change in its rotational
motion. It is constant for a particular rigid frame and a specific axis of rotation. The moment of
inertia depends on: (i) the density of the material (ii) the shape and size of the body (iii) the axis
of rotation (distribution of mass relative to the axis).
GYROSCOPE AND PRECESSION
A gyroscope can be defined as a spinning disc in which the axis of rotation is free to assume any
orientation. When spinning, the orientation of the spin axis is unaffected by the orientation of the
body that encloses it. The body or vehicle enclosing the gyroscope can moved from place to
place and the orientation of the spin axis will remain the same. This makes gyroscopes very
useful in navigation especially where magnetic compasses cannot be used. Such as in manned
and unmanned space craft, intercontinental ballistic missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, and
satellite like the Hubble Space Telescope.
PRECESSION is the rotational motion of the axis of a spinning body. Such as the wobbling of a
spinning top, caused by torque applied to the body along its axis of rotation. Gyroscopic
precession is the phenomenon in which the axis of a spinning object (e.g a gyroscope) describes

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a cone in space when an external torque is applied to it. Examples of instrument which uses
gyroscopic precession are: altitude indicators, heading indicators and turn coordinators.
USES: a gyroscope is a device used for measuring or maintaining orientation and angular
velocity. A computer mouse has a gyroscope as it needs to maintain the orientation of the cursor
on the screen. Gyroscope are also used in compasses and automatic pilots on ships and aircraft.
CONSERVATION PRINCIPLE IN PHYSICS
In mechanics, examples of conserved quantities are energy, momentum and angular momentum.
The conservation laws are exact for an isolated system. An isolated system implies a collection
of matter which does not interact with the rest of the universe at all. Though such system does
not exist. Conservation laws relate the amount of a certain quantity present at one time to the
amount present at a later time.
CONSERVATION OF ENERGY: state that energy can neither be created nor destroyed. Or the
total energy of an isolated system remains constant.
CONSERVATION OF MOMENTUM: state that the vector sum of the momenta (mv) of all the
objects of a system cannot be changed by interactions within the system. The momentum of an
isolated system is a constant.
CONSERVATION OF ANGULAR MOMENTUM: the angular momentum of an isolated
system remains constant in both magnitude and direction. The angular momentum is defined as
the product of the moment of inertia and the angular velocity.
THE IMPLUSE - MOMENTUM RELATION
The momentum of a single object can be changed by applying impulse to it.
Initial momentum + impulse = final momentum
THE WORK – ENERGY RELATION
The energy of a single object or system of object can be changed by doing work to it.
Initial energy + work = final energy
In terms of kinetic energy (K.E) the relation becomes
K . E i ¿ work if ¿ K . E f where i = initial , f = final
If no work is done to a system, its K.E will remain constant. However, if work is done to a
system, its total energy will change by an amount exactly equal to the work done.
CONSERVATION FORCES
A conservative force is a force done in moving a particle from one point to another, such that the
force is independent of the path taken by the particle. It depends only on the initial and final
position of the particle.

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POTENTIAL ENERGY AND CONSERVATIVE FORCE
The work done against a conservative force to reach a final configuration depends on the
configuration, not the path followed, and is the potential energy added. Potential energy is the
energy a system has due to position, shape or configuration.
POTENTIAL ENERGY (P.E) OF A SPRING
The work done in stretching or compressing a spring is
Work (W) = Force (F) x distance (d)
1 2
W = Fd = k x = average force
2
1 2
The P.E of a spring is defined as P.E = k x , where k is the spring force and x is the
2
displacement.
The P.E of the spring does not depend on the path taken; it only depends on the stretch or
squeeze, x, in the final configuration.
CONSERVATION OF MECHANIC ENERGY
The work-energy theorem states that the net work done ( W net ¿by all forces acting on a system
equals its change in kinetic energy.
1 2 1 2 1
W net = m v f − m v i =∆ K . E (K.E = mv2)
2 2 2
If only conservative forces act, then,
W net =W c , where W c is the total work done by all conservative forces, thus

Wc = ∆K.E

If the conservative force such as gravitational force, or a spring force does work, the system loses
potential energy, P.E
∴ W c=¿ - ∆ P . E
- ∆ P . E=¿ ∆ K . E or ∆ K . E+ ∆ P . E=0
This equation means that the total K.E or P.E is constant for any process involving only
conservative forces. That is,
K . E + P . E=constant
K . E i + ∆ P . Ei = K . E f + ∆ P . Ef
This is known as conservation of mechanical energy principle. Friction is negligible. In a system
that experiences only conservative forces, there is a potential energy associated with each force

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and the energy changes form between K.E and the various types of P.E with the total energy
remaining constant.