CE232-M6/M10-C2-AP3

Dynamics of Rigid Bodies

TOPIC 1:
INTRODUCTION AND
FRICTION PART 1
 Introduction
Mechanics is a branch of the physical sciences that is concerned with the state of
rest or motion of bodies subjected to the action of forces. Engineering mechanics is
divided into two areas of study, namely, statics and dynamics. Statics is concerned
with the equilibrium of a body that is either at rest or moves with constant velocity.
Here we will consider dynamics, which deals with the accelerated motion of a
body. The subject of dynamics will be presented in two parts: kinematics, which
treats only the geometric aspects of the motion, and kinetics, which is the analysis of
the forces causing the motion.
Friction
 Friction: Topics to be Discussed
A. Introduction
B. Limiting Friction and Impending Motion
C. Coulomb’s Laws of Dry Friction
D. Coefficients of Friction
E. Angle of Friction
F. Determination of Coefficient of Friction
G. Cone of Friction
H. Relative Motion
I. Ladder Friction
A.Introduction

We assumed the surfaces of two bodies in contact with each other to be perfectly
smooth in nature when we discussed about equilibrium of bodies. In which case, the
bodies are free to slide tangentially past one another, but are restricted from moving
normal into the plane of contact. Hence, only a normal reaction N acts on each body as
exerted by the other. However, this is just an ideal condition, as we do not find any surface
to be perfectly smooth in nature. Even a highly polished steel surface is found to have
some irregularities on its surface when viewed under magnification. Because of these
irregularities, when one body slides or tends to slide over another, resistance is always
offered to its motion in the tangential direction. This tangential resistive force is termed as
frictional force or force of friction.
 Hence, we see that whenever the surface of one body slides or tends to slide over another, each body
exerts a tangential frictional force on the other apart from the normal reaction. This frictional force tries to
prevent the motion of one surface with respect to the other. However, these frictional forces are found to be
limited in magnitude and will not be able to prevent the relative motion when sufficiently large external forces
are applied.

Because of the resistive nature of frictional force, it causes undesirable effects like wear and tear of
mechanical parts in machines when they slide over one another and the overall efficiency of machines is
reduced too. On the other hand, without friction we cannot do things in our daily lives as we do, as we cannot
walk or drive a car or hold a pen and write, and so on. Hence, we see that friction causes favourable as well as
undesirable effects.

Even though friction cannot be avoided in machines, it should be noted that it could be reduced to a large
extent by application of lubricants, which form a thin film in between the contact surfaces. Due to the viscous
nature of these lubricant fluids, resistance is developed between sliding layers of fluid moving at different
velocities and the wear and tear of mechanical parts can be reduced to a large extent. This type of fluid friction
is studied in the field of fluid mechanics and will not be covered in this study. Our study is limited only to that
of dry friction, i.e., dry unlubricated surfaces.
B. Limiting Friction and Impending Motion
The existence of friction and its effect on motion of bodies can best be understood from the
following experiment. Consider a block of weight W resting on a horizontal surface. If no external
forces act on it, then its free-body diagram is as shown in Fig. 6.3(a), where the weight of the block W
and the normal reaction N exerted by the plane on the block are shown.
 Suppose a horizontal force P be applied on the block as shown in Fig. 6.3(b). Then we see that the block
will not move even though we apply a small force. Hence, to maintain equilibrium, the applied force P must
be balanced by an equal and opposite force. This force arises from the surface irregularities and it tries to
oppose the relative motion. This tangential resistive force is termed as static frictional force. Further, it is not
a single concentrated force, but the resultant of a number of distributed forces acting over the entire surface
of contact. However, for analytical purposes, they can be assumed to be concentrated without much
appreciable error.
 If P is gradually increased to P1, then F also increases correspondingly to F1 to maintain equilibrium as
in Fig. 6.3(c). However, there is a limit up to which the frictional force can increase. The maximum or
limiting value of friction is termed as limiting static friction and it is denoted as Fs, max [refer Fig. 6.3(d)]. At
this point, the block is on the verge of sliding and this instant is known as point of impending motion.

If P is increased further, the frictional force cannot

balance it and motion occurs. Once motion has started,
the frictional forces acting between the surfaces usually
decrease so that a smaller force is necessary to maintain
uniform motion. The frictional force acting between
surfaces in relative motion is termed as force of kinetic
friction.
 The results of this experiment can be depicted in a graph
as shown in Fig. 6.4, plotting magnitude of frictional force
(F) against the externally applied force P. Up to the point of
impending motion, the frictional force (F) increases linearly
with the applied force P. The slope of the line being 45°, as F
is equal to P until the limiting value is reached. Beyond the
point of impending motion, the frictional force drops to force
of kinetic friction (Fk) and it almost remains constant. The
sudden drop in frictional force from Fs,max to Fk can be observed
when we try to push or pull a chair on the floor; there will be
a jerk just before the motion begins.
Depending upon the value of the frictional force developed between
the contact surfaces, we come across three different cases:

Case I When F < Fs, max, no motion occurs. (6.1)

Case II When F = Fs, max, motion impends. (6.2)
Case III When F > Fs, max, body is under motion. (6.3)
C. COULOMB’S LAWS OF DRY FRICTION
In 1781, a French scientist named Coulomb conducted many such experiments as discussed above to
investigate the frictional forces between dry surfaces. His results are collectively termed as Coulomb’s laws of
dry friction and they can be applied to solve problems on dry friction. These are summarized below:

1. The frictional force always acts such as to oppose the tendency of one surface to slide relative to the other. It acts
tangential to the surfaces in contact.
2. The magnitude of frictional force is exactly equal to the tangential component of the force, which tends to move
the body until the limiting value is reached.
3. The maximum force of friction is independent of the area of contact between the two sliding surfaces and
depends on the nature of surfaces in contact.
4. The magnitude of limiting static friction is proportional to the normal reaction between the two sliding surfaces.
Mathematically, it is expressed as
Fs, max
Introducing a constant of proportionality,
Fs, max = s

where the constant s is called the coefficient of static friction.

5. For low relative velocities between sliding bodies, frictional force is independent of the relative speed with which the
surfaces move over each other.

6. The magnitude of kinetic friction is proportional to the normal reaction between the two surfaces. Mathematically, it is
expressed as
Fk
Introducing a constant of proportionality,
Fk = k

where the constant k is called the coefficient of kinetic friction.

D. COEFFICIENTS OF FRICTION
Based on the previous page, we can write:

s and

Thus, the ratio of magnitude of the maximum force of static friction to the magnitude of normal force is
termed the coefficient of static friction [s] for the surfaces involved. Similarly, the ratio of magnitude of the
force of kinetic friction to the magnitude of normal force is termed the coefficient of kinetic friction [ ] for the
surfaces involved.

Both s and are dimensionless constants as they are ratios of forces. Their values depend on the nature of both
the surfaces in contact. The following table gives the coefficients of static friction between various pairs of
surfaces in contact. In general, for a given pair of surfaces, the coefficient of static friction is greater than that of
the kinetic friction, i.e., s > . Normally, is 25% less than s.
E. ANGLE OF FRICTION
F. DETERMINATION OF COEFFICIENT OF FRICTION
The coefficient of friction between any two contact surfaces can be determined experimentally as
follows:

Consider a block resting on a horizontal plane as shown in Fig. 6.6(a). If by some mechanism, we can
gradually increase the angle of inclination  of the plane with the horizontal then at a particular
inclination, the block will be at the point of sliding down the incline under its own weight. This angle of
inclination corresponding to impending motion is termed the angle of repose.
G. CONE OF FRICTION