Physics 114A - Mechanics

Lecture 28 (Walker: Ch. 11.8-9)

Rotational Dynamics
February 28, 2012

John G. Cramer
Professor Emeritus, Department of Physics
B451 PAB
jcramer@uw.edu
 Announcements
 Homework #8 is due at 11:59 PM on Thursday, March 1.
Homework #9 is due at 11:59 PM on Sunday, March 11.
 There are still a few people who need to register
their clickers.
 We will have Exam 3 on Friday, March 2. The format
will be similar to Exams 1 and 2, with assigned
seating. We will have a review for Exam 3 on
Thursday, March 1. Bring questions and requests for
more on specific topics in Chapters 9-11.
 CLUE will have a Physics 114 Midterm 3 Review on
2/29/2012 at 6:30-8:00 PM in Mary Gates Hall 234,
and they will have a Final Review on 3/8/2012 at
6:30-8:00 PM in Mary Gates Hall 238.
February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 2/25
 Lecture Schedule (Part 3)
Physics 114A - Introduction to Mechanics - Winter-2012
Lecture: Professor John G. Cramer
Textbook: Physics, Vol. 1 (UW Edition), James S. Walker
Week Date L# Lecture Topic Pages Slides Reading HW Due Lab
13-Feb-12 20 Momentum & Impulse 8 23 9-1 to 9-3
14-Feb-12 21 Momentum Conservation 11 24 9-4 to 9-5
7 16-Feb-12 22 Collisions & CM 10 23 9-6 to 9-7 HW6
Mom. & Collisions

17-Feb-12 23 Rotational Kinematics 13 30 10-1 to 10-3

20-Feb-12 H3 President's Day Holiday We are here.
21-Feb-12 24 Rotational Inertia 5 24 10-4 to 10-5 Angular Kinematics
8 23-Feb-12 25 Energy Conservation II 5 25 10-6 HW7 Torque

24-Feb-12 26 Torque & Equilibrium 18 26 11-1 to 11-4

27-Feb-12 27 Angular Momentum 10 25 11-5 to 11-7
28-Feb-12 28 Rotational Dynamics 3 26 11-8 to 11-9 Rotational Motion,
9 1-Mar-12 R3 Review & Extension - 49 - HW8 Mom. of Inertia

2-Mar-12 E3 EXAM 3 - Chapters 9-11

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 3/25

 Rotational Work & Power

A force F acting through a linear

displacement x does work: W = Fx.
Similarly, a torque  acting through an
angular displacement  does work:

The work-energy theorem applies as usual.

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 4/25

 Rotational Work & Power
Power is the rate at which work is done, for
rotational motion as well as for translational
motion.

Again, note the analogy to the linear form:

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 5/25

 Rotation as a Vector

We can treat rotation and other angular motion

quantities as vectors by using the right-hand rule: if the
fingers of your right hand follow the rotation direction,
then your thumb points along the rotation axis in the
vector direction of the angular velocity .


An alternative definition is that if a right-hand

threaded screw is rotated, then  points in the direction


in which the screw advances.

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 6/25
The Vector Nature of Rotational Motion

The vector
directions of the
angular velocity vector
 and the angular 


momentum vector L
are along the axis of
rotation. Applying the
right-hand rule gives
the direction.

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 7/25

The Vector Nature of Rotational Motion

Similar application
of the right-hand rule
gives the vector
direction of the
torque .


February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 8/25

 Angular Momentum and
Angular Velocity as Vectors
 
L  I
(for rotation about an
axis of symnmetry)

 
 L  ( I  )  
 net   I  I
t t t

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 9/25

 Example: Angular Momentum
About the Origin
Find the angular momentum about the origin for the
following situations:
(a) A car of mass 1200 kg moves in a counterclockwise
circle in the xy plane of radius 20
 m with a ˆspeed of 15 m/s;
(b) The same car moves with v  (15 m/s)i along the line
y = y0 = 20 m parallel to the x axis;
(c) A uniform disk in the xy plane of radius 20 m and mass
1200 kg rotates at 0.75 rad/s along its axis, which is the z
axis.
La  rp  rmv Lb  rp   y0 mv
 (20 m)(1200 kg)(15 m/s)  (20 m)(1200 kg)(15 m/s)
 3.6 10 kg m /s
5 2
 3.6 105 kg m 2 /s

Lc  I   12 mR 2  12 (1200 kg)(20 m) 2 (0.75 rad/s)

 1.8  105 kg m 2 /s

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 10/25

 Example:
Ride the Merry-go-Round
A 25 kg child at a playground runs with an initial
speed of 2.5 m/s along a path tangent to the rim of
a merry-go-round with a radius of 2.0 m and jumps
on. The merry-go-round, which is initially at rest,
has a moment of inertia of 500 kg m 2.
Find the angular velocity of the child and merry-
go-round.

 
L f  Li  I mgr  mc R   f  R (mc vi )  Rmc vi
2

Rmc vi (2.0 m)(25 kg)(2.5 m/s)

f    0.21 rad/s
I mgr  mc R 2
(500 kg m )  (25 kg)(2.0 m)
2 2

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 11/25

 Example: Pulling Through a Hole
A particle of mass m moves with speed v0 in a circle
of radius r0 on a frictionless tabletop. The particle is
attached to a massless string that passes through a hole
in the table as shown. The string is pulled slowly
downward until the particle is a distance rf from the hole
and continues to rotate in a circle of that radius.
(a) Find the final velocity vf.
(b) Find the tension T in the string when the particle moves
in a circle of radius r in terms of the angular momentum L.
(c) Are energy and/or angular momentum conserved when
the string is pulled?
L f  L0  mv f rf  mv0 r0  v f  v0 r0 / rf
2
mv 2 m  L  L2 Angular momentum is
T     3
r r  mr  mr conserved, but energy is not.
February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 12/25
 Example: Wrapping a Post
A puck on a frictionless plane is given an initial
speed v0. The puck is attached to a massless string
that wraps around a vertical post.
Are energy and/or angular momentum conserved?

Energy is conserved, but not angular momentum.

2
L
K  12 I  2  and I is diminishing, so L must also decrease.
2I

The tension T acts off the center of rotation by the radius r of the post,

so a torque   rT progressively reduces the angular momentum.

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 13/25

 Example: Tipping the Wheel
A student sitting on a stool on a frictionless turntable
is holding a rapidly spinning bicycle wheel. Initially, the
axis of the wheel is horizontal, with the angular momentum
vector L pointing to the right.
What happens when the student tips the wheel so that
the spin axis is vertical, with the wheel spinning
counterclockwise?
The system is free to rotate about the vertical axis (no
vertical torques) and initially the angular momentum is zero
along that axis. Therefore, vertical angular momentum is
conserved and the final angular momentum must also be zero.
In the final state, the wheel has a large angular
momentum pointing vertically upward, so the stool and
student must rotate clockwise to have an equal and opposite
downward angular momentum.
February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 14/25
 Hubble Reaction Wheels
The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is aimed
by regulating the spin rates of 45 kg reaction
wheels arranged off-axis from each other and
spinning at up to 3000 rpm. Software controlled
changes in the spin rates exchange angular
momentum between the flywheels and the rest
of the satellite. This causes the HST to slew to
different orientations, and can achieve and hold
a particular angular orientation in space to within
0.005 arcseconds. This is equivalent to holding a
flashlight beam in Los Angeles on a dime in San
Francisco.

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 15/25

 Clicker Question 1
I am initially at rest on the rotatable chair, holding
the wheel spinning as shown in [1]. Now [2] I turn
it over and the chair starts to rotate.
Question: What happens if [3] the wheel is turned ??
over in the same direction one more time?

[1] [2] [3]

(a) rotation stops; (b) rotation doubles; (c) rotation stays the same
February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 16/25
 Turning the Bike Wheel Twice
LNET LNET LNET

not
LW LW LS LW turning

[1] [2] [3]

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 17/25

 Reminder: Circular Motion

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 18/25

The Vector Nature of Rotational Motion
Conservation of angular momentum means
that the total angular momentum around any axis
must be constant. This is why gyroscopes are so
stable.

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 19/25

 Gyroscopic Motion
• Suppose you have a spinning gyroscope
in the configuration shown below:
• If the left support is removed,
what will happen??
Support
(to be removed) pivot

g

• The gyroscope does not fall down!

February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 20/25
 Gyroscopic Motion
• The gyroscope precesses around its
pivot axis ! 
• This rather odd phenomenon  L

can be understood by using t
the vector character of :

pivot


February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 21/25

 Gyroscopic Motion
• The magnitude of the torque about the pivot is
 = mgd.
• The direction of this torque at the instant shown is
out of the page (using the right hand rule).
– The change in angular momentum at the instant
shown must also be out of the page!
d


 L

t L


mg
February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 22/25
 Gyroscopic Motion
• Consider a view looking down on the gyroscope.
– The magnitude of the change in angular
momentum in a time t is L = L.
– So L  L   L
t t
where t is the “precession frequency”
L(t)

L =   t  pivot

L(t+t)
top view
February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 23/25
 Gyroscopic Motion
d


L pivot


L mg
 
 So t
 L 
L
mgd

 In this example,  = mgd and L = I: I

 The direction of precession is given by applying the

right hand rule to find the direction of  and hence
of L/t.
February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 24/25
 End of Lecture 28
 On Thursday, March 1 we will have a Review in preparation
for Exam 3. Bring questions!
 HW#8 is due at 11:59 PM on Thursday, March 1. HW#9 is
due at 11:59 PM on Sunday, March 11.
 There are people who still need to register their clickers.
 We will have Exam 3 on Friday, March 2. The format will be
similar to Exams 1 and 2, with assigned seating. We will
have a review for Exam 3 on Thursday, March 1. Bring
questions and requests for more on specific topics in
Chapters 9-11.
 CLUE will have a Physics 114 Midterm 3 Review on
2/29/2012 at 6:30-8:00 PM in Mary Gates Hall 234, and
they will have a Final Review on 3/8/2012 at 6:30-8:00 PM
in Mary Gates Hall 238.
February 28, 2012 Physics 114A - Lecture 28 25/25