Lesson 9.

Torque

General Physics 1/2

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Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Is this object seem familiar to you?
This is what we called as a fidget
spinner.

These spinners are handheld toys

usually with three lobes that you
can easily spin about their central
axis.

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How fast a fidget spinner rotates depend on
several factors such as internal friction and
moment of inertia.

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In order for a fidget spinner to spin from rest, we have
to apply force perpendicular to the lobe.

In this lesson, we will be discussing about the tendency

of a force to produce a rotation which we call as
torque.

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How can force cause or stop an
object’s rotation?

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Learning Competency
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

Calculate the magnitude and direction of

torque using the definition of torque as a cross
product (STEM_GP12RED-IIa-3).

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 Learning Objectives
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Define the concept of the torque of a force about

a given point.

● Calculate the magnitude of torque.

● Determine the direction of torque.

● Calculate the torque vector given the components

of position and force.
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 Torque

● Suppose a force F is exerted on

point A of a rigid body that can
be rotated about point O.
● The line of action—along which
the force vector lies—forms an
angle θ with the position vector
r of point A.

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 Torque

● The tendency of the applied force

to rotate the object depends on
the magnitude of the force.

● If we decrease the perpendicular

distance (called the lever arm or
moment arm) between the axis of
rotation and the line of action, it
becomes harder to rotate the
object. 9
 Torque

● If the line of action and axis of

rotation intersect, the rigid
body will not rotate.
● The tendency of a force to
change an object’s rotational
motion about an axis is called
torque or moment of force.

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 Torque

● The torque ( ) exerted is a

vector perpendicular to both
position and force vectors.
● It can be mathematically stated
as:

● It should be noted that the

torque is the cross product
between r and F. 11
Remember

The torque of a force is always

measured with respect to a given
point. The location of a point affects the
torque of each force. Thus, it is not
enough to merely say “the torque of F,”
but “the “torque of F about or around
point A” or the “torque of F with respect/
relative to point A.”
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 Torque

● Door knobs are located at the possible farthest

point from the hinges in order to increase torque
with a minimum exerted force.
● It can be illustrated below:

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 Magnitude of Torque

● Suppose we are looking for the cross product of

three vectors:

● The angle between vectors A and B is noted by θ.

We can get the magnitude of vector C by using the
equation:

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 Magnitude of Torque

● Similarly to torque, we can get its magnitude by

using the equation:

● This suggests that the magnitude of torque is

directly proportional to the applied force F and the
length of the lever arm.

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 Magnitude of Torque

● Torque is zero when θ = 0o or θ = 180o.

● Torque is maximum if θ = 90o.
● These mean that torque is maximum when the
force and the lever arm are perpendicular and zero
when they are parallel.

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 Magnitude of Torque

● The relationship between torque and the angle

between the lever arm and the force can be seen
below:

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The SI unit of torque is newton-
meter. Is torque equivalent to
work and energy whose SI unit
is joule? (1 J = 1 N⋅m)

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 Direction of Torque

● The direction of the cross product of two vectors is

given by the right-handed coordinate system as
shown:

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 Direction of Torque

● We recall that the cross product between vectors

with direction <i> and <j> is <k>. This means that the
cross product between two vectors will be
perpendicular to both of them.

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 Direction of Torque

Right Hand Rule

● First, point the fingers of your
right hand in the direction of
the position vector.

● Then, curl your fingers

towards the direction of the
force vector.

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 Direction of Torque

Right Hand Rule

● Your outstretched thumb

should now point to the
direction of the torque.

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 Direction of Torque

● Since torque is a vector, we have to emphasize its

sign convention shown below:

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 Net Torque

● To determine the net torque of an object, we have

to apply the following equation:

● We have to consider in this equation the direction

of the torque whether it is positive or negative.

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How is the right-hand rule
applied in torque?

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 Let’s Practice!

Suppose 900 N is applied downwards to one end of a

0.80 m lever which makes a 71° angle with the
vertical. Calculate the magnitude of the torque
applied on the lever.

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 Let’s Practice!

Suppose 900 N is applied downwards to one end of a

0.80 m lever which makes a 71° angle with the
vertical. Calculate the magnitude of the torque
applied on the lever.

The magnitude of the torque applied to the lever is

680 Nm.
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Try It!

Suppose 600 N is applied downwards to

one end of a 1.10 m lever which makes a
69° angle with the vertical. Calculate the
magnitude of the torque applied on the
lever.

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 Let’s Practice!

The torque about the origin applied on a point by a

force is . If the point lies on the
y-axis, find the position vector that gives the point on
which the force is exerted. Assume all components
are in SI units.

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 Let’s Practice!

The torque about the origin applied on a point by a

force is . If the point lies on the
y-axis, find the position vector that gives the point on
which the force is exerted. Assume all components
are in SI units.

The position vector is .

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Try It!

The torque about the origin applied on a

point by a force
is . If the point lies on
the x-axis, find the position vector that
gives the point on which the force is
exerted.

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 Let’s Practice!

Calculate the net torque about the

axle if forces are exerted on points
A and B in the wheel as shown.

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 Let’s Practice!

Calculate the net torque about the

axle if forces are exerted on points
A and B in the wheel as shown.

The net torque on the axle of the wheel is .

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Try It!
If the force tangent to point A
has a magnitude of 23 N
towards the positive x-
direction, and the force applied
on point B has a magnitude of
19 N with an angle of 47° from
the positive x-axis in the figure,
calculate the net torque about
the axle.

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 Check Your Understanding

Identify whether the following statements are true or

false.
1. Torque is the cross-product of the position and force
vectors.

2. Torque is a vector quantity.

3. The torque about an axis is zero if the position vector is

along the line of action.
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 Check Your Understanding

Give the magnitude of the torque acting on a point

about an axis given the force, the distance of the point
from the axis of rotation, and the angle between the
force vector and the position vector. Express all your
answers in two significant figures.
1.
2.

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 Let’s Sum It Up!

● Torque is the tendency of a force to change an

object’s rotational motion about an axis.

● Torque is the cross product of the position and

force vectors.

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 Let’s Sum It Up!

● The magnitude of torque depends on both the

magnitude of the force and the length of the
lever arm.

● The direction of torque can be determined by the

right-hand rule.

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 Key Formulas

Concept Formula Description

This is the
Torque as a Cross
mathematical
Product where
definition of torque as
● τ is the torque in
cross product.
newton-meter
(N⋅m);
● r is the length in
meter (m), and
● F is the force in
newton (N).
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 Key Formulas

Concept Formula Description

Use this formula to

Magnitude of
solve for the
Torque where
magnitude of torque
● τ is the torque in newton-
if the magnitude of the
meter (N⋅m);
force and the length of
● r is the length in meter
(m); the lever arm are given.
● θ is the angle between r
and F, and
● F is the force in newton
(N). 40
Challenge Yourself

Your friend John said that it is harder

to apply torque on heavier objects. Is
John correct? Why or why not?

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Bibliography
Faughn, Jerry S. and Raymond A. Serway. Serway’s College Physics (7th ed). Singapore: Brooks/Cole,
2006.

Giancoli, Douglas C. Physics Principles with Applications (6th ed). USA: Pearson Education, 2005.

Knight, Randall D. Physics for Scientists and Engineers: A Strategic Approach (4th ed). USA: Pearson
Education, 2017.

Tipler, Paul A., and Gene Mosca. Physics for Scientists and Engineers (6th ed). New York: W.H. Freeman
and Company, 2008.

Young, Hugh D., Roger A. Freedman, and A. Lewis Ford. Sears and Zemansky’s University
Physics with Modern Physics (13th ed). USA: Pearson Education, 2012.

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