SYSTEM OF PARTICLES AND
ROTATIONAL MOTION
• Equilibrium of a rigid body
• Angular momentum
• Moment of Inertia
• Radius of gyration
• Moment of inertia for simple geometrical objects
• Conservation of angular momentum and its applications
• Relation between angular momentum and moment of Inertia
• Relation between Torque and Moment of Inertia
• Work done by Torque
• Comparison of Linear and Rotational motions
Equilibrium of a Rigid Body
A rigid body is said to be in mechanical equilibrium if both
the linear momentum and angular momentum of the rigid
body remain constant with time.
A body under the action of several forces will be in
equilibrium, if it possesses the following two equilibria
simultaneously:
(i)Translational equilibrium:
The resultant of all the external forces acting on a body
must be zero.
∑ Fext = 0
∑ Fx = 0, ∑ Fy = 0 ∑ Fz = 0
(ii)Rotational equilibrium:
The resultant of torques due to all the forces acting on the
body about any point must be zero.
Net torque = 0.
Angular momentum(L):
Consider a particle of mass m and linear momentum p at a
position r relative to the origin O.
The angular momentum L of the particle with respect to the
origin O is defined to be L = r x p
L = r p sinθ
L = (r sinθ) p
L = r (p sinθ)
Where r sinθ is the perpendicular distance of the
directional line of p from the origin,
p sinθ is the component of p in a direction perpendicular to r
L depends on p, r and angle between them.
The S.I unit of L is Kgm2s-1 and CGS unit is gcm2s-1 .
Angular momentum is a vector.
Relation between Torque and Angular momentum
The torque acting on a particle is equal to its rate of change of angular
momentum.
Moment of Inertia(I)
The moment of inertia of a rigid body about a fixed axis is defined as
the sum of the products of the masses of the particles constituting the
body and the squares of their respective distances from the axis of
rotation.
Consider a rigid body rotating with
uniform angular velocity ω about
a vertical axis through O.
The body consists of n particles
of masses m1, m2, m3, …..mn
situated at r1,r2,r3,…….rn respectively
from the axis of rotation.
The moment of inertia of the body
about the axis OZ is given by
I = m1r12 + m2r22 + …….+ mnrn2
I= mi ri2
Moment of Inertia………
The S.I unit of moment of inertia is kgm2 and its
CGS unit is gcm2 .
It is a scalar quantity.
Moment of inertia is rotational analogue of mass.
Factors on which moment of inertia depends:
(i) mass of the body
(ii) Size and shape of the body
(iii) Distribution of mass about the axis of rotation
(iv) Position and orientation of the axis of rotation
w.r.t. the body.
Relation between Rotational K.E. and Moment of Inertia
Consider a rigid body, of n particles, rotating with a
uniform angular velocity.
Their linear velocities are
v1 = r1ω, v2 = r2ω, …….vn = rnω
The total kinetic energy of rotation of the body about the
axis OZ is
Rotational K.E = (1/2)m1v12 + (1/2)m2v22 + ……(1/2)mnvn2
= (1/2)m1 r12 ω2 + (1/2)m2 r22 ω2 + … + (1/2)mn rn2 ω2
= (1/2)[m1 r12 + m2 r22 + ……+ mn rn2 ] ω2
= (1/2)(∑ mr2 ) ω2
= (1/2) I ω2
So Rotational K.E = (1/2) I ω2
Radius of gyration(k)
The radius of gyration of a body about its axis of rotation is
defined as the distance from the axis of rotation at which, if
the whole mass of the body were concentrated, its moment
of inertia about the given axis would be the same as with
the actual distribution of mass.
Suppose a rigid body consists of
n particles of mass m each,
situated at distances r1, r2, ….rn
from the axis of rotation AB.
The moment of inertia of the body
about the axis AB is
Radius of gyration……
Where M = m x n = total mass of the body.
If k is the radius of gyration about the axis AB, then I = Mk2
The radius of gyration of a body about an axis of rotation may also
be defined as the root mean square distance of its particles from
the axis of rotation.
k depends on (i) Position and direction of the axis of rotation
(ii) Distribution of mass about the axis of rotation.
k has the dimensions of length L and is measured in metre or cm.
Moments of Inertia of some regular shaped bodies
Conservation of angular momentum
When the net external torque acting on a body is zero, the
total angular momentum of the body is constant. This is the
law of conservation of angular momentum.
Suppose the external torque acting on a rigid body due to external
force is zero, Then
Torque = dL/dt = 0
Hence, L= constant
Iω = constant
I1 ω 1 = I2 ω 2
Illustrations of the law of conservation of angular
momentum:
(i) Planetary motion
The angular velocity of a planet revolving in an elliptical orbit around
the sun increases, when it comes closer to the sun because its
moment of inertia about the axis through the sun decreases. When it
goes far away from the, its moment of inertia increases and hence
angular velocity decreases so as to conserve angular momentum.
ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE LAW OF CONSERVATION OF ANGULAR MOMENTUM……
(ii) An ice-skater or a ballet dancer can increase her angular
velocity by folding her arms and bringing the stretched leg close
to the other leg.
(iii) A diver jumping from a spring board exhibits somersaults in
air before touching the water surface.
(iv) A man carrying heavy weights in his hands and sitting in a
rotating turn-table can change the angular speed of the turn-
table.
Relation between Angular momentum and Moment of Inertia
The angular momentum of a rigid body about an axis is
the sum of moments of linear momenta of all its
particles about the axis.
L = L1 + L2 + …………+ Ln
= r1p1 + r2p2 + ……….+ rnpn
= r1(m1v1) + r2(m2v2) + ……..+ rn(mnvn)
= r1m1(r1ω) + r2m2(r2ω) + …….+ rnmn(rnω)
= (m1r12 + m2r22 + …………+ mnrn2)ω
= (∑ mr2 ) ω
=Iω
Angular momentum = Moment of Inertia x Angular
velocity
Relation between Torque and Moment of Inertia
Work done by torque
Suppose a body undergoes an
angular displacement ∆θ
under the action of a
tangential force F.
Work done by torque………
Comparison of Linear and Rotational motions
Comparison of Linear and Rotational motions ………
THE END OF THE CHAPTER - 7
