Chapter 8

Rotational Equilibrium
and
Rotational Dynamics
Force vs. Torque
 Forces cause accelerations
 Torques cause angular
accelerations
 Force and torque are related
Torque

 The door is free to rotate about an axis

through O
 There are three factors that determine the
effectiveness of the force in opening the door:
 The magnitude of the force
 The position of the application of the force
 The angle at which the force is applied
Torque, cont
 Torque, , is the tendency of a
force to rotate an object about
some axis
 =rF
 is the torque
 Symbol is the Greek tau
 F is the force
 r is the length of the position vector
 SI unit is N.m
 Direction of Torque
 Torque is a vector quantity
 The direction is perpendicular to the
plane determined by the position
vector and the force
 If the turning tendency of the force is
counterclockwise, the torque will be
positive
 If the turning tendency is clockwise,
the torque will be negative
Multiple Torques
 When two or more torques are
acting on an object, the torques
are added
 As vectors
 If the net torque is zero, the
object’s rate of rotation doesn’t
change
General Definition of
Torque
 The applied force is not always
perpendicular to the position
vector
 The component of the force
perpendicular to the object will
cause it to rotate
General Definition of
Torque, cont
 When the force is
parallel to the
position vector, no
rotation occurs
 When the force is
at some angle, the
perpendicular
component causes
the rotation
General Definition of
Torque, final
 Taking the angle into account
leads to a more general definition
of torque:
 r F sin
 F is the force
 r is the position vector
 is the angle between the force and the
position vector
Lever Arm

 The lever arm, d, is the perpendicular distance

from the axis of rotation to a line drawn along
the direction of the force
 d = r sin
 This also gives = rF sin
Right Hand Rule
 Point the fingers
in the direction of
the position
vector
 Curl the fingers
toward the force
vector
 The thumb points
in the direction of
the torque
Net Torque
 The net torque is the sum of all
the torques produced by all the
forces
 Remember to account for the
direction of the tendency for rotation
 Counterclockwise torques are positive
 Clockwise torques are negative
Torque and Equilibrium
 First Condition of Equilibrium
 The net external force must be zero
F 0 or
Fx 0 and Fy 0
 This is a necessary, but not sufficient,
condition to ensure that an object is in
complete mechanical equilibrium
 This is a statement of translational
equilibrium
Torque and Equilibrium,
cont
 To ensure mechanical equilibrium,
you need to ensure rotational
equilibrium as well as translational
 The Second Condition of
Equilibrium states
 The net external torque must be zero
0
Selecting an Axis
 The value of depends on the axis
of rotation
 You can choose any location for
calculating torques
 It’s usually best to choose an axis
that will make at least one torque
equal to zero
 This will simplify the torque equation
Equilibrium Example
 The woman, mass
m, sits on the left
end of the see-saw
 The man, mass M,
sits where the see-
saw will be balanced
 Apply the Second
Condition of
Equilibrium and
solve for the
unknown distance, x
Axis of Rotation
 If the object is in equilibrium, it does
not matter where you put the axis of
rotation for calculating the net torque
 The location of the axis of rotation is
completely arbitrary
 Often the nature of the problem will suggest
a convenient location for the axis
 When solving a problem, you must specify
an axis of rotation
 Once you have chosen an axis, you must
maintain that choice consistently throughout the
problem
Center of Gravity
 The force of gravity acting on an
object must be considered
 In finding the torque produced by
the force of gravity, all of the
weight of the object can be
considered to be concentrated at a
single point
Calculating the Center of
Gravity
 The object is
divided up into a
large number of
very small particles
of weight (mg)
 Each particle will
have a set of
coordinates
indicating its
location (x,y)
Calculating the Center of
Gravity, cont.
 We assume the object is free to
rotate about its center
 The torque produced by each
particle about the axis of rotation
is equal to its weight times its
lever arm
 For example, m1 g x 1
Calculating the Center of
Gravity, cont.
 We wish to locate the point of
application of the single force
whose magnitude is equal to the
weight of the object, and whose
effect on the rotation is the same
as all the individual particles.
 This point is called the center of
gravity of the object
Coordinates of the Center
of Gravity
 The coordinates of the center of
gravity can be found from the sum
of the torques acting on the
individual particles being set equal
to the torque produced by the
weight of the object
mi xi mi yi
xcg and ycg
mi mi
Center of Gravity of a
Uniform Object
 The center of gravity of a
homogenous, symmetric body
must lie on the axis of symmetry
 Often, the center of gravity of such
an object is the geometric center
of the object
Experimentally Determining
the Center of Gravity
 The wrench is hung
freely from two different
pivots
 The intersection of the
lines indicates the center
of gravity
 A rigid object can be
balanced by a single
force equal in magnitude
to its weight as long as
the force is acting
upward through the
object’s center of gravity
Notes About Equilibrium
 A zero net torque does not mean
the absence of rotational motion
 An object that rotates at uniform
angular velocity can be under the
influence of a zero net torque
 This is analogous to the translational
situation where a zero net force does not
mean the object is not in motion
Solving Equilibrium
Problems
 Diagram the system
 Include coordinates and choose a rotation
axis
 Isolate the object being analyzed and
draw a free body diagram showing all
the external forces acting on the object
 For systems containing more than one
object, draw a separate free body diagram
for each object
 Problem Solving, cont.
 Apply the Second Condition of
Equilibrium
 This will yield a single equation, often with
one unknown which can be solved
immediately
 Apply the First Condition of Equilibrium
 This will give you two more equations
 Solve the resulting simultaneous
equations for all of the unknowns
 Solving by substitution is generally easiest
Example of a Free Body
Diagram (Forearm)

 Isolate the object to be analyzed

 Draw the free body diagram for that object
 Include all the external forces acting on the object
Example of a Free Body
Diagram (Beam)
 The free body
diagram
includes the
directions of the
forces
 The weights act
through the
centers of
gravity of their
objects
Example of a Free Body
Diagram (Ladder)

 The free body diagram shows the normal force

and the force of static friction acting on the
ladder at the ground
 The last diagram shows the lever arms for the
forces
Torque and Angular
Acceleration
 When a rigid object is subject to a
net torque (≠0), it undergoes an
angular acceleration
 The angular acceleration is directly
proportional to the net torque
 The relationship is analogous to ∑F =
ma
 Newton’s Second Law
Moment of Inertia
 The angular acceleration is
inversely proportional to the
analogy of the mass in a rotating
system
 This mass analog is called the
moment of inertia, I, of the object
2
I mr
 SI units are kg m2
Newton’s Second Law for
a Rotating Object

I
 The angular acceleration is directly
proportional to the net torque
 The angular acceleration is
inversely proportional to the
moment of inertia of the object
More About Moment of
Inertia
 There is a major difference between
moment of inertia and mass: the
moment of inertia depends on the
quantity of matter and its distribution in
the rigid object.
 The moment of inertia also depends
upon the location of the axis of rotation
Moment of Inertia of a
Uniform Ring
 Image the hoop is
divided into a
number of small
segments, m1 …
 These segments
are equidistant
from the axis
I mi ri2 MR2
Other Moments of Inertia
 Example, Newton’s Second
Law for Rotation
 Draw free body
diagrams of each object
 Only the cylinder is
rotating, so apply =I

 The bucket is falling,

but not rotating, so
apply F = m a
 Remember that a = r
and solve the resulting
equations
Rotational Kinetic Energy
 An object rotating about some axis
with an angular speed, ω, has
rotational kinetic energy ½Iω2
 Energy concepts can be useful for
simplifying the analysis of
rotational motion
Total Energy of a System
 Conservation of Mechanical Energy

(KEt KEr PEg )i (KEt KEr PEg )f

 Remember, this is for conservative

forces, no dissipative forces such as
friction can be present
 Potential energies of any other
conservative forces could be added
Work-Energy in a Rotating
System
 In the case where there are
dissipative forces such as friction,
use the generalized Work-Energy
Theorem instead of Conservation
of Energy
 Wnc = KEt + KEr + PE
Problem Solving Hints for
Energy Methods
 Choose two points of interest
 One where all the necessary
information is given
 The other where information is
desired
 Identify the conservative and
nonconservative forces
Problem Solving Hints for
Energy Methods, cont
 Write the general equation for the
Work-Energy theorem if there are
nonconservative forces
 Use Conservation of Energy if there
are no nonconservative forces
 Use v = r to combine terms
 Solve for the unknown
Angular Momentum
 Similarly to the relationship between
force and momentum in a linear
system, we can show the relationship
between torque and angular
momentum
 Angular momentum is defined as
 L=Iω

L
 and
t
Angular Momentum, cont
 If the net torque is zero, the angular
momentum remains constant
 Conservation of Angular Momentum
states: Let Li and Lf be the angular
momenta of a system at two different
times, and suppose there is no net
external torque, then angular
momentum is conserved
Conservation of Angular
Momentum
 Mathematically, when
0, Li Lf or Ii i If f
 Applies to macroscopic objects as well
as atoms and molecules
Conservation Rules,
Summary
 In an isolated system, the
following quantities are conserved:
 Mechanical energy
 Linear momentum
 Angular momentum
Conservation of Angular
Momentum, Example
 With hands and
feet drawn closer
to the body, the
skater’s angular
speed increases
 L is conserved, I
decreases,
increases
Conservation of Angular
Momentum, Example, cont
 Coming out of the
spin, arms and
legs are extended
and rotation is
slowed
 L is conserved, I
increases,
decreases
Conservation of Angular
Moment, Astronomy Example

 Crab Nebula, result of supernova

 Center is a neutron star
 As the star’s moment of inertia decreases,
its rotational speed increases