Circular Motion

DYNAMICS OF CIRCULAR MOTION :

Example 15. A block of mass 2kg is tied to a string of length 2m, the other end of which is fixed. The block is
moved on a smooth horizontal table with constant speed 5 m/s. Find the tension in the string.

Solution :

here centripetal force is provided by tension.

mv 2 2  52
T= = = 25 N
r 2

Example 16. A block of mass m moves with speed v against a smooth, fixed vertical circular groove of radius
r kept on smooth horizontal surface.

Find :
(i) normal reaction of the floor on the block.
(ii) normal reaction of the vertical wall on the block.
Solution : Here centripetal force is provided by normal reaction of vertical wall.
(i) normal reaction of floor NF = mg
mv 2
(ii) normal reaction of vertical wall NW = .
r

Example 17. A block of mass m is kept on the edge of a horizontal turn table of radius R, which is rotating
with constant angular velocity  (along with the block) about its axis. If coefficient of friction is ,
find the friction force between block and table
Solution : Here centripetal force is provided by friction force.
Friction force = centripetal force = m2R

Example 18. Consider a conical pendulum having bob of mass m is suspended from a ceiling through a
string of length L. The bob moves in a horizontal circle of radius r. Find (a) the angular speed of
the bob and (b) the tension in the string.
Solution : The situation is shown in figure. The angle  made by
the string with the vertical is given by
L2  r 2
sin = r / L, cos  = h/L = ...(i)
L
The forces on the particle are

(a) the tension T along the string and

(b) the weight mg vertically downward.
The particle is moving in a circle with a constant speed
v. Thus , the radial acceleration towards the centre has
magnitude v2 / r. Resolving the forces along the radial
direction and applying Newton’s second law,
Tsin  = m(v2 / r) ....(ii)
Circular Motion
As there is no acceleration in vertical direction, we have from Newton’s law,
Tcos  = mg ....(iii)
Dividing (ii) by (iii),
v2
tan  = or, v = rg tan
rg
v g tan  g g g
 = = = = = 1
Ans.
r r h L cos 
(L2  r 2 ) 2
mg mgL
And from (iii), T = = 1
Ans.
cos  2
(L  r2)2
Example 19. A block of mass m is tied to a spring of spring constant k, natural length ,
and the other end of spring is fixed at O. If the block moves in a circular
path on a smooth horizontal surface with constant angular velocity , find
tension in the spring.
Solution : Assume extension in the spring is x.
Here centripetal force is provided by spring force.
m2 
Centripetal force, kx = m2( + x)  x =
k  m2
km2 
therefore, tension = kx = Ans.
k  m2
Example 20. A string breaks under a load of 50 kg. A mass of 1 kg is attached to one end of the string 10 m
long and is rotated in horizontal circle. Calculate the greatest number of revolutions that the
mass can make in one second without breaking the string.
Solution :  = 2n,
Tmax = 500 N, r = L sin
Tsin = m2r
 T = m2 L
2
 Tmax = m max L
 Tmax = m(2nmax)2 L
1 Tmax 1 500 50
nmax = = = revolution per second. Ans.
2 mL 2 1 10 2
Example 21. A boy whirls a stone in a horizontal circle of radius 2 m and at height 4.9 m above level ground.
The string breaks, and the stone files off horizontally and strikes the ground at a point which is
10 m away from the point on the ground directly below the point where the string had broken.
What is the magnitude of the centripetal acceleration of the stone while in circular motion?
(g = 9.8 m/s2)
Solution :
Circular Motion
2h 2  4.9
t=   1s
g 9.8
10 v2
v= = 10 m/s ; a = = 50 m/s2
t R

Example 22. A hemispherical bowl of radius R is rotating about its axis of symmetry which is kept vertical. A
small ball kept in the bowl rotates with the bowl without slipping on its smooth surface and the
angle made by the radius through the ball with the vertical is . Find the angular speed at which
the bowl is rotating.

Solution : Let  be the angular speed of rotation of the bowl. Two
force are acting on the ball.
1. Normal reaction N R 
2. weight mg N
The ball is rotating in a circle of radius r (= R sin ) with r A

centre at A at an angular speed . Thus, mg

N sin  = mr2 = mR2 sin 
N = mR2 .....(i)
and N cos  = mg .....(ii)
1 2R
Dividing Eqs. (i) by (ii), we get 
cos  g
g
 
R cos

Example 36. What should be the angle of banking of a circular track of radius 600 m which is designed for
cars at an average speed of 180 km/hr ?
Solution : Let the angle of banking be . The forces on the car are (figure)
(a) weight of the car Mg downward and
(b) normal force N.
For proper banking , static frictional force is not needed.
For vertical direction the acceleration is zero. So,
Ncos  = Mg .....(i)
For horizontal direction , the acceleration is v2 / r towards the centre ,
so that
Nsin = Mv2/r .....(ii)
From (i) and (ii), tan  = v2 / rg
180(km / h)2
Putting the values, tan = = 0.4167 = 22.6º.
(600m)(10m / s2 )

SUBJECTIVE
C-1. A small sphere of mass 200 gm is attached to an inextensible string of length 130 cm whose upper end
is fixed to the ceiling. The sphere is made to describe a horizontal circle of radius 50 cm. Calculate the
time period of this conical pendulum and the tension in the string. (2 = 10) [IIT 1974]
1
C-2. A mosquito is sitting on an L.P. record of a gramophone disc rotating on a turn table at 33 revolution
3
per minute. The distance of the mosquito from the centre of the disc is 10 cm. Show that the friction
coefficient between the record and the mosquito is greater than 2 / 81. Take g = 10 m/s2.

C-3. A motorcyclist wants to drive on the vertical surface of wooden ‘well’ of radius 5 m, in horizontal plane
with speed of 5 5 m/s. Find the minimum value of coefficient of friction between the tyres and the wall
of the well. (take g = 10 m/s2)
Circular Motion

C-4. A mass is kept on a horizontal frictionless surface. It is attached to a string and rotates about a fixed
centre at an angular velocity 0. If the length of the string and angular velocity are doubled, find the
tension in the string which was initially T0. [AIIMS 1954]

C-5. A ceiling fan has a diameter (of the circle through the outer edges of the three blades) of 120 cm and
rpm 1500 at full speed. Consider a particle of mass 1g sticking at the outer end of a blade. What is the
net force on it, when the fan runs at full speed ? Who exerts this force on the particle ? How much force
does the particle exert on the blade in the plane of motion ?

OBJECTIVE
C-1. A stone of mass of 16 kg is attached to a string 144 m long and is whirled in a horizontal smooth
surface. The maximum tension the string can withstand is 16 N. The maximum speed of revolution of
the stone without breaking it, will be : [SCRA 1994]
(A) 20 ms–1 (B) 16 ms–1 (C) 14 ms–1 (D) 12 ms–1
C-2. On horizontal smooth surface a mass of 2 kg is whirled in a horizontal circle by means of a string at an
initial angular speed of 5 revolutions per minute. Keeping the radius constant the tension in the string is
doubled. The new angular speed is nearly: [MP PET 1998]
(A) 14 rpm (B) 10 rpm (C) 2.25 rpm (D) 7 rpm
C-3. A particle is kept fixed on a uniformly rotating turn-table As seen from the ground , the particle goes in
a circle, its speed is 10 cm/s and acceleration is 10 cm/s2.The particle is now shifted to a new position
to make the radius half of the original value.The new values of the speed and acceleration will be
(A) 20 cm/s, 20 cm/s2 (B) 5 cm/s, 5 cm/s2 (C) 40 cm/s, 10 cm/s2 (D) 40 cm/s,40 cm/s2
C-4. A coin placed on a rotating turntable just slips if it is placed at a distance of 16 cm from the centre. If the
angular velocity of the turntable is doubled, it will just slip at a distance of
(A) 1 cm (B) 2 cm (C) 4 cm (D) 8 cm
C-5. A rod of length L is hinged at one end and it is rotated with a constant angular velocity in a horizontal
plane. Let T1 and T2 be the tensions at the points L/4 and 3L/4 away from the hinged end.
(A) T1 > T2 (B) T2 > T1 (C) T1 = T2
(D) The relation between T1 and T2 depends on whether the rod rotates clockwise or anticlockwise
C-6. A particle moving along a circular path due to a centripetal force having constant magnitude is an
example of motion with :
(A) constant speed and velocity (B) variable speed and velocity
(C) variable speed and constant velocity (D) constant speed and variable velocity.
Circular Motion

6 13
C-1. 2 sec., N (with 2 = 10)
5 6
2 2
C-2. µ C-3. C-4. 8 T0
81 5
152 152
C-5. = 14.8N, = 14.8 N.
10 10
C-1. (D) C-2. (D) C-3. (B)
C-4. (C) C-5. (A) C-6. (D)