ADDIS ABABA SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY

College of Engineering
Department of Mechanical Engineering

Engineering Mechanics II
MEng2102
Dr. Abdulbasit M.
February 2025
 1.1 Introduction
1.2. Basic concepts
1.3. Equations of motion
CHAPTER 1
1.4. Gravitation
1.5. Solving problems in Dynamics
1.1 Introduction
 At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:
Define the basic concept of Engineering Mechanics
Understanding the basic concept equation of the
motion
understanding the Newton's law of gravitation
 What is the Mechanics?
▪ Mechanics:
✓ Mechanics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of
motion, forces, and the behavior of physical objects.

✓ It is a foundational and fundamental field of study in physics

and engineering.

✓ It is used to analyze and predict the motion and behavior of

objects in a wide range of applications.
 Solid Mechanics
• Mechanics of Deformable bodies
• Mechanics of Rigid Bodies
Mechanics

Fluid Mechanics
• Ideal Fluid
• Viscous Fluid
• Compressible Fluid
Mechanics of rigid bodies

Statics Dynamics

Kinematics Kinetics
▪ Solid Mechanics:
❖ Solid mechanics focuses on the behavior of solid materials
under the action of forces.

❖ It includes the study of stress, strain, elasticity, deformation, and

the mechanical properties of materials.

❖ Solid mechanics is crucial in fields such as structural

engineering, materials science, and geomechanics.
▪ Fluid Mechanics:
✓ Fluid mechanics is the study of the behavior of fluids (liquids
and gases) and the forces acting on them.

✓ It involves understanding fluid flow, pressure, buoyancy,

viscosity, and other properties.

✓ Fluid mechanics has applications in fields such as

hydraulics, aerodynamics, and hydrodynamics.
▪ Dynamics:
✓ Dynamics is the branch of mechanics that studies the
causes of motion and the relationship between motion and
the forces acting on objects.

✓ It involves applying Newton's laws of motion to analyze and

predict the behavior of objects under the influence of forces.
▪ Statics:
✓ Statics is a subfield of mechanics that deals with objects at
rest or in equilibrium.

✓ It examines the balance of forces acting on objects and

studies concepts such as the center of gravity, moments,
and the conditions for static equilibrium.
▪ Kinematics:
✓ Kinematics is the branch of mechanics that focuses on the
description of motion without considering the forces causing it.

✓ It deals with concepts such as position, velocity, acceleration,

displacement, and time.

✓ Kinematic equations are used to mathematically describe the

relationship between these quantities.
▪ Kinetics:
✓ Kinetics refers to the branch of physics that deals with the study
of motion and the forces that cause or affect motion.

✓ It involves understanding how objects move, the factors that

influence their motion, and the mathematical descriptions of their
motion.
1.2. BASIC CONCEPTS
❑ Space is the geometric region occupied by bodies.
✓ It is determined relative to some geometric reference system by
means of linear and angular measurements.

✓ The basic frame of reference for the laws of Newtonian

mechanics is the primary inertial system or astronomical frame of
reference, which is an imaginary set of rectangular axes
assumed to have no translation or rotation in space.
❑ Time is a measure of the succession of events and is considered
an absolute quantity in Newtonian mechanics.

❑ Mass is the quantitative measure of the inertia or resistance to

change in motion of a body. Mass may also be considered as the
quantity of matter in a body as well as the property which gives
rise to gravitational attraction.
❑ Force is the vector action of one body on another.
❑ A particle is a body of negligible dimensions. When the
dimensions of a body are irrelevant to the description of its motion
or the action of forces on it, the body may be treated as a particle.

❑ A rigid body is a body whose changes in shape are negligible

compared with the overall dimensions of the body or with the
changes in position of the body as a whole.
1.3. EQUATION OF MOTION
 Newton's laws of motion

▪ Newton's First Law of Motion (Law of Inertia):

✓ "An object at rest tends to stay at rest, and an object in motion
tends to stay in motion with the same speed and in the same
direction unless acted upon by an external force."
✓ This law essentially states that objects will maintain their
current state of motion (either at rest or moving with a
constant velocity) unless an external force acts on them.
 Newton's laws of motion

✓ Inertia is the property of an object to resist changes in its

motion. The first law highlights the concept of inertia.
▪ Newton's Second Law of Motion:
✓ "The acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the
net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass."
✓ Mathematically, this law can be expressed as
F = ma
 Newton's laws of motion

✓ Where F represents the net force acting on an object, m

represents its mass, and a represents the acceleration
produced.
✓ The second law explains how the motion of an object changes
when a force is applied. The greater the force applied, the
greater the acceleration produced, and the greater the mass of
the object, the smaller the acceleration for a given force.
 Newton's laws of motion
▪ Newton's Third Law of Motion (Law of Action-Reaction):
✓ "For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction."
✓ This law states that whenever an object exerts a force on
another object, the second object exerts an equal and opposite
force on the first object.
✓ Forces always occur in pairs, known as action-reaction pairs.
These forces act on different objects and are equal in
magnitude but opposite in direction.
1.4 GRAVITATION
▪ Newton's law of gravitation, also known as the universal law of
gravitation,

▪ It is a fundamental principle in physics that describes the

gravitational force between two objects with mass. It was
formulated by Sir Isaac Newton in the late 17th century.
 The law states that:
▪ Every particle in the universe attracts every other particle
with a force that is directly proportional to the product of
their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the
distance between their centers.

▪ The force of gravity between two objects acts along the line
joining their centers.
▪ The force of gravity obeys the principle of superposition,
meaning that the total force on an object due to multiple
gravitational interactions is the vector sum of the individual
forces.

▪ Newton's law of gravitation can be expressed as:

▪ Where:
✓ F represents the gravitational force between two objects,
✓ G is the gravitational constant (~ 6.67430x10-11 N m2/kg2),
✓ m1 and m2 are the masses of the two objects, and
✓ r is the distance between the centers of the objects.
▪ Key points about Newton's law of gravitation:

✓ Gravitational force is an attractive force: The force of

gravity always acts towards the center of mass of an object

and is always attractive.

✓ It is responsible for holding objects, such as planets, in

orbits around larger celestial bodies like stars.
✓ Inverse square relationship: The force of gravity decreases
with the square of the distance between the centers of the

objects.

✓ This means that as the distance between two objects

increases, the gravitational force between them decreases

rapidly.
✓ Universal applicability: Newton's law of gravitation applies
to all objects with mass, regardless of their size or

composition.

✓ It is used to describe the motion of celestial bodies, the

behavior of objects on Earth, and even the interactions

between smaller objects like apples falling from trees.

1.5. Solving Problems in Dynamics
 Method of Attack
▪ An effective method of attack is essential in the solution of
dynamics problems, as for all engineering problems.

▪ Development of good habits in formulating problems and in

representing their solutions will be an invaluable asset.

▪ The following sequence of steps is useful in the construction of

problem solutions.
1. Formulate the problem:
a) State the given data.
b) State the desired result.
c) State your assumptions and approximations.
2. Develop the solution:
a) Draw any needed diagrams, and include coordinates which
are appropriate for the problem at hand.

b) State the governing principles to be applied to your solution.

c) Make your calculations.
d) Ensure that your calculations are consistent with the accuracy
justified by the data.
e) Be sure that you have used consistent units throughout your
calculations.

f) Ensure that your answers are reasonable in terms of

magnitudes, directions, common sense, etc.

g) Draw conclusions.
 SAMPLE PROBLEM
A space-shuttle payload module weighs 100 lb when resting on
the surface of the earth at a latitude of 45 north.
a) Determine the mass of the module in both slugs and Kg, and
its surface-level weight in newton's.
b) Now suppose the module is taken to an altitude of 200 miles above the
surface of the earth and released there with no velocity relative to the
center of the earth. Determine its weight under these conditions in both
pounds and newton's
c) Suppose the module is fixed inside the cargo bay of a space shuttle.
The shuttle is in a circular orbit at an altitude of 200 miles above the
surface of the earth. Determine the weight of the module in both
pounds and newton's under these conditions