Chapter 6
Circular Motion
and
Other Applications of Newton’s
Laws
Uniform Circular Motion,
Acceleration
⚫ A particle moves with a constant speed in a
circular path of radius r with an acceleration:
v2
ac =
r
r
⚫ The centripetal acceleration, a c is directed toward
the center of the circle
⚫ The centripetal acceleration is always
perpendicular to the velocity
Uniform Circular Motion, Force
r
⚫ A force, Fr , is
associated with the
centripetal acceleration
⚫ The force is also
directed toward the
center of the circle
⚫ Applying Newton’s
Second Law along the
radial direction gives
v2
F = mac = m r
Uniform Circular Motion, cont
⚫ A force causing a centripetal
acceleration acts toward the
center of the circle
⚫ It causes a change in the
direction of the velocity vector
⚫ If the force vanishes, the
object would move in a
straight-line path tangent to
the circle
⚫ See various release points in
the active figure
Conical Pendulum
⚫ The object is in
equilibrium in the
vertical direction and
undergoes uniform
circular motion in the
horizontal direction
⚫ ∑Fy = 0 → T cos θ = mg
⚫ ∑Fx = T sin θ = m ac
⚫ v is independent of m
v = Lg sin tan
Motion in a Horizontal Circle
⚫ The speed at which the object moves
depends on the mass of the object and the
tension in the cord
⚫ The centripetal force is supplied by the
tension
Tr
v=
m
Horizontal (Flat) Curve
⚫ The force of static friction
supplies the centripetal
force
⚫ The maximum speed at
which the car can negotiate
the curve is
v = s gr
⚫ Note, this does not depend
on the mass of the car
Banked Curve
⚫ These are designed with
friction equaling zero
⚫ There is a component of
the normal force that
supplies the centripetal
force
v2
tan =
rg
Banked Curve, 2
⚫ The banking angle is independent of the
mass of the vehicle
⚫ If the car rounds the curve at less than the
design speed, friction is necessary to keep it
from sliding down the bank
⚫ If the car rounds the curve at more than the
design speed, friction is necessary to keep it
from sliding up the bank
Loop-the-Loop
⚫ This is an example of a
vertical circle
⚫ At the bottom of the
loop (b), the upward
force (the normal)
experienced by the
object is greater than
its weight
mv 2
F = nbot − mg = r
v2
nbot = mg 1 +
rg
Loop-the-Loop, Part 2
⚫ At the top of the circle
(c), the force exerted
on the object is less
than its weight
mv 2
F = ntop + mg = r
v2
ntop = mg − 1
rg
Non-Uniform Circular Motion
⚫ The acceleration and
force have tangential
components
r
⚫ Fr produces the
centripetal
acceleration
r
⚫ Ft produces the
tangential
acceleration
r r r
⚫
F = Fr + Ft
Vertical Circle with Non-
Uniform Speed
⚫ The gravitational force
exerts a tangential
force on the object
⚫ Look at the components
of Fg
⚫ The tension at any
point can be found
v2
T = mg + cos
Rg
Top and Bottom of Circle
⚫ The tension at the bottom is a maximum
v bot
2
T = mg + 1
Rg
⚫ The tension at the top is a minimum
v top
2
T = mg − 1
Rg
⚫ If Ttop = 0, then v top = gR
Motion in Accelerated Frames
⚫ A fictitious force results from an accelerated
frame of reference
⚫ A fictitious force appears to act on an object in the
same way as a real force, but you cannot identify
a second object for the fictitious force
⚫ Remember that real forces are always interactions
between two objects
“Centrifugal” Force
⚫ From the frame of the passenger (b), a
force appears to push her toward the door
⚫ From the frame of the Earth, the car
applies a leftward force on the passenger
⚫ The outward force is often called a
centrifugal force
⚫ It is a fictitious force due to the centripetal
acceleration associated with the car’s
change in direction
⚫ In actuality, friction supplies the force to
allow the passenger to move with the
car
⚫ If the frictional force is not large enough,
the passenger continues on her initial
path according to Newton’s First Law
“Coriolis Force”
⚫ This is an apparent
force caused by
changing the radial
position of an object in
a rotating coordinate
system
⚫ The result of the
rotation is the curved
path of the ball
Fictitious Forces, examples
⚫ Although fictitious forces are not real forces,
they can have real effects
⚫ Examples:
⚫ Objects in the car do slide
⚫ You feel pushed to the outside of a rotating
platform
⚫ The Coriolis force is responsible for the rotation of
weather systems, including hurricanes, and ocean
currents
Fictitious Forces in Linear
Systems
⚫ The inertial observer (a) at rest
sees
Fx = T sin = ma
F y = T cos − mg = 0
⚫ The noninertial observer (b)
sees
F ' x = T sin − Ffictitious = ma
F ' y = T cos − mg = 0
⚫ These are equivalent if Ffictiitous =
ma
Motion with Resistive Forces
⚫ Motion can be through a medium
⚫ Either a liquid or a gas r
⚫ The medium exerts a resistive force, R , on an object
moving through ther medium
⚫ The magnitude ofr R depends on the medium
⚫ The direction of R is opposite the direction of motion
of
r the object relative to the medium
⚫ R nearly always increases with increasing speed
Motion with Resistive Forces,
cont
r
⚫ The magnitude of R can depend on the
speed in complex ways
⚫ Wer will discuss only two
⚫ R is proportional to v
r⚫ Good approximation for slow motions or small objects
⚫ R is proportional to v2
⚫ Good approximation for large objects
Resistive Force Proportional
To Speed
⚫ The
r resistive force can be expressed as
r
R = −bv
⚫ b depends on the property of the medium,
and on the shape and dimensions of the
object r
⚫ The negative sign indicates R is in the
r
opposite direction to v
Resistive Force Proportional
To Speed, Example
⚫ Assume a small sphere
of mass m is released
from rest in a liquid
⚫ Forces acting on it are
⚫ Resistive force
⚫ Gravitational force
⚫ Analyzing the motion
results in
dv
mg − bv = ma = m
dt
dv b
a= =g− v
dt m
Resistive Force Proportional
To Speed, Example, cont
⚫ Initially, v = 0 and dv/dt = g
⚫ As t increases, R increases
and a decreases
⚫ The acceleration
approaches 0 when R →
mg
⚫ At this point, v approaches
the terminal speed of the
object
Terminal Speed
⚫ To find the terminal speed,
let a = 0
mg
vT =
b
⚫ Solving the differential
equation gives
v=
mg
b
( ) (
1 − e −bt m = vT 1 − e − t )
⚫ is the time constant and
= m/b
Resistive Force Proportional
To v2
⚫ For objects moving at high speeds through air, the
resistive force is approximately equal to the square
of the speed
⚫ R = ½ DAv2
⚫ D is a dimensionless empirical quantity called the drag
coefficient
⚫ is the density of air
⚫ A is the cross-sectional area of the object
⚫ v is the speed of the object
Resistive Force Proportional
To v2, example
⚫ Analysis of an object
falling through air
accounting for air
resistance
1
F = mg −
2
D Av 2 = ma
D A 2
a = g − v
2m
Resistive Force Proportional
To v2, Terminal Speed
⚫ The terminal speed will
occur when the
acceleration goes to
zero
⚫ Solving the previous
equation gives
2mg
vT =
D A
Some Terminal Speeds
Example: Skysurfer
⚫ Step from plane
⚫ Initial velocity is 0
⚫ Gravity causes
downward acceleration
⚫ Downward speed
increases, but so does
upward resistive force
⚫ Eventually, downward
force of gravity equals
upward resistive force
⚫ Traveling at terminal
speed
Skysurfer, cont.
⚫ Open parachute
⚫ Some time after reaching terminal speed, the
parachute is opened
⚫ Produces a drastic increase in the upward
resistive force
⚫ Net force, and acceleration, are now upward
⚫ The downward velocity decreases
⚫ Eventually a new, smaller, terminal speed is
reached
Example: Coffee Filters
⚫ A series of coffee filters is
dropped and terminal
speeds are measured
⚫ The time constant is small
⚫ Coffee filters reach terminal
speed quickly
⚫ Parameters
⚫ meach = 1.64 g
⚫ Stacked so that front-facing
surface area does not
increase
Coffee Filters, cont.
⚫ Data obtained from
experiment
⚫ At the terminal speed,
the upward resistive
force balances the
downward gravitational
force
⚫ R = mg
Coffee Filters, Graphical
Analysis
⚫ Graph of resistive force
and terminal speed
does not produce a
straight line
⚫ The resistive force is
not proportional to the
object’s speed
Coffee Filters, Graphical
Analysis 2
⚫ Graph of resistive force
and terminal speed
squared does produce
a straight line
⚫ The resistive force is
proportional to the
square of the object’s
speed