MECHANICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

DJJ30093 ENGINEERING MECHANICS

REPORT
VELOCITY AND ACCELERATION PRACTICAL

NUKRIS HAKIMI BIN NORAZIZAN (10DKM20F1028)

AHMAD NUR ZAWAWI BIN AHMAD ZUHAIMI (10DKM20F1020)

RAIMI SAHLI BIN MULYADI (10DKM20F1078)

MUHAMMAD HANIS BIN HASSAN (10DKM20F1036)

Experiment : Simple Pendulum

Topic : Velocity and Acceleration

Duration : 2 Hours

1.0 Objective:

At the end of this experiment student should be able:

a) To plot a L-T2 graph using a simple pendulum.

b) To find the effective length of the simple pendulum for a
given time period using the graph.
c) To calculate the acceleration due to gravity at a place.

2.0 Theory:

An ideal simple pendulum consists of a heavy point mass (called

bob) tied to one end of a perfectly inextensible, flexible and
weightless string. In practice, we make it by tying a metallic
spherical bob to a fine cotton stitching thread.

Length of a Simple Pendulum

The distance between the point of suspension of the pendulum

and its Centre of Gravity (C.G.), which is the C.G. of the bob, is
called the length of the simple pendulum. It is represented using
the alphabet ( L ).

Time Period of a Simple Pendulum

Time period is the time taken by the bob of the simple pendulum
to make one complete oscillation. It is represented by the letter
T.
Finding the acceleration due to gravity

The time period of a simple pendulum depends on the length of

the pendulum (l) and the acceleration due to gravity (g), which is
expressed by the relation,

For small amplitude of oscillations,

If we know the value of L and T, we can calculate the

acceleration due to gravity, g.

The T2 against L graph

We can plot a graph between T2 and L by taking T2 along the Y

axis and L along the X axis. The graph is a straight line.

From the graph,

3.0 Apparatus:

a) Piece of string
b) Pendulum bob
c) Pair of small flat pieces of wood or cork
d) Retort stand with a clamp
e) Stop watch
f) Meter rule
g) Protractor
h) Optical pin
i) Pair of scissors

4.0 Procedure

a) Set up a simple pendulum as in Figure 1

Figure 1

b) Measure the length, l of the pendulum

c) Swing the pendulum at less than 10o from the vertical in

one plane and measure the time for 10 oscillations.
Repeat the operation and calculate the average value.
Then, determine the period of oscillation, T of the
pendulum.
 d) Repeat step (c) at least 5 times with different values of
length, l of the pendulum. Record the values for / and T
in Table 1.

5.0 Data Collection

Table 1

Length Time for 10 oscilations

50 15.41
60 16.52
70 18.11
80 18.86
90 20.45