What is a Moment?

• A moment is the turning effect of a force

• Moments occur when forces cause objects to rotate about some pivot
• The moment of a force is given by
Moment (N m) = Force (N) × perpendicular distance from the pivot (m)
• The SI unit for the moment is Newton metres (N m). This may also be Newton
centimetres (N cm) depending on the units given for the distance

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

The force might not always be perpendicular to the distance

• An example of moments in everyday life is opening a door

• The door handle is placed on the other side of the door to the hinge (the pivot)
to maximise the distance for a given force and therefore provides a greater moment
(turning force)
o This makes it easier to push or pull it

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AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

The Principle of Moments

• The principle of moments states:

For a system to be in equilibrium, the sum of clockwise moments about a point must be
equal to the sum of the anticlockwise moments (about the same point)

Diagram showing the moments acting on a balanced beam

• In the above diagram:
o Force F2 is supplying a clockwise moment;
o Forces F1 and F3 are supplying anticlockwise moments
• Hence: F2 × d2 = F1 × d1 + F3 × d3

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 Worked Example
A uniform beam of weight 40 N is 5 m long and is supported by a pivot situated 2 m
from one end. When a load of weight W is hung from that end, the beam is in
equilibrium as shown in the diagram.

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

What is the value of W?

A 10 N B 50 N C 25 N D 30 N

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AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

Equilibrium

• A system is in equilibrium when all the forces are balanced. This means:
o There is no resultant force
o There is no resultant torque
• An object in equilibrium will therefore remain at rest, or at a constant velocity, and
not rotate
• The system is in an equilibrium state when applying the principle of moments.

Worked Example
Four beams of the same length each have three forces acting on them.
Which beam has both zero resultant force and zero resultant torque acting?

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AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

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 The following two diagrams show further applications of the principle of moments. The
second diagram is pespecially interesting as it shows that W in this case is independent of
the angle of the beam.
AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

Example problems
A truck is driven across a uniform bridge as shown in Figure 3. The truck has a mass of
4000 kg and the bridge is 20 m long and has a mass of 5000 kg.

(a) what is the total reaction at the supports

(b) what is the reaction (R1 and R2 ) at each support when the centre of mass of the
truck is: (i) 5 m from end A
(ii) 12 m from end A

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(a) total reaction at the supports = [5000 + 4000]g = 9000g
(b) (i) moments about end A: R2 x 20 = 4000g x 5 + 5000g x 10 = 70 000g R2 = 3500g
Therefore R1 = 9000g – 3500g = 5500g
(ii) moments about end A: R2 x 20 = 4000g x 12 + 5000g x 10 = 98 000g R2 = 4900g
Therefore R1 = 9000g – 4900g = 4100g

The following diagrams show the application of the principle of moments to two practical
cases – a crowbar lifting a rock and a claw hammer being used to remove a nail from a

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

piece of wood.

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 Consider the forces in the two diagrams above. Notice how the angles are important in
both cases.
0
AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

Figure 3:
Clockwise moment about P = 3 x 15 = 45 Figure 4:
Nm Wx2cos60 = 500x3.5cos60
Anticlockwise moment = 45 = Tcos 35 x Therefore W = 875 N and this is
1.6 independent of the angle!
Therefore: T = 34.3 N

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