COVENANT UNIVERSITY

CANAANLAND, KM 10, IDIROKO ROAD

P.M.B 1023, OTA, OGUN STATE, NIGERIA.
TITLE OF EXAMINATION: B.Sc DEGREE EXAMINATION
COLLEGE: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
DEPARTMENT: MATHEMATICS
SESSION: 2021/2022 SEMESTER: ALPHA
COURSE CODE: MAT 434 CREDIT UNIT: 3
COURSE TITLE: Classical Mechanics I
INSTRUCTION: Attempt any four (4) questions. TIME: 3 HOURS

QUESTION 1
(a) A particle of mass m moves under a force F  cx3 where c is a positive constant.

(i) Find its potential energy function, (2 marks)

(ii) If the particle starts from rest at x  a , what is the velocity at x  0 ? (2 marks)
(iii) When does the it come to rest? (2 marks)
(b) Prove that a cylindrical coordinate system is orthogonal. (6 marks)

(c) Represent the vector A  3i  2 xj  yk in cylindrical coordinates system. (5.5 marks)

QUESTION 2
(a) If the work done W  by an external force in moving a particle from point A to point B is

WAB  TB  TA and the force acting on it is conservative, prove that the total energy can be

expressed as T  V  const. (5.5 marks)

(b) Given that   2x3 y 2 z 4 , (i) obtain the value of   and (ii) Show that    2 (6 marks)
(c) Given that r  xi  yj  zk is a position vector of a point on a space curve, show that

1 r
(i) Grad     3 (3 marks)
r r

(ii) Grad  r n   nr n2 r (3 marks)

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QUESTION 3
(a) If the force F  t  acting on a particle is an explicit function of time, show that the

equation of motion takes the form

t t
1
r  t   r0  v0  t  t0    dt  F  t   dt  (6 marks)
m t0 t0

(b) The Lorentz force experienced by a charged particle moving in a uniform magnetic field
B is given as F  q  v  B  , where q is the charge, m is mass and v is velocity.

(i) Derive the necessary centripetal force that keeps the particle in a circular path, (4.5 marks)
(ii) Obtain the expression for Lamor radius of the particle. (1.5 marks)
(c) Show the transformation from cylindrical to rectangular coordinates. (5.5 marks)

QUESTION 4
a) Explain the term ‘virtual displacement’ and state the principle of virtual work. (3 marks)
b) State D’Alembert’s principle. (2 marks)
c) State the Lagrange’s equations of motion for a conservative system. (2 marks)
d) A mass m is suspended from the ceiling by a string of length l and swings back and
forth in a vertical plane under the influence of gravity g (See Figure 1). Use
Lagrange’s method to find the equation of motion. (9.5 marks)

Figure 1: Plane Pendulum

e) Is the Lagrangian formulation more advantageous than the Newtonian formulation?

Why? (1 mark)

QUESTION 5
a) State and explain Hamilton’s principle. (2.5 marks)
b) Define the Hamiltonian. When is it equal to the total energy of the system? (2 marks)
c) Derive Lagrange’s equations of motion from Hamilton’s principle. (5 marks)
d) Set-up the Hamiltonian for a simple pendulum. (8 marks)

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QUESTION 6
a) What are constraints? Discuss holonomic, Non-holonomic, Scleronomous and
Rheonomous constraints. (5 marks)
b) State constraint equations and classify the constraints for the following:
(i) Gas molecules confined in a spherical container of radius “a” (assuming the centre
of the sphere is the origin of the coordinate system); (1.5 marks)
(ii) A pendulum with an extensible string; (1.5 marks)
(iii) Sliding bead on a circular wire of radius ‘a’ in XY-plane; (1.5 marks)
(iv) A particle moving on or outside the surface of a sphere of radius (assuming that the
origin of the coordinate system coincides with the centre of the sphere); (1.5 marks)
(v) A pendulum with an inextensible string. (1.5 marks)
c) Discuss the concept of generalized coordinates with illustrations. (2 marks)
d) Consider the system shown in Figure 2.
(i) State the constraint equations for the system. (2.5 marks)
(ii) Determine the degrees of freedom (DOF) and hence state the number of generalized
coordinates for the system. (1 mark)
(You are required to state any assumptions used).

Figure 2: Triple pendulum

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